A DARK DAY IN CANADA.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3147, 29 July 1881, Page 4

A DARK DAY IN CANADA.

What was the strangest occurrence that ever happened in the history of this country wbb what has been always known as the * Phenomenon of 1819.' On the morning of Sunday, November 8, 1819, the sun rose upon a cloudy sky, which assumed, as the light grew upon it, a strange greenish tint, varying in places to an inky blackness. After a short time' tho whole sky hocame terribly dark, dense blaok clouds filling the atmosphere, and there followed a heavy shower of rain, which appeared to be something of the nature of soapsuds, and was found to have deposited, after settling, a substance in all its qualities resembling soot. Late in the afternoon the sky cleared to its natural aspect, and the next day was fine and frosty. On the morning of Tuesday the 10th heavy clouds again covered the sky, and changed rapidly from a deep green to a pitchy black, and the sun, when occasionally seen through them, was sometimes of a dark brown, or an unearthly yellow color, and again bright orange, and even blood red. The clouds constantly deepened in color and density, and later on a heavy vapor seemed to descend to the earth, and the day became almost as dark as night, the gloom increasing and diminishing most fitfully. At noon lights had to he burned in the nonrfhonue, thp banks, nnd publio oflW? of t l »p pif.v wna more or lp=<= -darmed, and many were the conjectures as to the pause of the remarkable occurrence. V 'oore sensible thought that immense w<r> 4 s ot prainVs wnro nn fire sompwberp to *he west; others said that a great volcano ..-*■■ haTP brokpn out in tho province; 'hers asserted that our mountain :.-. nxtinet crater about to rosnme ■ ■-■ • > and to make of the city a ; . ..'. 'V.-npeii; the superstitious quntpd -.•. '.' nronhppy—tbat one day the '.'•i. 'of M.vritrpal was to be destroyed by ~,, «.(vr»V(.}i.i„lce ; and some oven cried that that the world was about to come to an end. A bi.mt the middle of the afternoon a great body of clouds seemed to rush suddenly over the city, and the darkness became that of night. A pause and a hush for a moment or two succeeded, and then one of the most glaring flashes of lightning ever beheld flamed over the country, accompanied by a clap of thunder which seemed to shake the city to its foundations. Another pause followed, and then came a light shower of rain of the same soapy and sooty nature as that two days before. After that it appeared to grow brighter; but an hour later it was as dark as ever. Another rush of clouds came, and another vivid flash of lightning, which •was seen to Btrike the spire of the old French parish ohurch and to play curiously about the large iron cross at its summit before descending to the ground. A moment later came the climax of the day. Every bell in the city suddenly rung on the alarm of fire, and the affrighted citizens rushed out from their houses into the streets, and made their way in the gloom toward the church, until the Place d'Armes •was orowded with people, their nerves all unstrung by the awful events of the day, gazing at, but scarcely daring to approach, the strange sight before them. The sky above and around was as black as ink ; but right in one spot, in mid-air, above them, was the summit of the spire, with the lightning playing about it, shining like a sun. Directly the great iron cross, together with the ball at i*_ foot, fell to the ground with a crash, and was shivered to pieces. But the darkest hour comes just before the dawm The glow rbove gradually subsided and died out, the people grew less fearful and returned to their homes, the real night came on, and when next morning dawned everything was bright and clear, and the world waß as natural as before. The phenomenon was noticed in a greater or less degree from Qubeo to Kingston, and far into the Ptates, but Montreal seemod its oentre. It has never yet been explained..— Oor, Montreal Star.