considered Geographically, Statistically j and Cosmically. 339 



1. " The excentricities of the orbits of the known asteroids can 

 suffer very small changes as the effect of perturbation. These 

 excentricities, which are now quite large, have then always been 

 and will always remain large. 



2. " The same is true of the inclination of their orbits ; so 

 that the amount of excentricity and inclination answers to the 

 primitive conditions of the formation of the group. 



3. " These propositions are only true for distances from the 

 sun above 2'00. An asteroid situated between Mars and the 

 distance of about 2*00 would not be stable in the meaning which 

 is attached to that word in celestial mechanics. 



" Flora, which is nearest to the sun of the known asteroids, is 

 2*20 distant. M. Le Verrier also observes that it is remarkable 

 that a planet has been found almost up to the line which theory 

 assigns as the limit of stability, and that none have been found 

 beyond it. Must we believe that the same cause which has 

 given origin to so many asteroids above the distance 2*00, has 

 also distributed them below this distance ? but that the excentrici- 

 ties and inclinations of these last being considerably increased, 

 it is at present difficult to discover them, especially because to- 

 wards their perihelion they will be immersed in the light of the 

 sun, and that coming to their opposition only in their aphelia, 

 they then will be too far from us ? 



4. '' Owing to the magnitude of their excentricities and their 

 inclinations and the smallness of their variations, the mean mo- 

 tions of the perihelia and of the nodes are proportional to the 

 times." 



From the above extracts, it would appear, according to Le 

 Verrier, that there is a probable predominance of the perihelia 

 of the asteroids in the mean direction of our summer solstice; 

 a circumstance, if true, quite confirmatory of the opinion I have 

 expressed, that the increase observable in the number of falls 

 recorded for the months of June and July is not quite the result 

 of chance. What Le Verrier says also respectmg the probabi- 

 lity of undiscovered asteroids outlying as it were the mean limit 

 of stability, argued inductively, is also interesting, and indirectly 

 bears on the point we have been considering. The extreme de- 

 gree of ellipticity assigned also to the orbits of the asteroids 

 should be noticed. 



Proceeding still further in our investigations of this part of 

 the subject, I shall beg leave to make the following quotation 

 from '^SmytVs Celestial Cycle," p. 159. vol. i., on the subject 

 of the asteroids. 



"Borrowing from La Place's conjecture before alluded to 

 of a great contraction of the sun's atmosphere, a convulsive dis- 

 organization of some planet may be supposed to have taken place, 



