Effects of Gas on the Atmosphere of London. 155 



quickly disappeared, leaving behind it a radiance such as is 

 witnessed when the sun sets on a fine summer's evening. 



From the Jersey News. — A phenomenon in the heavens oc- 

 curred on Tuesday morning last, between the hours of 6 and 

 7 o'clock, just before the break of day. A stupendous ball 

 of fire was seen to descend towards the earth, which so illu- 

 minated the horizon, that a person could distinctly see to pick 

 up any thing on the ground. Some country people, who were 

 hastening to their work from St. Clement's to the Pier, were 

 so alarmed at the sight, that they ran for shelter to the first 

 •house they came to. Its descent appeared to be very slow, 

 until it came within the influence of the earth, when it was 

 very rapid : it was travelling from north to south. The pre- 

 vious night was very stormy, with occasional vivid flashes of 

 lightning, which continued at intervals until the morning. 



The Brighton Guardian of Jan. 13. 1836, notices the ap- 

 pearance of a meteor on the same day and hour as the above ; 

 which correspondence inclines me to believe it to have been 

 the same luminous body. 



My man-servant,, who was traversing a ploughed field at 

 the time, informs me that it passed with immense velocity, at 

 an angle apparently about 45° from the horizon, and that it 

 became broad daylight in an instant, so that he could observe 

 the smallest speck upon the ground on which he stood. 



Guernsey, Feb. 2. 1836. 



Art. IX. Some Notice of the Effects of the Gas in the City of 

 London on the Atmosphere. By W. H. White, Esq. 



During the severe frost between Dec. 19. and 27. 1835, I 

 observed the streets in the city to become very dirty after the 

 evening closed in ; so that I more than once was led to the 

 conclusion that a rapid thaw was taking place ; but when I 

 came near to my house (3 miles south of London Bridge), 

 I found the roads quite hard, and the trees still covered with 

 their icy crystals : this led me to the consideration that the 

 difference of temperature in the city was owing to the heat 

 given out by the gas. It was, however, no great difficulty to 

 make the experiment with the thermometer ; in doing which, 

 I found that the temperature during the day, in the city, was 

 3° Fahrenheit higher than at my house ; and that, after the gas 

 in the city had been lighted four or five hours, the temper- 

 ature increased full 3° : thus making the difference of 6°, and 

 sometimes as much as 7°, in the space of three miles. 



