The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1924-11-26


The village Of Someo, Switzerland
largely destroyed by O. landslide re
Gently, is the victim Of a force thai
has been at work reshaping the face Of
the earth since the first mountains
were built.
II Is the younger mountain systems
geologically speaking, which are most
subject to these rock avalanches. Thus
the Himalayas, which represent but
infant industries, though lusty ones, in
the mountain building line, have a
way, like other youngsters of imma-
ture character, of tumbling about in a
wholesale fashion which would result
In great catastrophes were their
slopes and valleys populated to any
great extent.
Sir William Conway describes the
matter of a little shifting of rock
which caused the formation of Gonna
lake, in the central Himalayas, where
the spur of a large mountain mass
pitched bodily into the valley below.
The front of the mountain had been
undermined by springs until there was
no longer sufficient support, and in the
twinkling of an eye a large part of
the mountain slid down and shot
across the valley, damming its river
with a lofty and impervious wall.
Masses of rock were hurled a mile
away, blocks of limestone weighing 80
to SO tons being sent through the air
like huge cannon shots. 1t is esti-
mated that this slide carried with 1t
SO0.O00,000 tons of rock and debris.
Plenty of Himalayan landslips quite
as extensive as this have been re-
corded in the last half century.
Aside from the study of landslides
with reference to the safety of human
life, there is economic value in their
investigation as bearing upon mans
search for the precious metals. The
geologist and the mining engineer look
for gold or other metalliferous deposits
in certain rock strata, and in ordinary
mountain formations these strata are
fairly regular; at least their positions
can be determined. There may be
rock faults, but these the keen geol-
ogist can trace. However, it is evident
that even men who are supposed to see
down q thousand feet into the earth's
crust must be perplexed when the
surface of mountain slides OFF, and
two or three strata come tumbling
down to pile up on the slopes and the
to a depth of from ten to sew
eral hundred feet. This chaotic con-
dition Of the rocks in landslide area
is therefore the despair of the miner
and most trying even to the expert
enced geologist.
To realize the terrific effect of re-
cent landslides, when associated with
human activities one must turn to the
accounts of such catastrophes as the
great Elm landslide in Switzerland in
1881, OF the Frank slide in Alberta in
1908.
The Elm Catastrophe.
The town Of Elm is the highest vii
age in the Sernf meadow. Over
shadowing II rose the steep Platten-
,ergkopf, the outmost buttress Of 4
greater mountain mass. About half
way up this hill was nne slate bed
Which was mined in 4 careless manner
or school States crack began to
orm above the mine steadily viden-
ng. and splitting the top Of the hill
I grew to he over IL feet wide, swal-
owing up all surface drainage. Every
me seemed to have agreed that tho |
mountain would ultimately fall. but |
10 one thought the danger imminent. |
locks began to fall at intervals. Sep |
ember II was n rainy Sunday. Rock |
masses kept falling. and the mountain
roaned and rumbled. People gath
red at the foot of the tailoring rocks '
0 watch the falls. Many were inter
eft the villagers then stood viewing
n impending CONFUSION that not all
ne human engineering ability in the
-orfd could avert.
Suddenly mass of the mountain
roke away from the east siIa of the
crashed down over
le slate quarry and spread out upon
he flat Seventeen minutes later q
,cond and larger rock mass crashed
Onward from the west side. The
lshes made by the two united below
le peak and left its enormous mass
plated and unsupported. Then four
inutcs later. as If pausing only to
itch its breath for the final plunge,
ose who were watching the noun
in from a distance beheld the whole I
,per portion of the Plattenhergkopf
1O.OOO,0OO cubic meters of rock {
dderly shoot from the hillside. The ! {