The Sunday Oregonian., January 24, 1909, SECTION FOUR, Page 8, Image 38

THE SUNDAY OREGOXIAN, PORTLAND. JANUARY 24, 1909.
8
TELLS CAUSE OF
ABNORMAL TIDES
Phenomenon of Last Thursday
Along Coast Discussed by
Nautical Expert.
THREE FACTORS COMBINE
Sun. .Moon and Wind Act I'pori Pa
oific Coast Waters at Same Time,
Thus Producing a Record-
.Breakins Tide.
TIKES HIGHEST ETER KNOWN.
Th. hfsh tld of Thursday wers
th ratest known In tht history of
tr.. Paeltlc Coast. Below Astoria th.
tide flats were aubmrrrted and the
clikM -carried away. Cattle Blood for
hours In water flank deep. Cooa Bay
suffered aeverely. The dock at North
Bend waa entirely under water and
one child waa drowned while at play
on the wharf. California and Wash
ington porta were visited by the ex
ceptionally high tld-s. At tha reoust
of The Oregonian. John McKulty.
r.aatlcal expert In charge of the local
branch of the United States Hydro
graphic office, has. prepared the ac
companying article on tha peculiar
phenomena of high tides.
BT JOHX M'XULTY. NAUTICAL EXPERT.
Those who have read the newspaper
accounts of the extraordinary high tide
which swept the North Pacific Coast on
Thursday last hare noted one of the
most Interesting and least known of
tiie phenomena of nature. They have
prolu.bly asked themselves what caused
such an unusual manifestation of na
ture's forces. It Is upon this very ques
tion that the men of the United States
Jlydrographlc ofTice have been ordered
to rather data for the studying of the
phenomenon known as great sea waves.
Commander Wlnterhaltcr. hydro-
frapher of the United States Navy, has
lately laid oat certain special subjects
for his office to make original re
search upon and in time, from the re
ports upon this wonderful and baffling
chase laws will be developed which
will Intelligently show all that we ran
know of these tidal waves, as they are
generally called. For the work of the
Hvdrographlc office It Is fortunate that
this great water-rise happened at this
time. Just after this work has been
taken up. for It cannot help but bring
in an unusual fund of Information not
carefully saved heretofore.
However, all the causes for this tidal
phenomenon are not written In a sealed
book. Nature helps those who help
themselves, and mankind Is curious;
this combination hu caused him to ob
serve, philosophize and reduce to laws
and harness with mathematics many
of the elements which go to produce
tidal waves. Some of them, which have
acted In this last show of nature. I
have been requested to write about.
What a Tidal Wave Is.
Scientifically speaking, a tidal wave
Is that wave caused by the attraction
of the sun or moon and Is not any
very large wave which may devastate
a coast. There may be said to be three
different typos of great sea waves.
vlx.: Tidal waves, seismic waves or
those caused by earthquakes, and
another type caused by winds banking
the waters up against a coast Of the
seismic waves, the most famous exam
ple is that at Lisbon. Portugal. In 1755,
when 100.001) people were drowned by
a series of seismic waves following an
earthquake, ranging from 30 to 60 feet
In i.eight The type caused by winds
banking the water has been exper
rnced within a few years at Galveston,
Tex., when Galveston Island was del
uged by the water piling up before a
terrific wind blowing up the Gulf of
Mexico and the city was rartlally
destroyed with many Inhabitants. The
writer of this article was personally
acquainted with the latter catastrophe
sml had rare opportunity to observe
Its (lestructlhlUty
According to the very hasty study
of this Inundation of the Oregon coast
that this office has been able to make,
and In view of the fact that many of
the most important points for scien
tific consideration are missing up to
ilate. a finelv-bnlancej exposition Is Im
possible. The Hvdrographlc office has
alrea-lv taken steps to gather neces
rary data. However, from what Is sc
tuallv known. It can be stated that
there are two great factors which did
act In producing this phenomenon and
a third, which it is quite possible may
lis-o been Instrumental. These are the
con ttinctlvo action of the sun and moon
for one. and the meteorological condi
tions for the other, and the possibility
of submarine seismic disturbances for
the third.
, Attraction in Water.
