Rock Island Argus., 1902-11-01

! Robert Il. Hill.
In view of the recent eruptions of
the Soufriere on st. Vincent island the
following article Oh the relation of the
moons phases to eruptions by Robert
L. Hill. the famous geologist, is of
timely interest. He says to the Wash
ington correspondent of the New York
Herald:
| If we should enter the field of specu-
lation, it would not be difficult to con-
| ceive that the moon may influence the
periods Of eruption in an intermittent
volcano. 1t is not discordant with any
of the great modern theories of vol
canisn to believe that the moons at
traction should influence the times OF
eruption. The influence of the moons
attraction upon the tides and the maxi
mum tide produced at the times of
perigee are generally accepted by scien-
tific men, although disputed by some.
1t is a well known fact that when
the tide rises and falls on the seacoast
many million tons of water are brought
alternately nearer and farther from
the land. Accordingly. n pendulum
suspended within Il hundred miles of
the seacoast should respond to the at
traction of the sea water, swinging
toward the sea at high water and away
from it at low water
Since this rise and fall has a lunar
periodicity the pendulum should swing
in the same period, even if the direct
attraction of the moon did not affect
it. Accordingly. the whole coast line
IL
tide. George Howard Darwin, in his
admirable book on THE Tides has
Investigated these displacements and
studied not only the effect upon the
water, but made calculations of the
actual fitting of the coast line by the
rising tide.
Since the force which produces the
tides also warps the earth's crust, ii is
by no means impossible or improbable
that volcanic activity, which is at
tributed to changes of pressure on the
earth's crust. may not be seriously af-
fected by these forces.
The relation between volcanoes and
the moon is one concerning which there
is a great field for speculation, but
upon which we have very little data.
The relation of the recent West Indian
eruptiOns TO the moon is OF especial in
tereSt because of certain remarkable CO
incidenceS which are at least worthy Of
investigation, and unfortunately. as /
have already remarked, no accurate
systematic observations have been
made upon the present cruptions in the
West Indies.
American scientific men and institu-
tions financially able TO conduct such
observations seem singularly apathetic
to making them. In the first place,
there have been no detailed records
kept of the eruptions of st. Vincent
and Martinique in order to ascertain
their periodicity. intensity or relations
to the tides. moon. etc. We hear only
of those eruptions which destroy life
or frighten the people.
Others which are perhaps equally
great. but which blow away to sea
from the uninhabitable portions of the
islands, are unrecorGed. Hence it is
utterly impossible to make careful
comparison of the time of these erup-
tions with the phases of the moon.
Notwithstanding the limited data at
hand there have been several coinci-
dences between the phases of the moon
and the West Indian volcanic eFuptiOns
which justify serious reflection.
Some of these condolences are as fol-
lows: On May Z. 1902. the day of the |
outbreak inI St Vincent and the one i'm
mediately preceding the destruction of |
st. Pierre. there was new moon. On
May 21. just following the second great |
outbreak, there was full moon. On |
Oct. 1G. approXimating the present out |
break. there was also full moon.
The relations of the phases of the |
moon at the date of the other out
breaks are not at hand. No serious |
however, would positively |
state that the phases of the moon were |
in any way connected with the vol
canic disturbances although shortly |
after new and full moons high water
is higher and low water lower.
We might also look for coincidence
between the periods of apogee and
perigee Tor greatest and least dis
tances) of the moon from the earth at
the time of the eruptions. On April %.
when the cloud of smoke first became
noticeable from Mont
Pelee. the moon was in apogee. or at
it's greatest distance from the earth.
The eruptions continued in intensity
as the moon approached the earth. the
great catastrophe occurring on May 3.
just six hours after the moon had
reached perigee, or its closest point to
the earth. On June > the moon was
again in perigee. but the writer has
not at hand the data to say whether
or no any serious eruptions occurred at
this time.
Neither have l any data concerning
the perigce of July 3. On Aug. % the
moon was again in perigee. and. If !
correctly. on Aug. 80 there
was another great eruption on both
and st. Vincent, resulting
In tho da. til Of sor,n two Thousand