On the Meteors of 13th November, 1833. 137 



Tb 



New England Farmer (Boston) of May 1, 1833, in which work 

 it is quoted from the Medical Gazette. " A singular phenome- 

 non presented itself lately in some parts of France, particularly in 

 the department of Orne, in the neighborhood of Argenton. Several 

 times, and during two whole hours, the atmosphere, which was calm, 

 became filled with an innumerable quantity of vivid sparks, forming 

 a sort of shower of fire. The appearance was most striking between 

 four and five o'clock in the morning. The same phenomenon was 

 witnessed about Caen, where however, it excited less apprehension 

 than at Argenton. It is said that in some places, the sparks was 

 seen to alight upon the ground, but no traces of them have any where 

 been found ; and it is probable that the phenomenon really took place 

 in the upper regions, the appearance of having descended being most 

 likely an optical illusion." 



A few detached facts may be added, which may prove of some 

 importance in relation to the theory of shooting stars. 



Mr. Brydone, the celebrated traveller, frequently observed shoot- 

 ing stars from the mountain of St. Bernard, one of the high Alps, 

 and also several from the highest region of Mount Etna ; and they 

 always appeared as high as when seen from the lowest grounds.* 



Kirch, a German Astronomer, gives the following account of a fire 

 ball seen at Leipsic in 1686. "On the 9th of July, O. S. at half an 

 hour past one in the morning, a fire ball with a tail was observed in 

 8J degrees of Aquarius, and 4° north, which appeared immovable 

 for half a quarter of an hour, having a diameter nearly equal to half 

 the moon's diameter. f 



There are various records of meteors which left luminous trains 

 that remained for some time after the bodies themselves had disap- 

 peared. One of the most remarkable of these was seen in England 

 November 13/A, 1803. J Even Virgil seems to have observed me- 

 teors of this kind, and alludes to them as prognostics of a high wind. 



I 



Saepe etiam stellas, vento impendente, videbis 

 Praecipites ccelo labi, noctisque per umbram 

 Flammarum longos a tergo albescere tractus. 



Georg. L. 1.365. 



* Nicholson's Jour. xx. 84. Brydone's Tour in Sicily. 

 t Quoted by Halley, Phil, trans, ab. vi. 110. 



t Nicholson's Jour. vi. 279 and vii. 66. Phil, trans. 1742 in Dr. Young's Catalogue, 

 p. 499. Foster, Nich. Jour. xxx. 132. 



Vol. XXVI.— No. 1. 18 



