Publisher's Synopsis
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1888 edition. Excerpt: ... a revengeful God, then all thought of material protection is at an end and he waits submissively in his tracks until the death-blow comes. If one believes that the origin of tornadoes is purely electrical and that the force of the storm is maintained by the presence of electricity in some form or other, then his theory of protection must be constructed accordingly. The same may be said of the planetary theory. According to the foundation so is the strength and security of the superstructure. the electrical theory. There is no fact or record to show that an electrical discharge or any manifestation of atmospheric electricity ever entirely demolished a large stone or frame building; ever lifted a locomotive from the track; ever carried an iron bridge from its foundation and twisted the frame-work into a shapeless mass; ever rolled a boulder from its bed in the ground; ever embedded one piece of timber into another after having carried the former for several hundred yards in the air; ever carried bedding and clothing for miles in the air; ever elevated to considerable heights in the air columns of water from ponds, lakes, and rivers; ever lifted animals from the earth and carried them over buildings; ever drew the water from a well or cistern; ever twisted a tree from its stump; ever turned a building bottom side up or end for end, without otherwise injuring it. Many other effects of the peculiar manifestations of power in the tornado might be instanced to illustrate the impossibility of electrical intervention. Electrical forces always act in straight lines, while the forces of the tornado are exerted in both straight and curved, lines, or in any combination of them. Can any manifestation of electrical force twist the body of a hickory...