108 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



town along the Kaiwara Eoad, and had got to a spot about 

 half-way between the railway bridge and the brewery, when 

 suddenly I was startled by a most brilliant electric light being 

 thrown in front of me. Quickly turning, I saw a sight which 

 I shall never forget — a meteor, whose centre was as brilliantly 

 red-hot as the summer sun at noonday, surrounded by a star- 

 like sheath of electric blue light, the luminous track of the 

 meteor forming a tail of intensely white light, — if my recollec- 

 tion serves me rightly, edged with electric blue. The height 

 at which the meteor was when I first saw it I should 

 estimate at about 40° — certainly not more ; and the time it 

 took in making its passage across the sky T should judge to 

 have been somewhere about three seconds. The position at 

 stalling was, roughly speaking, over the north end of Somes 

 Island, and at the finish a little to the northward of the start- 

 ing-point. So near did it seem that I listened for the splash, 

 which the eye led me to expect would occur off Ngaurauga, 

 between there and the island. A moment's reflection, how- 

 ever, convinced me that the actual distance away of this 

 beautiful and wonderful object was infinitely greater, tind 

 perhaps I heaved a sigh of relief at the thought. To show the 

 effect of its intensity and Ijrilliance, I may say that a person 

 ^vho was near the top of Hill Street said afterwards with some 

 ;assurance tJiat he at first thought it would strike the Par- 

 liament Houses, but that it proved to be further off, and he 

 judged it to have buried itself in the Manawatu Company's 

 reclaimed land. Perhaps he went to look for the hole this 

 morning ! The person who told this to me was somewhat 

 astonished at hearing that its effect on me was as related 

 above. I have omitted to sa}' that the apparent size of the 

 star was quite half that of the full moon. I hope that my 

 •connnonplace observations will draw the meteorologists." 



Akt. XII. — Shadoic-jjicturcs. 



By Taylok White. 

 IRead before the Hawkc'fi l-!aij PhilosopUical Institute, Stlt. July, 1S89.] 



Plate III. 

 Shadow No. 1. 

 During the last total eclipse of the sun visible in New Zea- 

 land I was standing outside the house, in company with my 

 brother, the late Colonel White, viewing the progress of the 

 eclipse, when, happening, in the partial darkness, to take notice 

 of the shadow thrown on the w'all under the verandah after the 



