ON METEORITES, 



exthact from a discourse, february 7, 1869, refore the society of natural 

 History of Wisconsin, by Dr. Fr. Brexndecke. 



ITranslatcdfrom the German for the Smithsonian Institution.'] 



* * * As furuisliini^tlie finest exeiiiplificationsof the Widmannstiiteii 

 iigures, as well as the purest and rarest kinds of siderites, may be cited 

 the meteorite of Brauuau, the meteorite of Seclilsgen, the Putnam 

 meteorite of Georgia, aud the Dorflinger meteorite found here in Wis- 

 consin. According to the classification made by Professor Shepard, the 

 last belongs to the order of the taniastic siderites, (ribbon siderites.) 

 IJesides this specimen, there has been adduced by Professor Shepard 

 only one example of the order in question, which was found, in 1801, at 

 the Cape of Good Hope. 



In a report which, in the beginning of September, 18G8, I had the 

 honor, at the instance of the Wisconsin Society of Natural History, to 

 lay before it, respecting the iron meteorite found in that State, and which 

 contained the results of an exploration of the locality where the meteorite 

 was found, conducted by Mr. C. Uorilinger and myself, it was stated that, 

 in July, 18G8, there was presented to the museum of the society, by its 

 secretary, Mr. Dorflinger, a i^ece of iron of sixteen pounds weight, 

 which had been found in AVashingtou County, Wisconsin, by parties 

 engaged in cultivating a farm. This piece, upon scientific investiga- 

 tion of its i)hysi.cal properties by Mr. Dorflinger, proved to be genuine 

 meteoric iron. The surfaces ground and polished with a view to its 

 examination, when treated with nitric acid, exhibited Widmannstaten. 

 figures of the greatest beauty and distinctness. A qualitative chemical 

 analysis, conducted by the director of the miueralogical section of the 

 society. Dr. G. Bode, confirmed the discovery. The place where the 

 mass of meteoric iron was found is in section 33, Washington County, 

 AYisconsin, on a small farm belonging to a farmer named Louis Korb. 

 In the fall of 1858, Korb,^n working his farm, struck with his plow 

 against some hard object, Vhich lay about ten inches under the earth. 

 The supposed stone proved to be a mass of metallic \ron of sixty-two 

 pounds weight. The representation of this mass, as regards both its 

 magnitude and form, lies before the society in the drawing executed 

 by Mr. Dorfliuger, at the place of discovery. 



In the years immediately following that last mentioned, Korb found 

 similar but smaller pieces of meteoric iron to the number of four, as 1 

 am informed, within a circuit of from two to three rods from the place 

 where the flrst and larger mass was lying. One of these pieces is the 

 iron meteorite of sixteen pounds weight presented by Mr. Dorflinger to 

 the society. A second piece I procured, in conjunction with Mr. Dorflin- 

 ger, at Cedarburg, where it had been kept until then. This weighs 

 seven and three-quarter pounds. A third piece we obtained from the 

 l^rinting ofltice at West Bend, where it had been for several years, but 

 27 s 