At noon. Astoria clock time, the right
ascension of the moon waa on Thursday
last. 9 hours, minutes. 40.19 seconds.
and the right ascension of the sun was
20 hours. 13 minutes. 25.S2 seconds, which
the Inynian can see are only approxi
mately six minutes apart, tnat or tne
moon belns sooner. This right ascension
Is one of the two measurements which
astronomer use to state the position of
all heavenly bodies. Right ascension Is
the distance around the sky. stated in
simple language, from a certain point
known as the first point of Aries, which
Is the astronomical ml lr post- It is a
point in the constellation of stars called
Aries and Is the point opposite to the
sun. In the sky. when the sun Is cross
ing the equator In tha Spring, and the
bear looks for his shadow. As the earth
turns around once every 24 hours, this
point will pass the town of Astoria at
the end of each 4H hours.
The earth turned the number of hours
given above after Astoria waa even with
this mllepost. then It found both the
s in and moon very near together and
only about six minutes of earth-turn
apart. Now this fact la most important.
The earth Is attracted by the moon and
the sun also, and when they are each
In the same right ascension, they both
attract together. This attraction upon
the water, because it Is liquid, causes It
to rise tomard the point where the two
bodies axe situated, then the earth turns
and thla rise of water stays where It Is,
the different Islands turn Into It as they
go along on the surface of the earth,
and when they reach the risen water. It
Is said to be high tide. The sun's tide
la only -4S8 times as high as the moon
"tide.
The next thing noticeable Is that the
sun's and the moon's declination (distance
aiove or below the equator) was almost
the same. They were both south of the
equinoctial, that is. In south declination,
the moon was in 23:1S:0O.!6. approximately,
and the sun in 1:M : a. This further
concentrated their attractive powers, as
may be seen, which would cause a still
higher rise of tides. So, briefly speaking,
the right ascension of the sun and moon
and the declination of the sun and moon
were both favorable to a very high tide
at Astoria and brought about what is
known as a Spring tide In navigation.
Another Interesting thing was the fact
that the moon was approaching the po
sition known as perigee, or the nearest
position to the eartli which she holds
during the lunar Month. 0 ne moon would
be In exact perTgee on January 23. As
the tendency to produce tides at a given
station varies directly as the mass of the
disturbing body and Inversely as the cube
of the body's distance from tne earth's
center, one can easily see how every mile
that the moon la nearer the earth the
tide will raise greatly.
Now to sum up the astronomical lac
tors, the right ascension of the sun and
moon and the declination of the same, to-
gethes with the close proximity of perigee.
of the moon, all exerted an unusually
rreat attraction upon the waters of the
Pacific Ocean and produced a tide which
was felt all along the Pacific Coast, In
eluding Astoria, Or., of which I am speak
lug particularly.
Meteorological Factors Enter.
The next factor which is known to have
been Instrumental Is the meteorological
conditions. A cyclonic storm approached
from the ocean, from the westward. A
cyclonic storm has two motions, one of
rotation, in which the air files around
a circle which may oe from 100 to 1500
miles In radius. The center of this circle
will have a low barometric pressure, be
cause the winds are banked up around
the edge Just as In a basin, when the
water Is whirling around, the water is
shallow In the center. Now the pressures
of tills cyclonic storm are known. At
If.
n
. '' - ' '" 1
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. ... .. ftl jil IS j
Joh a Meulty. Nautical Kxpert In
Charge of Hraarh I ailed Males
Hydra-graphic Office.
North Head, Wash., on the morning of
January IS. the barometer showed 29.96
inches. In the evening it showed 29.M
inches, quite a drop. For January 19 and
10 the barometer waa as follows:
Date. A. M. P. M.
January 19 29 .:S 9
January 20 29 -0 29.04
For January 21, the day under discus
sion, the wires were down and the
United States Weather Bureau did not
reoelve the reports. Now the total drop
of pressure was from 29.70 to 29.04 Inches.
At Marahfleld the highest pressure show
ing during that prtod was 30.16 Inches In
the morning of January 18.
As this was the same cyclone, we see
the drop In pressure was from 30.16 to
29.04 Inches of mercury. Or from the
morning of the lth to the evening of the
2ftth It dropped 1.12 Inches of mercury.
