G. A. Rowell on the Aurora Borealis. 91 



flashed up with inconceivable velocity towards a point ten or twelve de- 

 grees south of the zenith, while from the hazy cloud in the north, si- 

 milar columns, but of a yellow light, shot towards the same point south 

 of the zenith, and reaching northward to near the top of the dark 

 arch ; and from the west the columns were of such bright crimson 

 and flame colours as to render the scene in that direction truly mag- 

 nificent ; in the part of the sky to which the several columns con- 

 verged, there appeared a sort of irregular circular space of four or 

 five degrees diameter, into which the several columns seemed to be 

 pouring volumes of fiery smoke, which appeared to wave about simi- 

 lar to the motion of flames in an oven, or under the action of winds 

 blowing from all and every direction, the whole having the appear- 

 ance of a half canopy or tent spreading over the northern portion of 

 the heavens. During this appearance flashes of light were continually 

 passing up the columns, as if a film of steam was projected up them 

 with the greatest velocity, or as if the whole canopy had been shaken 

 by the wind, and the light was reflected and glancing off from its 

 surface. 



This sublime spectacle continued for ten or fifteen minutes, when 

 it gradually faded or rather crumbled away, disappearing in a very 

 singular manner about ten o'clock. From this time I observed 

 nothing particularly striking, except an occasional tinge of crimson 

 in the north-west and north-east, and a few flashes of streamers from 

 the north through the hazy part of the sky, till at about a quarter 

 past eleven o'clock, when very bright crimson streamers flashed from 

 the eastern horizon as before, which soon faded into a dull crimson 

 haze. About the same time streamers of a very singular appearance 

 began to flash from the north towards the south ; they seemed like 

 columns of light smoke or steam darting with the velocity of lightning 

 along the sky, having something the appearance of water thrown with 

 great violence from a syringe. About a quarter to twelve o'clock 

 columns of a more regular form began to appear from the north-east 

 to the north-west, and in a few seconds formed one of the most beau- 

 tiful scenes that I believe was ever witnessed; from the eastern ho- 

 rizon, a few degrees north of Castor and Pollux, bright crimson co- 

 lumns arose to within six or seven degrees of the zenith, or rather as 

 before to a point ten or twelve degrees to the south of it ; from these 

 crimson columns others of a bright whitish light spread over the whole 

 of the northern part of the sky to north-west, where other crimson 

 columns formed (the star a Aquilse being a little to the south 

 of them), the whole having the form of a large fan of light spread 

 over the nortiiern portion of the heavens ; but the rays did not meet 

 in the centre, but terminated in points about six degrees from it. I 

 may perhaps describe it better, as representing the tail of a bird 

 spreading over tiio northern sky to a))ovo twenty or thirty degrees 

 from the northern horizon, and spreading on each side till it meets 



