40 JOURNAL OF THE 



ing ferrous sulphate the red line disappeared and the two first be- 

 came distinct. To explain now: The yellow and green lines are 

 characteristic of reduced hsematine (the red coloring matter of the 

 blood). The red line is characteristic of acid hcematine. If you 

 take fresh blood and add tartaric acid to it you get the red line— if 

 you then add ferrous sulphate you get the yellow and green. The 

 material then, according to the spectroscope, is partially decom- 

 posed blood. The test known as haemin crystals could be gotten 

 only indistinctly, if at all. 



This leaves little or no reasonable doubt then that the samples 

 examined had blood upon them. The question arises, were they 

 carefully taken; had no animal ever bled on the same ground; had 

 pigs never been slaughtered in that quarter of the field ? etc. As to 

 theories accounting for so singula^r a material falling from a cloud- 

 less sky, I have no plausible ones to offer. It may have been some 

 bird of prey passing over, carrying a bleeding animal, but a good 

 deal of blood must have fallen to cover so large a space. If a hoax 

 ha;^ been perpetrated on the people of that neighborhord it has cer- 

 tainly been very cleverly done and an object seems lacking. On 

 the possibility that it is not a joke, I have deemed this strange mat- 

 ter worthy of being placed on record. Other similar observations 

 hereafter may corroborate it and combined observations may give 

 rise to the proper explanation. 



Chemical Laboratory, U. N. C. 



NOTES ON THE PHENOMENA ACCOMPANYING 



THE TORNADO AND HAIL STORM, WHICH 



PASSED ACROSS CATAWBA AND 



IREDELL COUNTIES, N. C, 



MARCH 2STH, 1884. 



J. A. I). STEPHENiSON. 



On the morning of the 25th nothing unpsual could be observed 

 about the weather. The sun rose clear at 7 a. m., temperature 50^ 

 with light wind from the south. 



Very few clouds appeared before 12 o'clock noon; wind still light 



