444 



Mr. Farcy on Shooting-Stars^ &V. 



[Dee. I, 



the fabre; and tliat every dragoon ought, 

 like the Turks, to be Icientifically trained 

 in tlie broJid-i'word cxercife, without re- 

 fledting that fuch quahfications might 

 make the foldier.s <(uarrelfome. 



The Baron de Tott, who palled fif- 

 teeii years among the Turks in teaching 

 tliem European diicipHnc and manoeu- 

 vres, has written a IMemoir more expla- 

 natory tlian any other on the real Hate of 

 Turkilh taitics. 



To the Editor of the Monthlif Muga-'me. 



SIR, 



WHOLLY occupied in the country 

 for fome weeks pall in my pro- 

 fellion, 1 have yet had no further leifure 

 for calculations on tlic fuhjcrt of the 

 meteor of the 17th of July, or for com- 

 bining the valuable ohfervations of i\Ir. 

 Singleton and Mrs. C'obhold iu your Sop- 

 tomlicr Magazine (pa^'fs IKi and Ml) 

 with tliofc wliich 1 hvive been able to col- 

 - lect, ib as to determine feveral places of 

 this cuYwai, fatti litula in its courfe over 

 England, with the precifion which is 

 now, I think, iittainatjle; I am, alfo, 

 flill not without bujie of feeing further 

 communications from vour ingenious ror- 

 rcfpoiidcnts, which, by niuitipiying the 

 points determined in its orbit, may en- 

 able us to afcertain tiie excentricity and 

 dimcnlions of the ellijifis, within near 

 limits, in wliich {\\\> fitctlUuta was mov- 

 ing. It appears proliable, that the me- 

 teor, when it fcemed to vanilh, was 

 quitting the oxygenous parts of our at- 

 mofphere, and its condtufiion ccafnig in 

 confequence ; on wliich account fomc 

 iets of ohi'ci-vations made near tlie nor- 

 thern parts of its vifiblc courfe would be 

 Very imporlaiit, and may, 1 hope, yet 

 be communicated, through the medium 

 of your very valuable miicellany. 



(Jn ray return to town, on Saturday 

 evening kill, the 1 Itii of October, about 

 fcven o'clock in the evening, the ihirs 

 fliining bright, and a light wind blowing 

 from the S. E., a bright meteor was feeu 

 by myfclf and feveral others, about lof 

 miles from London on the St;. Albau's 

 road, near the bright liar u'.ulr in the 

 r.ag!e, dcfcending with rather a flow 

 motion towards the \^'. Itlirll appeared 

 to us about 8° to the VV. of the S. me- 

 ridian, at 47° of elevation, and after a 

 courfe of about 5j°, difuppeared at once 

 in the clear part of the hcmifphcrc, as 

 though fuddeniy extii:gai!!:cd; being then 

 62° W. of the S., and at about 15° of 

 elevation, as I roughly eyJcuJate Uoui, 



the pofition of the fmall flar near which 

 it vaniflied. I followed the couife of 

 the meteor with my eye, and did not 

 perceive any tail or llreak of light left 

 by it, although moll of the gentlemen 

 prefcnt defcribcd different appearances 

 of this kind which it alTumed to them : 

 it fecmed of about twice or three times 

 the fize of Jupiter (wliich planet was 

 within about '11° of its courfe), but fai' 

 brighter ; the duration of its appearance 

 to us could not, I think, exceed two 

 feconds, but having had no opportunity 

 of fince tracing the courfe, and obferv- 

 ing a ftop-watch, this is uncertain. 



1 am hajipy to obfcrve, from M. La- 

 hmdc's lliftoi-y of Adronomy fur tlic part 

 year (.page UTS of your iall number), 

 that MelVr.s. Ben/.enberg and Brand es, 

 at the dillance of 7.5 miles from each 

 other, have made rorrcfponding ohfer- 

 vations on fliooting-ftar.-, and thereby 

 found their diliances to be 15 to 195 

 nijies : from the ohfervations of Mr. 

 Bevan atid myfelf, in 1801, (mentioned 

 page 141 of the September Magazine,) 

 thefc arc to be uiiderllood, I expect, as 

 their direct or bypothenufal diliances, 

 and not as tlu'ir perpendicular heights 

 above the earth ; but I fliould feel much 

 obliged to eitheiof the gentlemen above 

 mentioned (ihould they i'ee this), or to 

 any other reader of your Magazine, v\ ho 

 would communicate tlie detail of their 

 olifervatiuns, or of others, which may 

 have a tendency to detcrniine the f)ibits, 

 periodic-rimes, &c. of any of xhnfuttl- 

 liliilie, or to Ihcw that ihooting-ftars, 

 meteors, and meteoric-ftones, have any 

 other origin than in the perpetually re- 

 volving malVes uf matter, which I have 

 fo named. Yours, &c. 



John Farey. 

 12, Upper Croicn-ftreet, Wr/lminjier, 

 Ui/i 061uhcr, 180G. 



To (he Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 

 sn;, 



IF I had not been afliamcd to couple 

 the confidcration uf my own veifes 

 with the vindication of thofe of Milton, 

 1 iJioidd have faid a few words, in a for- 

 mer paper, upon /the fubjccl; of an ef- 

 tahliflied inaccuracy of typogmphy ; il- 

 lullrations of which are exliibited m the 

 printed copy of Anacreontic Stanzas, 

 ■which appeared in your Magazine of 

 • June: I mean the fre:;ueiiL elilioa of th(\ 

 vowel, as in "• wint'ry" for " winteiy," 

 ajul " tj;' autuujunl" for " ihc autum- 



hA." 



