On Noises accompanying the Aurora Borealis. 159 



thin fog, very similar to northern Hghts, and which set the air in 

 motion : they called it Sildebleket (Haring's Lightning), and 

 said that it was attended by a piercing cold, and impeded respi- 

 ration," Dr Gisler also asserts that he often heard ' of a whi- 

 tish grey coldjhg, of a greenish tinge, wJiich, though it did not 

 prevent the mountains from being seen, yet somewhat obscured 

 the sky, rising from the earth, and changing itself at last into an 

 aurora ; at least, such a fog was frequently the forerunner of this 

 phenomenon." To these observations. Professor Hansteen adds, 

 that Captain Abrahamson, in the Transactions erf the Scandina- 

 vian Literary Society, has given an account of several observa-* 

 tions of noises that were heard along with the northern lights. 

 The Professor concludes with the observation, that he himself 

 knows several persons that have heard the same sounds, and ex- 

 presses his surprise that a fact so well established should be called 

 in question ; and relates, with some sharpness, a conversation he 

 had on this subject with an Englishman, who remarked that the 

 Norwegian tales of noises from polar lights were akin to the 

 ghost stories of this country ; — every one, he said, had heard of 

 ghosts, but no person had ever seen one. 



On the presence of Iodine in the Mineral Spring of Bonning- 

 ton, near Leith. By Edward Turnee, M. D. F. R. S. E. 

 &c. In a Letter to Professor Jameson. 



Dear Sir, 



JL HAVE the pleasure to inform you that the Bonnington mi- 

 neral water which you lately sent me for examination, contains 

 Iodine in addition to the other substances hitherto discovered 

 in it. The iodine was first detected by my pupil Mr W. Cop- 

 land, to whom I gave the water for analysis, with directions to 

 examine it for the presence of that substance ; and I have since 

 found it myself in several portions of the same water purpose- 

 ly brought at different times from the spring, so that it may be 

 regarded as a regular constituent. The iodine may be readily 

 detected by the following method : — Evaporate a pint of the 

 water to dryness ; take up the soluble parts in a drachm or two 

 of a diluted solution of starch, quite cold, and add a few drops 



