METEORIC STONES. 185 



ball of fire, which he observed, on the 3d November, 

 1820, a little after sunset, when on the road between 

 the court-house and the town-hall of Calcutta. Its colour 

 was pale, for the daylight was still strong, and its larger 

 diameter appeared greater and its smaller less than the 

 semi-diameter of the moon. Its direction was from east 

 to west, its track nearly horizontal, and its altitude about 

 30°. As it did not apparently move with the velocity of or- 

 dinary fire-balls, it was probably at a great distance, and 

 consequently of large size. So long as Colonel Blacker 

 saw it, which was for five or six seconds, its motion was 

 steady, its light equable, and its size and figure perma- 

 nent. It latterly, however, left a train of sparks ; soon 

 after which it suddenly disappeared, without the attend- 

 ant circumstance of any audible report. These fire-balls 

 sometimes burst, and precipitate meteoric stones and iron. 

 Lord Valentia and Mr. Howard mention stones that fell in 

 this way from the atmosphere of Bengal on the 19th De- 

 cember, 1798; several fell near Moradabad, in 1808, and 

 nineteen were found at Futtypore, in the Doab, on the 5th 

 November, 1814. Dr. Tytler says, that on the evening of 

 that day, shortly after sunset, before daylight had entirely 

 faded, a meteor was distinctly seen, shooting with consid- 

 erable velocity in a direction nearly north-west. This ap- 

 pearance was also observed by the Europeans in the lines 

 and natives in the city, and is described to have comprised 

 a blaze of light, surroundmg a red globe about the size of 

 the moon, which impressed the spectators with the idea of 

 that luminary descending from the skies. The same phe- 

 nomenon, and at the same moment of time, was seen at 

 Hazareebaug, in Bengal, a distance of upwards of 3.50 miles 

 eastward from Allahabad. The meteor descended at Rour- 

 poor, nearly 70 miles north-west from the station of Allaha- 

 bad, immediately after it was seen at that place. Its fall 

 was accompanied with noises resembling the explosion of 

 distant artillery, and a stone was seen falling, which in the 

 act of descending is said to have emitted sparks similar to 

 those proceeding from a blacksmith's forge. A strong sul- 

 phureous smell was also perceptible, and when first discov- 

 ered the stone was hot to the touch. Besides the stone 

 thus actually known to have fallen, several others of a simi- 

 lar description were picked up, at the distance of several 



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