METEORITES OF NORTH AMERICA. 221 



HARRISON COUNTY. 



Indiana. 



Latitude 38° 20' N., longitude SG° 10' W. 



Stone. Howarditic chondrite (Cho) of Brezina; Montrejite (type 3S, subtype 1) of Meunier. 



Fell 4 p. m. March 28, 1859; described 1859. 



Four stones whose total weight was 700 grams (1.5 lbs.). 



This fall has been almost wholly described by Smith ' as follows: 



Having become acquainted with a remarkable phenomenon accompanied with a fall of stones that occurred in 

 Harrison County, Indiana, I immediately made inquiries concerning it, expecting to visit the neighborhood on an 

 early occasion; but I was fortunate enough to learn of some admirable observations made by Mr. E. S. Crosier, and in 

 fact so complete were his examinations that I clearly saw no additional information could be elicited by my resorting 

 to the spot. Mr. Crosier obtained for me the various stones that had been found, and also put himself to much trouble 

 to obtain the information desired. The stones fell on Monday, March 2S, 1859, and Mr. Crosier visited the place on 

 the Saturday following; in the meantime the following stones were discovered: 



1, weighing 19 ounces, discovered by Goldsmith. 



2, " 4. 5 ounces, " Crawford. 



3, " 420 grains, " Lamb. 



4, " 167 grains, " Mrs. Kelly. 

 The following are the facts elicited by inquiry on the spot: 



The time at which this fall occurred (4 p. m.) rendered it readily observable. The area of observation was about 

 4 miles square, and wherever persons were about in that area the stones were heard hissing in the air and then striking 

 on the ground or among the trees. 



Hardly a single person in the immediate vicinity of the occurrence saw any flash or blaze, as was noticed by all who 

 heard the report from a distance. 



Three or four loud reports like the bursting of bomb shells were the first intimations of anything unusual. A number 

 of smaller reports followed, resembling the bursting of stones in a limekiln. The stones were seen to fall after the first 

 four loud explosions. Those who happened to be in the woods or near them heard the stones distinctly striking among 

 the trees. In some places the noise of the falling stones in the woods alarmed the cattle and horses in the vicinity so 

 that they fled in terror. A peculiar hissing noise during the fall of the stones was clearly heard for miles around. A 

 very intelligent lady described it as very much like the sound produced by pouring water upon hot stones. The air 

 seemed as if all at once it had become filled with thousands of hissing serpents. 



Mr. Crawford and his wife were standing in their yard at the time and hearing a loud hissing sound overhead, on 

 looking up a stone (No. 2) was seen to fall just before them, burying itself 4 inches in the ground. They dug it up 

 immediately but it did not possess any warmth; it had a sulphurous smell. Another, which they did not find, fell near 

 them, when they thought it prudent to retire to the house. 



Two sons of John Lamb were in the barnyard attending to their horses when their attention was called to a loud 

 hissing noise above, and immediately a stone (No. 3) fell just at their feet, penetrating the hard tramped earth some 3 

 or 4 inches, and they state that it was warm when taken from the ground. Another fell in a peach tree near by but 

 the ground being newly plowed they were unable to find it. The largest stone (No. 1) was not obtained until the 

 following day, being dug up beside a horse track on the streets of Buena Vista, Indiana. It had penetrated the hard 

 gravel to the depth of 4 or 5 inches. It had a strong smell of sulphur. The last (No. 4) was dug up by Mrs. Kelly 

 the following day in her yard. 



These four aerolites, owing to their being buried deeply in the ground, are all that have been found. None have 

 been found or were heard to fall over a greater area than 4 miles square. Nos. 1, 2, and 3 and a fragment of No. 4 were 

 placed in my hands for examination. 



Nos. 1, 2, and 4 were cuboidal in shape, while No. 3 was considerably elongated; they are all covered by a very 

 black vitrified surface, equally intense on every one and on every part of each one, and when broken showed the usual 

 gray color of stony meteorites interspersed with bright metallic particles. The mean specific gravity is 3.465; when 

 broken up and. examined under a glass four substances are distinguishable: Metallic particles, dark glassy mineral, 

 dark dull mineral, white mineral matter. Examined as a whole the following elements were found in it: Iron, nickel, 

 cobalt, copper, phosphorus, sulphur, silicon, calicon, aluminum, magnesium, manganese, sodium, potassium, and 

 oxygen. By the action of the magnet it was separated into nickeliferous iron, 4.91, and earthy minerals, 95.09. The 

 earthy minerals, acted on by warm dilute hydrochloric acid thrown on a filter and thoroughly washed, then treated 

 with dilute caustic potash to dissolve any silica of the decomposed portion that was not dissolved by the acid, gave: 

 Soluble portion, 62.49; insoluble portion, 37.51. 



The metallic portion separated from the earthy part gave: 



Fe Ni Co Cu P S 



86.781 13.241 0.342 0.036 0.026 0.022 =100.44 



