52 



AURORA BOREALIS. 



AUSTRALASIA. 



darkness not being due to cloud or mist, as the stars 

 were seen with, their usual distinctness. 



There was a small tendency at intervals to a dis- 

 play of streamers, but they were not conspicuous. 

 From these phenomena I was led to expect, in the 

 course of the evening, a grand display of aurora, and 

 I was quite prepared for the summons, which I re- 

 ceived from Mr. Keating, the assistant on duty, at 

 eight o'clock, to come down and witness it. 



The spectacle at this time was most magnificent. 

 The northern portion of the heavens was nearly 

 covered with crimson light of great intensity, and 

 the sight was so fine that, for a few. moments, I 

 was occupied only with the admiration which it 

 excited. 



On proceeding to observe it more particularly, I 

 saw that it consisted mainly of two large sheets of 

 crimson light, one chiefly on the east side of the 

 sky 'and the' other on the west. 



The eastern sheet extended generally from Polaris 

 to Capella toward the zenith, which it did not, how- 

 ever, at this time quite reach. The most brilliant 

 sets of streamers had their centres passing through 

 these stars, and, after a few minutes, the extreme 

 eastern portion was tolerably well defined by Perseus 

 and Cassiopeia. 



The western sheet was equally well defined, as 

 lying between o Lyrse and a Aquilse, but its brilliancy 

 and the rapid change produced by the streamers were 

 inferior to those exhibited in the other portion at the 

 time when I observed it. 



It is also worthy of remark, that the two portions 

 seemed to be connected by an illuminated fleecy or 

 cirrus cloud a little south of the zenith. This ap- 

 parent cloud was, I believe, also a portion of auroral 

 light, as I examined it a few minutes afterward when 

 it exhibited more of the auroral character. 



At this time the portion of the eastern sheet, which 

 had passed througn Polaris, became separated from 

 its more eastern portion passing through Capella, 

 and formed a distinct sheet, while the western sheet 

 was apparently drifting still more toward the south- 

 west. 



In a few minutes the intensity of the light dimin- 

 ished rapidly, and, as it was lading, my attention 

 was attracted to a very beautiful feature in the phe- 

 nomena exhibited. Just below the red light ot the 

 most western position was a most brilliant bluish- 

 white light, vaguely defined but very intense. It was 

 most probably pure white, the bluish appearance 

 being the effect of contrast with the red. The arch 

 which I had observed earlier in the evening was now 

 much brighter, and extended in the direction of the 

 equator to the eastern portion of the heavens, where 

 there was soon a similar effulgence of white light, 

 but not quite so intense. 



The darkness of the sky (perfectly free from cloud) 

 beneath the bright arch was now much more con- 

 spicuous than it had been in the earlier part of the 

 evening. 



In a few minutes the whole faded away, and, ex- 

 cepting some small remains of the phenomena in the 

 north, nothing unusual was visible. The grandest 

 part of the phenomena continued for about half an 

 hour, that is, from eight till half-past eight o'clock. 

 Later in the evening a tolerably bright bank of au- 

 roral light was visible above the northern horizon, 

 and another brilliant display occurred, as described 

 by Mr. Lucas. 



For a considerable time during the first display, 

 Mr. Lucas was watching from the tower of the ob- 

 servatory, where he commanded a full view of the 

 northern half of the heavens, and saw, at about 

 8" 15 m to 8 h 20 m , an ill-defined dark segment along 

 the north horizon, from which white streamers is- 

 sued through the whole extent, very much resem- 

 bling an ordinary aurora, but which might be easily 

 passed over in the grandeur of the display. 



Mr. Lucas watched from 10 o'clock, but saw noth- 

 ing except the white light extending under the 

 Great Bear, till KP SO' , at which time white stream- 



ers shot up to Polaris and Beta Cephei, changing to 

 intense red. At ll h 10- 71 two sets of streamers ap- 

 peared, one near Alpha and Beta Ursse Majoris, and 

 the other a little to the east of Beta Draconis, the 

 former going eastward to h TJrsae Majoris, and the 

 latter westward past Gamma Draconis. These were 

 succeeded by_ some at Alpha Lyrse, combining with 

 the last mentioned, and the mass, of an intense red 

 color, travelled slowly to Alpha Aquilse, where it re- 

 mained for a considerable time, as did that of Ursa 

 Major, while the part of the heavens appeared per- 

 fectly clear. At IP 30 m streamers again shot up at 

 Beta Ursse Minoris, and between Gamma Draconis 

 and Alpha Lyrse for a short time, and a few faint in- 

 dications were visible till a little after 12, when the 

 sky appeared to have regained its usual appearance. 



From the relation of others it appears that another 

 brilliant display took place still later in the night. 



E. MAIN. 



A gentleman, residing in Palestine, sent the 

 following to the London Times : 



About 9 o'clock in the evening of October 25th my 

 attention was called by a servant to something pe- 

 culiar in the sky. On going out I found the northern 

 heavens, for about one-sixth of the distance between 

 the horizon and zenith, of a deep-red color, not un- 

 like that produced by a great conflagration. The 

 color changed from minute to minute, being now 

 brighter and more intense, now duller and paler, at 

 times almost resembling that of blood. The middle 

 of the colored space was immediately under the Pole- 

 star, and it extended about 35 degrees to the right 

 and left of this point. At first it seemed to touch 

 the horizon, but afterward the sky 2 which looked 

 somewhat blacker by contrast, was visible below it. 

 Stars could be seen through it, and its margins blend- 

 ed gradually with the natural sky. The evening 

 was bright, and a great many stars were visible. 

 Wind, N. \V.. 0.5, the air colder and sharper than 

 usual at this season. The barometer had sunk 0.052 

 since 9 o'clock A. M. Unfortunately, no means of 

 making magnetical and electrical observations were 

 available. The phenomenon disappeared slowly, 

 and at midnight only a very faint redness was per- 

 ceptible. The eastern part faded away first, so that 

 the aurora appeared as if moving in a westerly di- 

 rection. The next evening the weather broke, and 

 a large quantity of rain fell, accompanied by thunder 

 and lightning." 



AUSTRALASIA. The Australasian colonies 

 of Great Britain include the colonies of Aus- 

 tralia, namely, New South Wales, Victoria, 

 South Australia, Queensland, and Western Aus- 

 tralia ; and, besides, the colonies of Tasmania 

 and New Zealand. The area and population 

 of these colonies according to the latest dates, 

 were as follows : 



To the population of New Zealand should be 

 added the native Maoris, whose number in 1867 

 was estimated at 38,500, while in 1860 they 

 still numbered 56,079. 



In July a conference of delegates from nearly 

 all the colonies of Australasia was held at Mel- 

 bourne, chiefly for the purpose of establishing 



