1905.] NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 909 



then put in and the strong and heavy pipe Une, weighing about 3,500 

 pounds, was then dropped on this obstruction a great number of times. 

 It was driven a very small fraction of an inch each time, possibly 

 between two and one-half and three inches in all. The pipe line was 

 dropped about eight feet each time, which was as much as it would 

 stand without collapsing. And each time the drill struck the obstruc- 

 tion it would ring with a clear metallic sound and rebound some eigh- 

 teen inches to two feet. This was almost certain proof of the metallic 

 nature of the obstacle, as stone would have crushed and given a dead 

 impact without appreciable rebound. 



A small magnet of about half pound in weight was then lowered 

 down the hole on the end of a string. This magnet repeatedly attached 

 itself to the sides of the iron casing in going down, so that ample oppor- 

 tunity was offered to feel the pull necessary to detach it from adhering 

 by its own magnetism to a piece of unmagnetized iron. The pipe casing 

 during this trial was lifted some fifteen to twenty feet above the ob- 

 struction. When the magnet passed below the end of the pipe casing 

 it descended perfectly free until it reached the bottom, where it attached 

 itself very firmly to whatever object obstructed the hole, and required 

 a pull of several times as much force to detach it as was necessary to 

 detach it from adhering to the pipe casing at nearly the same depth, 

 and consequently with nearly the same weight of line supporting it. 

 This was repeated many times and there was no doubt about the facts 

 as stated. It was then endeavored to get an impression of the bottom 

 of the hole, but suitable material was not at hand and the impression 

 was not very satisfactory, although it seemed to show a flat bottom 

 to the hole with a crack about one and one-fourth inches wide and of 

 unknown depth with roughly parallel edges across the bottom of the 

 hole. This shape was not like anything observed on any of the surface 

 irons, but was less like what might be expected in a rock boulder. 

 This crack caught the drills and made it almost impossible to rotate 

 upon this obstruction. The magnet brought up a small quantity of 

 iron chips, some of which were undoubtedly from the pipe, having been 

 cut from it by the machinery for rotating it, but others seemed of 

 different nature and fracture from either pipe chips or the steel of the 

 drill, which, moreover, had not lost material of this size and shape. 

 They were thought to be meteoric iron. On analysis the mixed me- 

 tallic iron gave .4 per cent, of nickel. As the greater proportion of this 

 iron was undoubtedly composed of pipe chips, free from nickel, this 

 was thought to be strongly confirmatory of the probability of the fact 

 that the doubtful material was actually meteoric iron. 



