Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1902-09-04
UTILITY OF VOLCANIC FORCES
Earth Would Become uninhabitable
Without Them.


However appalling the catastrophe
was which was caused by tho recent
eruption of Mount Pelee, ON the
island of Martinique, in the Carib
bean sea; however disastrous :he
eruptions of other volcanes in pas,
times have been; however terrific in
their effect earthquakes caused by
the same internal forces, have been
and likely will be, they perform very
important functions in the economy
OF nature. Strange and almost cyni.
cal as it may sound, in the face of
the recent lamentable occurrence
and in the memory of such volcanic
eruptions and earthquakes as those
or Mount Vesuvius and Lisbon, it is,
nevertheless, an indisputable fact
that, were the actions of these de
slructive forces to die cut, the earth
would soon cease to be fit for the
habitation of living beings. That
outburst of Mount Vesuvius in A. d.
70, which, in a few hours, laid III
ashes three cities in one of the most
beautiful and mos; densely inhabrt.
ed regions of Italy, could not bat
send a thrill of horror throu hcut
the vast Roman Empire and stir vi
the hearts of even those ,who were
rot given to sentiment and easil,
accessible to feelings of compassion
! Most people remember the tremend
GUS outburst of the volcano of Kra
katoa in 1888, which destroyed com
pletely 1913 villages, and PARTIAL,
1872, and killed $3.50 human bel lg
The tremendous earthquake of Lis
bon in 1775, which came without an,
warning, killed 10000 people; and
PORTION of the earth's surface foc
times as large as Europe felt the Ell
feet of the seismic shock. which ex
tended to the Alps, the shores of tn,
| Baltic, the lakes of Scotland, tn,
Great Lakes of North America, an,
the West Indian Islands. Three
years after the eruption of Krakatoa
an earthquake visited us in our owl
country that wrought such harm &c
lHe CITY Oh charleston,
While such events could not bu,
engender feenngs OF horror, anxiety
and insecurity in the whole world
II is, after all, the small and unno.
ticed agencies at work upon the
earths crust that in the long run
produce far grander effects. In con.
sequence of the denuding, silent and
imperceptible action of atmospheric
moisture and frost incessant disin.
tegration of the solid rock masses il
going on, compared with which the
noisy cataract and the majestic
ocean pillows are insignificant. 1t
has been calculated that a time mus
come when in consequence Of these.
silent forces the land masses of the
earth VIII be reduced to the level Of
the sea. Were it not for the com.
pensating forces in the earth's crust
this period would be very much
shortened, and thus far for the per.
petration of those conditions nv
which the earth is fitted to be the
habitation of living beings all these
tremendous energies of subterrane.
Gus forces manifesting themselves
by earthquakes and volcanic out.
bursts become matter of absolute
necessity. The problem of the du.
ration of our globe as an abode of
living beings is one of the grandes;
that present themselves to the hu.
man mind. There are limits set 70
existence of such organic life on the
earth as we know 1t. The exist.
eDce OF the earth and of all pIanets
that are not yet, like our satelllte
burnt out, waterless and airless
masses, as DEMONSTRATING bodies. is
threatened from above and here b..
low. A time must come when th.
sun will no longer be able to furnish
us the amount of light and hea,
necessary for our existence. and al.
50 time win come when the denuo
ing forces of the atmosphere will nc
icpgeT be counteracted by the su,,
terranean forces of the earth's crus,
IL Is true. such periods as tbese o,
tend over millions of years. but--
ana herein lies lesson which the
TWO grand sciences of astronomy
ana geology teach us-what are mil
mons OF years compared with eteru
n.y. After all. no more than feet.
ing moments. Despite. then. the ap
parent conflict between science and
iehgion, which at the present time
Is SO much harped upon, the former
suggests the very fundamental idea
o. me latter-an eternal life after a
transitory life. life in which there
is no decay after an existence of IN.
cessant changes and gradual decay
ending in the permanent death Of al