Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1916-06-09
) WASHINGTON GOSSIP
4 llnnIo CaKa,c MQIc CoxrxiNe

|
o Uncle Sans Volcano Service o
o o o o o o o o Q o
Washington, June 6.-The passage
by the House recent of bill max
ing a national park out of the noun
| tain, Mauna Loa, in Hawaii brings
to light the fact that Uncle Sam is
| about to go into the volcanic erup-
ton and earthquake prediction bust
ness Your Uncle Sam does not
pretend to be a seer or seventh
son, but he does have certain facts
at his disposal to convince him that
volcanic eruptions and certain kinds
of earthquakes can be predicted
with reasonable accuracy. The first
work will probably be done at Mauna
Loa, although there are more vol
canoes on American soil than on
any other.
AS matter of fact, the first pre-
diction for Mauna Loa has already
been made The forecast is that
Mauna Loa will have a dangerous
eruption next January. If this fore
cast fails, then the eruption will
come in June, 1917.
This prediction is made by Har-
ward scientists who have been study
ing the eccentricities Of Mauna Loa
for about six years. They have dis
covered that the volcano has GER
tain regular periods of uneasiness
Different phenomena appear in a
regular order that requires about ten
years to complete a cycle. On the
basis of these observations the Har
ward scientists predicted earthquakes
at Mauna Loa last year, and the
quakes came just as scheduled.
The next thing to be expected of
this volcano is a flow of lava about
two years after the earthquakes.
This flow will come either in Janu7
airy or June, because then the
squeeze" of gravitation on the
earth's crust, caused at the time
when sun and moon are both clos
est to the earth, is likely to touch
off the volcano. These times of
greatest squeeze are in January and
June 1t is declared in the predic-
ton that the town of Hilo, with
5000 inhabitants, will be endangered
by the coming lava flow. 1t is ex-
pected that the Hawaiian govern
ment will move the inhabitants of
the town away when the eruption is
about due.
Uncle Sam has many volcanoes,
in California, in Alaskan peninsula,
and in the Philippine Islands, as we'll
as number of others morally his
in the territory near the Panama
Canal. If the Mauna Loa prediction
is successful it is likely that reg
ular volcano prediction service will
be established as part of the wealth
err bureau
With the beginning of June, wash
ingtOnians will have the opportunity
of hearing the famous Marine band
in free concert-a privilege for which
denizens of other cities pay as
much as 81 'per" when this band
of more than a hundred pieces is on
tour of the country.
1t is the custom of years standing
for the band to give a free concert
in front of the Capitol, each
Wednesday afternoon, when visitors
to the city and government en-
ployees gather in every nook and
corner of the front of the building
to listen to Uncle Sans musicians.
The members of the band wear blue
coats and white duck trousers. Sat
urday afternoon, the band plays on
the private grounds of the White
House, the gates to which are thrown
open to the public. 1t was as di-
rector of the Marine band that John
Philip Sousa first came into the
limelight.