The greatest rate of drop that we know
of was on the 20th and was .66 Inches Jn
ten hours. This grat drop means a les
sening of 40.019 tons to a square mile.
Just the same as if that many tons pres
sure were removed from the surface ot
the sea and at the same time an increase
In the attraction of the sun and moon
were made, as I have already said. Is it
any wonder that the sea rose to such a
height as to overflow docks ana destroy
property? '
Coupled to and inseparable iroin mis
was the wind. The wind Is nothing more
than the air flowing Into this area of low
pressure from n area of high pressure
in order to produce equilibrium. This
flow of air literally pushed the waters up
against the coast and added another
quantity to the tlilal Wave already
formed. This was the case at tratvestun.
with the exception of the tidal factor.
Submarine Earthquakes Factor.
The third point to be considered is
the possibility of submarine earth
quakes. A submarine earthquake drops
the bottom In the sea or raises It. In
either case there Is an elevation of
water which flows outward from the
center of disturbance and sometimes
covers Islands and coasts. In the case
where the bottom drops out. the action
Is more complex, taking place as fol
lows: The bottom drops out. due to in
ternal explosions and displacement of
the material, leaving a weakened earth
crust. The weight of the miles of water
resting upon this breaks it through.
This lowers the surface of the
water of the ocean. Water flows In to
fill this to preserve its level. Its Im
petus brings more than is necessary.
and It retroacts In the form of a cir
cular wave from the center to the sur
rounding shores, then back again, keep
ing this oscillation up until equilibrium
Is established.
There have been many earthquakes
In different parts of the world., but as
to whether" there have been any In po
sition to afTect this particular wave,
we do not knos. Last year a terrific
wave at sea nearly destroyed the Nor-
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weglan steamship Admiral Borreson off
the Hawaiian Islands. This must have
been one of the seismic type; as like
waves are frequently experienced at
sea and on many coasts of the world. It
Is quite probable that there may have
been such an action In this case.
To sum up the causes, we And that
the wave was due to three astronom
ical causes: The moon, being so near
perigee: the declination of the sun and
moon being so nearly alike, and the
right ascension of both being almost at
the same position all these combining
to produce a very high Spring tide.
The meteorological reasons are that
the barometric pressure was such as to
produce a high wind, which pushed the
water against the coast, augmenting
the tidal wave greatly. This lighten
ing of pressure allowed the water to
rise to an appreciable extent also. The
third cause was that of the probable
submarine earthquake.
lUIINE FORGING AHEAD
SLOT IMPROVEMKXTS PRO
JECTED IX PIONEER TOWN".
Mayor Streib In First Public Mes
sage Tells of Rapid Progress
That I Ucingr Made.
With the new city administration
sworn In the pioneer town of Mllwau-
Vle takes advanced steps. Philip
fr-trelb. the new Mayor, In. his first mes
sage to the people, set forth a general
plan of public Improvement. He calls
attention to the need of Improved
streets, and urges property-owners to
take the Initiative In the improvement
of streets and sidewalks. Mayor
Streib suggests that steps be taken to
establish grades of streets as soon as
the Southern Pacific Railway Company
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,as decided on Its route through Mll-
waukle. . . , .
"for streets will be requirea as ui
territory builds up." continued the
Mayor, "and the town can iook 10 tin
. i .i .nxniiraFA n ii H render
HaminiHLiaLiuii -
assistance towards the opening of such
new streets as win necomu a puuuu ne
cessity, v In case the Southern Pacific
Railroad builds Its new line, as pro
jected, and a depot be maintained. It
may be of trreat convenience to have
a public street parallel the railroad
right-of-way. and this matter should
be .considered when the opportunity
it.Alf T have nn rinilht the
company will be perfectly willing- to
erect ana maintain a qpihh annum.
and passengers. This, at the same
time, would give us an express office,
which is very much needed. The ad
ministration will take p this matter
with the Southern Pacific Company.
"It might also be proper at this time
to secure suitable grounds for a public
park, as land will never be lower In
price. The steady growth of our town
demands that steps be taken in this
direction. No better use could be made
of the lower floor of the town hall
than to fit It up as a public library and
reading-room."
