METEORITES OF NORTH AMERICA. 421 



During December, after diligent search of some weeks, the third and smallest (7 pounds) was discovered and kept in 

 the family of J. D. Whaley. 



"During the spring plowing of 1893 a very thorough search of the whole region was made without further finds. 

 The spot where these three pieces were found is three-eighths of a mile south from the Smithville and Lebanon pike, 

 in an extreme southwest field of J. D. Whaley and the adjoining field of James Beckwith. Herman Meyer, the pur- 

 chaser of all these, satisfied himself that the meteorites were original and distinct, and that all was as represented. 



"This locality is about 40 miles southwest from the spot on Caney Fork where the Carthage meteorite. was found . ' ' 



There is no question that the irons were found as stated in the above letter; but the Cocke County iron has a very 

 close resemblance to the Smithville meteorites. 



The largest mass of the Smithville iron is roughly spherical, with no signs of original crust, but marked by one 

 deep pitting which once contained troilite, now nearly weathered away, or possibly fused out during its flight through 

 the atmosphere. The specimen had laid for a long time in the soil, as shown by the thick coating of magnetic oxide 

 of iron strong enough to attract iron nails with considerable force. This covering, however, does not fully conceal 

 certain very typical features of the iron a marked silvery whiteness, a very striking and nearly octahedral cleavage, 

 a slightly yellowish metallic foil separating the crystalline flakes of iron; also numerous nodules of very cleavable 

 troilite embedded in graphite and granular schreibersite; while perhaps the most striking feature of all is a nodule of 

 fine-grained compact graphite nearly 2 inches in diameter. This is probably a larger mass of meteoric graphite than 

 any other on record. The only one to compare with it is that described by J. L. Smith in the Sevier County iron. 

 The weight of the Smithville nodule can not be accurately estimated, as it was not observed until the mass had been 

 sawed into slabs. It appeared to be nearly spherical, with a diameter as great as the largest dimension of the dumb- 

 bell-shaped nodule described by Smith, rrmfc-jng the total mass of the former considerably greater than that of the 

 latter. 



Nodules of graphite and troilite are abundantly scattered over the surface of an etched plate 9 by 7 inches in size, 

 usually consisting of troilite embedded in graphite, and thus surrounded by schreibersite, although there is considerable 

 variety in the relative arrangement of these three minerals in the individual nodules. In places the schreibersite 

 widens out into bright patches between the Widmannstatten plates, especially in proximity to the troilite nodules. 



This inequality in the distribution of the schreibersite gives a very varied appearance to the etched surface, and 

 areas selected from opposite ends of the slab could not possibly be identified by the Widmannstatten figures above. 

 In this respect the iron very closely resembles those of Arva and Sarepta. 



Choosing as uniform material as possible, the average analysis gave: 



Fe Ni Co Cu P Residue (cliftonite) 



91.57 7.02 0.62 trace 0.18 0.15 =99.54 



Huntington * gives analyses of other irons which resemble Smithville and then states: 



After dissolving a portion of the iron in hydrochloric acid, assisted by a battery, a black residue was obtained con- 

 sisting mainly of small graphitic crystals with a predominance of cubo-octahedral forms, but showing also perfect little 

 cubes without any modifications and others with their edges truncated by the dodecahedron and occasionally beveled 

 by a very obtuse tetrabis-hexahedron. 



This he regards as the form of graphite named clif tonite by Fletcher. 



With the cliftonite Huntington states were also to be seen numerous white glassy grains. 

 On digesting the residue for a long tune with hydrofluoric acid most of the white grains dis- 

 appeared, but a few remained entirely unaffected by the acid. These appeared as very brilliant 

 transparent angular fragments and exhibited a hardness sufficient to scratch the ruby. Hunting- 

 ton regards these grains as probably diamond. He also quotes a statement of Professor Ward to 

 the effect that the iron was very difficult to cut as a further indication that it contained diamond. 

 Huntington considers further the probability that Smithville and Cocke County may be the 

 same meteorite and reaches an affirmative conclusion on account of the great quantity of Cocke 

 County reported. 



On this point, however, later investigators will be more inclined to agree with Glenn, 10 who 

 wrote as follows: 



Three pieces of meteoric iron from Smithville, Tennessee, are mentioned by Huntington in his description of that 

 fall. A fourth piece was sent to the United States National Museum. During the year 1903 two additional pieces came 

 into my possession. They were found about 40 years ago at Berry Cantrell's, 1 mile west of Smithville, Tennessee. 

 The larger mass weighed 3,460 grams and was of compact rounded shape and evidently entire. The smaller weighed 

 478 grams and had a portion removed by some one. The character of the masses was similar to that described by 

 Huntington, and, although the place where they were found was not just the same as that from which the previously 

 reported masses came, they all belong undoubtedly to the same fall, which may have been scattered over a con- 

 siderable area. Huntington 's suggestion of collusion in these Smithville finds and his regarding them as being really 

 part of the Cocke County iron do not seem to accord with the circumstances. No object can be discerned in anyone's 



