202 Total Eclipse of August 7, 1860. 



A flock of birds flew south in a hurried and confused 

 manner just after the darkness became total. Soon after 

 the reappearance of the sun, the chickens came from under 

 the hen, then the fowls came down from their roosts, and 

 the cocks which had crowed occasionally all the afternoon 

 took it up by general consent and crowed vigorously. 



No other animals were near us. No plants sensitive to 

 light were in the field, and it was not until after the 

 eclipse was over that I discovered cassia in an adjoining 

 field. Some of us thought there was a slight deposit of 

 dew upon the grass, but others failed to perceive it. 



Venus appeared a minute or two before the total 

 obscuration and remained visible for several minutes after 

 the reappearance of the sun. At the instant of total 

 obscuration Mercury, Arcturus, and Vega appeared. 

 Even Arcturus was of a silvery whiteness. Arcturus re- 

 mained visible some seconds after the total phase had 

 passed. 



We looked sharply for Capella, Procyon, Castor and 

 Pollux, Regulus, and Altair, and also looked less care- 

 fully for Saturn, Antares, Spica and Mars, but we had 

 nothing but our general recollection of the stars to guide 

 us as to the direction in which to look, and we saw no- 

 ing either with the naked eye or our opera glasses, beyond 

 the two planets and two stars first mentioned. At the 

 instant of total obscuration one or two of us had a feeling 

 that we were seeing half a dozen stars bursting into sight 

 at once, but we could only find the two. 



The approach of the deep violet shadow in the air from 

 the W. N. W., a little to the right of the sun, and its 

 receding in the opposite quarter was much slower and 

 more majestic and beautiful than we had been led to 

 expect. 



The gradual diminution of light during the eclipse, had 

 revealed the presence of faint cirro-stratus clouds in the 