Already steps have been ' taken to
carry out Mayor Strelb's recommenda
tion In regard to the library for M1I
waukle, and It will he opened In about
a month, under the auspices of the
Mothers' and Teachers' Club. The First
State Bank of Mllwaukie will begin
business In four weeks, all the capi
tal stock having been taken and offi
cers elected. Mayor Streib was chosen
for the office of President. The wood
pulp sawmill Is now completed, and
will shortly start operations, and The
shingle mill has enlarged Its plant.
A number of new houses are being
built In the town.
Too Big for Patriotism.
CHICAGO, Jan. 23. Patriotism of the
"good old kind" is antiquated and prac
tically worthless In these modern times,
according to Francis W. Parker, In art
address last night to the Sons of tha
American Kevolution. At least this la
the case in the United States, he said,
because the United States is too bis;
to be loved. He declared that no Amer
ican loves his land In the same way
that the Swiss and the Norwegians lovo
their lands.
"Neither," continued the speaker,
"have we Americans any dynasties to
love and around which to center our
love of country. We cannot love the
house of Roosevelt or the house ot
Dencen or of J. Hamilton Lewis."
Shoes at factory cost. Rosenthal's.
Chinook Causes Flood
$50,000 Worth of Dry Good Dam
aged in Shanahan'a Eig
TMrd-St. Store.
The sudden thaw that came on yes
terday morning played havoc with
Lawrence Shanahan's big stock of
drypoods on Third street. The severe
frost froze all the water pipes and
eavft troughs, and when the chinook
wind came the pipes could not thaw
out. fast enough, as they were covered
with a thick coat of ice; The conse
quence was that the water came
down in torrents through the second
and first floors and into the base
ment, where the immense stock in
kept. About $.50,000 worth of
cloaks, suit, ladies' underwear, ho
siery, gloves, sheeting, blankets, com
forters, men's furnishings, notions
ribbons, laces, men's underwear, cal
icoes, ginghams, percales, lawns and
other goods were -damaged more or
less, and the staff of clerks had an
exciting time removing the stock as
best they could to places of safety.
Journal.
Shanahan's Flooded
Big Stock of Drygoods Damaged by
Snow Water.
The eaves troughs of the building
on Third street occupied by L. Shana
han, the drypoods merchant, v were
frozen during the late cold spell and
when the thaw set in the water was
unable to run off through this chan
nel, with the result that it soaked
through the ceiling and damaged a
large portion of the stock on both
floors and basement. Mr. Shanahan
stated that about $50,000 worth of
all kinds of goods were more or less
damaged. Oregonian and Telegram.
The accompanying reprints taken from
the daily papers of recent date show good
and sufficient reason for the extraordinary val
ues we are offering.
-$50,000 Worth of Mer
chandise Was Damaged
This calamity to our stock came at a time
when the price . on all our merchandise was
marked low on account of Retiring Sale and
now when we say to you that the prices in all
departments are cut way below the Retiring
Sale prices, you'll understand the importance
of this announcement. Everybody Read.
Everybody Come. Everybody Buy
LAWRENCE SHANAHAN
STORE FLOODED
i
Damage estimated at $20,000 was
caused the stock of Shanahan's big
store last night through a flood that
came through the roof when the even
ing thaw was well under way.
The Shanahan store has a 50-foot
front that is but a single story in
height, and when this great bank of
snow started to melt it had no outlet,
because the escape pipes were frozen.
The result was that the load centered
on the weak spot in the roof and then
came through on the goods in the
front of the store, the most valuable
goods in stock: -
The front wall of the store is some
three feet above the level of the roof
and this served as a dam that backed
up the water from the melting snow.
Not only did the water spoil the goods
on the top -floor, but the backing
floods went on through to the base
ment and, finding no way of escape
there, formed a lake as big as tlae
basement and constantly deepening.
Even yet the damage is increasing,
because there is still no way of escape
from the roof waters, and until the
snow entirely melts the streams will
keep coming through the roof, filter
ing down to the basement and there
adding inch by inch to the cellar pool..
Daily News.
144-146 Third Street
Bet. Morrison and Alder
S