Portland, Oregon, A.D. 1999, and other sketches — John Shaqi
Portland, Oregon, A.D. 1999, and other sketchesHayes, J. W. (Jeff W.)
Science
Portland, Oregon, A.D. 1999, and other sketches
Hayes, J. W. (Jeff W.)
American fiction -- 20th century; Portland (Or.) -- Fiction; Short stories, American
"I am about to relate an occurrence which is by far the most wonderful I
have yet told and it is a phenomena which startled the world, making the
superstitious quake, and bringing alarm to many nervous people.
"You know that it was in 1912 that the ill-fated Captain Scott planted
the flag at the South Pole, losing his valuable life in the 'get away.'
"Ice was forming at the South Pole, each year encroaching more and more
towards the north and some alleged scientific men predicted that the
time would surely come when the ice deposit at the South Pole would
become so great and the weight so heavy, that it would result in
throwing the earth off its present axis, probably tipping up old Mother
Earth and reversing the positions of the Equator and the Poles.
"As the century rolled on this doctrine became much talked about and
many extravagant speculations were made as to the exact time when the
catastrophe would take place, the most advantageous country to emigrate
to in order to insure safety, and business generally was much disturbed.
It was difficult to sell or hypothecate any real estate, and money and
jewels were considered of doubtful value. Continued cold weather, far
into the summer months, was the usual occurrence for several years and
devastating rains fell upon the earth. Street preaching was the order of
the day, and at every corner an earnest man or woman held an interested
crowd discussing the Last Day, which they assured the listeners was near
at hand. Many people gave away their entire worldly possessions and
essayed to get their soul ready for its eternal flight. As the days
passed by the excitement increased, and aerial voyages to the South Pole
were planned and executed by thousands of people in their air machines.
In former days it was a fad to take a trip around the world
latitudinally, but now all these tourists wanted to go the other way of
the stuff, and make the journey longitudinally, crossing the Frigid,
Temperate and Torrid zones, North and South poles, and the journey was
completed, by some, in less than 20 days. The reports given out by these
travelers were not encouraging and much distress of mind was manifest.
"One day a report came that the South Pole was in process of eruption
and that the ice was beginning to move. This announcement spread dismay
on all sides, many now accepting the evil prognostications as being
true, and the excitement was intense. The street preaching became more
general but this merely increased the agitation. One preacher, a
benevolent looking gentleman, who was very much at ease during all this
disturbing period, seemed to be able to quiet the fears of the people by
simply stating that God was present everywhere, and he would sing a hymn
with that title. His singing and talks were very comforting to many who
listened to his words and they patiently waited for what was to come.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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