Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-03-08
BRtDGED AN OCEAN.
The Lost Atlantis That Was SwaI-
lowed by the Sea.


Far out beyond tn" Pillars of Her
cules where the Atlantic ocean
stretches broad and deep today men of
imagination like to believe there lies a
buried kingdom. The sea washes over
it's once fertile plains, and creatures Of
the deep float in ard out among its
topless towers. SeaWced and silt nave
buried it's temples for l0.0oa years.
Here scientists of a romantic turn Will
tell vol. lies the lost island Of Allan
tis, where once there ruled the richest
and most powerful OF the earth. I
world power While wolves still hoWled
upoa tie seven hills of Rome and the
glory that WAS Greece lay yet I'M
dreamed
I}ut today all thai remains Of the
LOST, kingdom is little group OF islands,
the u.N2ores: mountain tops these that
were not wholly overwhelmed when
the proud island sank into tie sea
Many years ago an Irish man. Ignatius
Donnelly, who possessed an active inn
agitation and = mind which worked
along interesting and unusual lines.
wrote book about Atlantis, in which
he proved, To his own satisfaction at
least. that the lost kingdom really ex=
isted and WIS net a fable.
The earliest authentic Information
about this mystery land We find in
Plato. who averrcd he had II from MS
ndfather. Solon. the famous law
piTer who had spent some years
among the Egyptians. Plato told Of Il
great continent which had existed 5000.
years before lying te the west of the
pillars of Hercules and making war
upon the nations to The cas-; Only
Athens and Egypt Were able to with
stand tie onslauehts Of the Atlantans.
and then suddenly. IN a day and
night, the island was overwhelmed
and sank into the sea. This was the
story SCION had from The Egyptians
and which his grandson wrote down,
and the legend has persisted ever since.
Diodorus Sicuius, ii Roman writer,
tells how the Phocnicans discovered
"a large island in the Atlantic oces II
between the Pillars OF Hercules. sew
erai days sail from the coast Of Afri-
ca. This island ahounded in all man.
ncr of riches, The soil was exec edinely
fertile. The scenery was diversified by
rivers, mountains and forests. 1t was
the custom of the inhabitants II retire
during the summer 10 magnificent
country houses. which stood in the
Mast OF beautiful gardens. Fish and
game We're found in great abundance.
the climate was delicious and the trees
bore greet crops Of fruit at ali seasons
uk>the year.
by R-it nd
American vessels nave shown conclu-
sN ely that surrounding the Azores
there is 4 submerged plateau, which it
does not reqlire much imagination To
identify With the "ruch plain mention
ed by Plato From this lost continent
Dcnnelly believed that ridges of land
ran To Tie pre sent coasts of South
America and Africa. originally. 50 that
before the time of which Plato wrote
the eastern and western hem.spheres
vera connected by land. Thus he ac-
counted ior many similarities in the
plants ard animals of the two hemis-
pheres which otherwise arc Very diff
ficUlt to explain.
E he continent as described by Plato
was mountainous but was surrounded
ny Ndst itftlIe pains. ii was rich in
precious metals and had numerous
temples of statues Of gold and silver
ana ivory.
In the sudden and violent destrue
ton Of Atlantis. in one dreadful day
ana night. DonnelN believed he saw
TIC origin Of tho legend Of the deluse
SO universal among the followers of all
religions. The Biblical deluge, The flood
in which the Greeks believed. from
winch only Deukalion and Pyrrha es
capped, the overflow which ChaIdean
ieSends tell of all these, Donnelly be-
heVed, had their foundation in the de.
struction Of Atlantis.
Plato tells us that the race of rho
Atlantans had fallen from their biob
estate and committed sins. and tbc
Zeus determined to overwhelm thom
An earthquake preceded the sinls;n.~
Of the land, and there came sreat
storm which brought tn sea rushing in
over the cnce fruitful land.
Before this deluge Atlantis was tho
greatest power in the world. DonnelIv
SAID. Not only had it made war aa.,inst
the infant nations of Europe, conouer.
ing France and Spain and Africa as
far as the Nile. but colonies were es-
tabltshed in Mexico. in Central America
and along the valley of the Mississippi.