tkat have fallen from the Atmosphere. . 73 



and boldness of conception. This is no less than the 

 conjecture that these ttony masses are projected from 

 the moon ! a conjecture which none but an astronomer 

 could have made, or at least have shown to be proixible, 

 or even possible. Any ordinary person niight at random 

 utter the vague expre-^^ion of a thing coming from tiie 

 moon ; but no one, except the philosopher, could piopose 

 the conjecture seriously, and prove its possibility. This 

 M. Laplace has been enabled to do by strict mathematical 

 calculation He has proved that a mass, if projected by a 

 volcano from the moon, with a certain veluciiv, of about a 

 mile and half per second (which is possible to be done), it 

 will thence be thrown beyond the sphere of the moon's 

 attraction, and into the confines of the earth's ; the conse- 

 quence of which is, that the mass must presently fall to the 

 earth, and become a part of it. 



*' To prepare the way for a calculation, and a comparison 

 of this supposed cause with the phcenomena, it will be 

 useful here to premise a short account of the late and best 

 observed circumstances in the appearance of fireballs, and 

 the fall of stony masses from the atmosphere, extracted 

 from the last published accounts of some of the more re- 

 markable cases. 



[The greater part of the facts adduced by Dr. Mutton 

 having already appeared in the Philosophical Magazine, we 

 omit them herey and confine ourselves to the remarks he 

 has subjoined to them.] 



'^ Having now given a sunmiary of the facts and evi- 

 dence, as well with regard to the circumstances attending 

 these siuuular bodies, as the ingredients they are composed 

 of, and their outward appearance and structure, we are now 

 to consider what inferences respecting their probable origin 

 may be drawn from this mass of information. And indeed 

 we may safely conclude, as it has been inferred from the 

 whole, by the philosophers best qualified to judge of the 

 circumstances, as follow, viz. that the bodies in question 

 have fallen on the surface of the earth ; but that they were 

 not projected by any terrestrial volcanoes ; and that we have 

 no right, from the known laws of nature, to suppose that 

 they were fornted \n the upper regions of tlie atmosphere. 

 Such a negative conclusion has been thought all that we 

 are, in the present state of our knowledge, entitled to 

 draw. 



*' In this embarrassing predicament, the total want of 

 any other possible way oi' accountintr lor the origin of (hose 

 bodies, an idea has been started, perhaps at first mcnly at 



rundou). 



