396 



About a month afterwards Mr. Prender showed Mr. Smith 

 two other bronze axes, subsequently discovered in quarrying 

 at the foot of the same cliff, but lower down, not much above 

 what may have been high-water mark. 



Mr. Smith observed that the discovery of stone and bronze 

 weapons together, and in connexion with two coins of the 

 ninth century, appears to be a fact of no little importance in 

 fixing a period in which these weapons were apparently in 

 actual use. 



Sir W. Betham communicated the following accoont of a 

 meteor observed by him : 



" On Friday, the 2nd of November, about five minutes 

 before five o'clock, p. m., 1 had just entered the gate of my 

 house near Blackrock, when my attention was drawn to a 

 luminous object approaching from the east towards me, at an 

 elevation (as I supposed) of about 500 feet from the earth. Its 

 apparent velocity was not greater than that of a rook in steady 

 flight. It seemed to pass me at a distance of not more than 

 100 yards to the south, and, after keeping its elevation stea- 

 dily, to disappear not more than 600 or 700 yards to the west 

 of the place where I was standing. 



" It was a round, very brilliant ball, apparently about nine 

 or ten inches in diameter, emitting flame and sparks from all 

 its sides, and leaving behind it a luminous train, in which 

 sparks continued visible at some distance from the ball for a 

 few seconds. 



" I watched its progress carefully, but could not observe 

 any tendency to descend towards the earth while it continued 

 inflamed. 



" It disappeared suddenly, but, although I looked very 

 anxiously, I saw no solid residuum fall. 



" It was seen by a servant of mine passing over the hill 

 going up to Kingstown, on her way from the sea; and she tells 

 me it passed almost directly over her head. She says she 



