METEORITES OF NORTH AMERICA. 299 



here give you the history of this celestial wanderer. On December 2, 1885, I received to my great delight from 

 Enlogio Mijares, who lives on the Conception Ranch, 13 km. to the east of the town of Mazapil, a uranolite, which he 

 saw fall from the heavens at 9 o'clock on the evening of November 27, 1885. The fall, simply related, he tells as fol- 

 lows in his own words: 



" ' It was about 9 o'clock in the evening (November 27, 1885) when I went to the corral to feed certain horses, when 

 suddenly I heard a loud sizzing noise, exactly as though something red hot was being plunged into cold water, and 

 almost instantly there followed a loud thud. At once the corral was covered with a phosphorescent light and sus- 

 pended in the air were small luminous sparks as though from a rocket. I had not recovered from my surprise when I 

 saw this luminous air disappear and there remained on the ground only such a light as is made when a match is rubbed. 

 A number of people from the neighboring houses came running toward me and they assisted me to quiet the horses 

 which had become very much excited. We all asked each other what could be the matter, and we were afraid to 

 walk in the corral for fear of getting burned. When in a few moments we had recovered from our surprise, we saw 

 the phosphorescent light disappear, little by little, and when we had brought the lights to look for the cause, we found 

 a hole in the ground and in it a ball of fire ( Una bola de lumbre). We retired to a distance, fearing it would explode 

 and harm us. Looking up to the sky we saw from time to time exhalations or stare, which soon went out, but without 

 noise. We returned after a little and found in the hole a hot stone, which we could barely handle, and which on the 

 next day looked like a piece of iron; all night it rained stars, but we saw none fall to the ground as they seemed to be 

 extinguished while still very high up.' 



"The above is the simple recital of the ranchman, and the uranolite which fell is the one I send you. From the 

 numerous questions I have asked Sr. Mijares, I am convinced that there was no explosion or breaking up on falling. 

 Others who saw the phosphorescence, etc. , were Suz Sifuentes, Pascual Saenz, Miguel Martinez, and Justo Loperz. Upon 

 visiting the place of fall, I was particular to examine the earth in and around the hole, and by careful search and 

 washing the earth I found a few small bits of iron, which must have become detached from the uranolite when it pen- 

 etrated the earth. 



"The hole was 30 cm. deep. Probably the light which was seen came from the volatilization of the surface of 

 the celestial body due to the high temperature acquired by friction with the atmosphere, and of this volatilized matter 

 falling to the earth as an incandescent powder." 



The above communication was followed by an account of the observation of the Biela meteors at Zacatecas by 

 Professor Bonilla and his assistants. The locality of the fall is situated in latitude 24 SS 7 N., and in longitude 101 

 56' 45" W. 



The surface of the Mazapil iron is of great interest. 



The deeply hollowed depressions entirely cover the mass. A thin black crust coats the surface, and exhibits 

 well the striae of flow, as seen on meteorites whose fall has been observed. In 11 places nodules of graphite are 

 noticed extruding from the surface, one of which is nearly an inch in diamteer. The graphite is very hard and 

 apparently amorphous; troilite and schreibersite were also observed on a section of the iron. The lines of the Wid- 

 mannstatten figures are somewhat similar to those of the Rowton iron in their width and distribution, and are very 

 unlike the known Mexican irons from Toluca, Durango, Coahuila, etc. 



In its surface and general flatness the mass bears a remarkable resemblance to the Hraschina, Agram, iron which 

 fell May 26. 1751. In weight it is nearly equal to the irons of Rowton (7.75 pounds), Charlotte (9.5 pounds), Victoria- 

 West (6 pounds 6 ounces), and Nedagolla (9.75 pounds), which were all seen to fall. 



Analysis by J. B. Mackintosh: 



Iron 91. 260 



Nickel 7. 845 



Cobalt 0. 653 



Phosphorus 0. 300 



100.058 



Carbon iS distributed all through the iron between the crystalline plates, and this element was also observed with 

 the spectroscope in the "Bielids," of November 27, 1885. Chlorine is also present and shows itself by a slight deli- 

 quescence. Where the crust has been accidentally removed the lines of the Widmannstatten figures can be seen 

 without the aid of etching. The interest of this meteorite, because of its beautifully marked and fresh surface, is 

 enhanced by the concurrence of its fall with the shower of the Biela meteors. 



The report of the directors of the Zacatecas Observatory to Hidden is given in full by 

 Brezina,* but contains no new facts of importance regarding the meteorite itself. 



The meteorite is somewhat distributed, but is chiefly preserved (3,546 grams) in the Vienna 

 collection. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY. 



1. 1887: HIDDEN: On the Mazapil meteoric-iron, which fell November 27, 1885. Amer. Joum. Sci., 3d ser., vol. 33, 



pp. 221-226. (Analysis by Mackintosh; illustrations of the iron, etching, and chart of fall.) 



2. 1895: BBEZTNA: Wiener Sammlung, pp. 282-283 and 308-327. 



