New-York tribune., 1902-08-31

most satisfactory for water OF. say. about
twenty fathoms."
Mr.. Hovey expressed astonishment at the re-
port of pumice shower in Baltimore. '.Balti-
mOre?" said he. Baltimore Maryland? Pumice
in Baltimore? Oh. I should prefer 10 see that re-
ported with greater responsibility and detail
I'm afraid there must have been some coal ash
in the air. The shock the other day in California
is decidedly interesting. OF course. that whole
country is lined with old volCanOes-nOt old In a
geological sense. Some Of them have cinder
cones as fresh Mount Vesuvius But though
shocks are not uncommon, these seem TO have
been unusually severe. Still I cannot see any
valid connection in a geological way between
these phenomena and the trouble in the Wind
ward Islands. It takes good deal of fact to
establish such a relationship. and I don't see t.
in this case.
You see. volcanoes are usually found IN a
line, and this may be taken TO Indicate weak
nesses in the earth's crust at such plaC S. But
It Is in no way necessary 10 suppOse-in fact II
is rather fantasticaI to say-that these lines OF
weak structure have any INSTRUMENTATION.
Eruption is sometimes extremely capricious and
sometimes almost periodic. F1ilauea. for in
stance is a peculiar volcano. with a tendency to
dll up and break loose at varying periods. The
Windward Islands are a volcanic group. From
saba, in the north OF the line, down they are
volcanic in origin. with one or two exceptions
Barbados for instance is a coraline island like
the BermUdas. OF course. il is not remarkable
that eruptions should be experienced there in a
volcanic group from time to time. The wonder
is that when evidences Of trouble begin TO show
themselves the people still stay. Many people
this last time foresaw danger and stayed
strangely inactive till their doom overlook
them; correspondence that has since come to
light. letters written the spot few days be-
fore, show this People asked me while we were
there what was going to happen whether the
previous horrors were to be repeated. I always
sad TO answer that I was a geologist not a
prophet. But if I had been in St Pierre when
the volcano began its fireworks. on April 23
should have got out then and there.
1t is the same with any attempt to prognosti-
cate for the whole planet. All these manifesto
tions since the Martinique trouble may mea-
something portentous. but there is nothing ~
themselves TO show a geOlogist that they do. l.
.1oks very much like the ordinary OF affairs.
made noticeable by the impression OF the lat
-ragedy. / should say that, on the whole, vol
caEic conditions were normal
From the geologic standpoint Pompeii Is not
much further of than Martinique But 1t is a
mistake TO measure these things in anthropo-
centric measure. The geologic period in which
human history is comprised is an extremely
quiet one Mechanically. Occasional oUtbUrsts
occur. They may be devastating TO human life
and handiwOrk. but they do not often produce
much effect in earth structure. There have
often been periods in geologic times when enor-
nous work done by volcanic action, but now
il is merely n local disorder at some given point
an exhibition in miniature OF the processes that
used TO be vast and general