478 



METEORS. 



METHODISTS. 



a tail of nine degrees, in an elliptical curve, ex- 

 tending into space with an inclination of about 

 thirty degrees. The tail was of an oval form, 

 and very divergent toward the part away from 

 the nucleus. The motion was made by the 

 nucleus, the tail following its track. Both the 

 tail and the nucleus were as brilliant as elec- 

 trical light, and emitted some luminous drop 

 or tearlike particles, which threw out silvery 

 sparkles with incredible rapidity. Six min- 

 utes after its meridian passage, the body ex- 

 ploded toward the southwest. Such was the 

 rapidity with which it moved, that in seven- 

 teen seconds it traversed a celestial area of 

 seventy-seven degrees, forty-one minutes, los- 

 ing itself behind a hill at five hours, fifty-five 

 minutes, fifty seconds, or seventeen hours, 

 fifty-five minutes, fifty seconds, of true solar 

 time. This aerolite so disturbed the magnetic 

 instruments that the declinometer turned its 

 pole from the north toward the west, and stuck 

 itself in the box, where it found resistance ; 

 the horizontal magnometer turned toward the 

 west eight divisions of the scale ; the vertical 

 magnometer fell in its centre of gravity; and, 

 finally, the compass oscillated fifteen degrees 

 from north to west. It is, therefore, demon- 

 strated that an aerolite has an intense ac- 

 tion on the North Pole of magnets, power- 

 fully attracting them. The following are 

 some mathematical elements of the orb of 

 this body: Meridian passage, five hours, fifty- 

 five minutes, thirty-three seconds on July 30, 

 1868 ; declination, sixty-five degrees south ; 

 vertical distance, forty-two degrees, thirty- 

 two minutes; setting, fifty degrees, fifteen 

 minutes, west by south. "With these data the 

 orbit of the aerolite is found to have seventeen 

 degrees, forty -minutes, of inclination upon the 

 line of the earth's rotation, with its movement 

 contrary to that of the earth. At six o'clock, 

 at the moment of detonation, the state of the 

 atmosphere to be taken into account for the 

 calculation of distance was: Barometer, 584.3 ; 

 Thermometer 0., eight degrees, three minutes ; 

 Hyg., of relative humidity, 76.5 ; sky, clear and 

 cold ; wind, northwest, weak. The motion of 

 the aerolite was followed by a noise like that 

 of silk dragged over the ground. 



Explosion of a Meteoric Body in Kansas, 

 June 6, 1868. Professor B. F. Mudge, of the 

 State Agricultural College, furnished to the 

 American Journal of Science, for November, 

 the following account : 



At twenty minutes before noon, June 6th, a most 

 brilliant meteorite was seen in our western sky. It 

 exhibited a pink flame, shining with so vivid a light 

 that, had it occurred in the night, it would have ob- 

 scured the full moon. It descended at an angle of 

 75 with the horizon, leaving a streak or sharply-de- 

 fined line of its track, which continued nearly a 

 minute. When first seen by me, it had an elevation 

 ol 55 . though others saw it still higher. The diam- 

 eter of the nucleus was about 15', or nearly half the 

 diameter pf the moon. It descended with great ve- 

 locity (in less time than one second), and when 12 

 above the horizon, bearing 10 N. of W., exploded, 

 sending two streams of fire toward the earth. The 



report of the explosion followed in about four min- 

 utes and a half (owing to inadvertence the time was 

 not exactly noted). The detonation was double the 

 reports following each other in quick succession, near- 

 ly simultaneous. Here it sounded as loud as a twelve- 

 pounder a mile distant. Those west of us ,who heard 

 it, described it as more like sharp thunder. A far- 

 mer in the Bepublican Valley, fifty miles from this 

 Elace, supposed it was the steam-bo'iler of a mill, and 

 urried to the spot to learn the damage done. On 

 exploding, it produced a light-blue cloud one and a 

 half degrees long and two-thirds as wide, which 

 floated in sight ^ seventeen minutes without much 

 diminution in size, when a passing cirro-cumulus 

 cloud obscured it. The report was heard over an 

 area of 120 miles in diameter, and the meteorite was 

 seen much farther, viz., at Topeka, Marys ville, Fort 

 Harker, Fort Zarah, and intermediate points. Its 

 flight was apparently from south to north,_ though its 

 motion was so rapid and nearly perpendicular, that 

 it was difficult to determine. 



The following are its elements, very nearly : 



Height when first seen 81 miles. 



" it exploded 12.5 " 



Length of the cloud caused by the explosion. . 1.44 " 



Breadth " 96 " 



Size of the nucleus or head 1,890 feet. 



Distance from this place when it exploded, 



about 58 miles. 



It must have exploded over the country about mid- 

 way between the Eepublican and Solomon Elvers, 

 which has few inhabitants. An aerolite must have 

 fallen, and I have spent some time in endeavoring to 

 find it, but thus far without success. 



METHODISTS. I. METHODIST EPISCOPAL 

 CHUECH. The number of Annual Conferences 

 given below is 67, but the Quadrennial General 

 Conference, held in 1868, increased the number 

 to 71. Of the travelling preachers, 491 are " su- 

 pernumerary," 860 are " superannuated," and 

 8,481 are " effective." Of the members, 1,060,* 

 265 are "in full connection," and 194,850 are 

 "probationers." The number of churches is 

 11,692, and of parsonages, 3,810. The total 

 value of church property is $47,970,501. 



The statistics of the principal societies of the 

 Church during the year 1868 (according to the 

 Methodist Almanac for 1869) were as follows : 

 Tract Society. Keceipts, $13,102.13; expendi- 

 tures, $11,280.12. Its grants to the foreign 

 work were nearly $5,000, and its circulation 

 of tracts, etc., is immense. It publishes one 

 periodical, Good News, which has a circulation 

 of over 70,000. The Freedmen's Aid Society. 

 Organized in 1866, employs about 75 teachers, 

 and has 12,000 pupils in its schools. Church 

 Extension Society: Keceipts for the year end- 

 ing November 15, 1868, $80,607.42. The So- 

 ciety, with a comparatively small income, as- 

 sisted, by donations, 80 churches in 26 differ- 

 ent States and Territories. Sunday -School 

 Union: Schools, 15,885 ; officers and teachers, 

 182,566; scholars, 1,152,825; collections,- 

 $21,926.70. A Board of Education 'was or- 

 ganized by the General Conference of 1868 : 

 its duties are declared to be, " to receive and 

 securely invest the principal of the Centenary 

 Educational Fund (now amounting to $24,325.- 

 44), and to appropriate the interest only, from 

 time to time (1) to aid young men preparing 

 for the foreign missionary work of the Methodist 

 Episcopal Church ; (2) to aid young men pre- 



