126 Scientific Intelligence. 
The piaeesormon! for further observation seemed so small, and the 
presence of rei n was so embarrassing, that we retired at the end of 
the second hou 
The evening “of the 11th was: beautifully clear. Mr. Francis Bradley 
and myself observed from 9" to P. M., and saw in me hour forty-one 
different shooting stars, viz..18 in the N. 'W. and 23 in The 
id not rise until about half an hour after nine, a of course in- 
grave but bess Many of these meteors were brilliant, and in their di- 
rection and gen character were similar to those heretofore observed at 
this BRL :: is — worthy of mention, that the Aurora Bo- 
realis (which had not been seen here with certainty since the 14th of 
June previous,) was visible « on the st of the 1Jth and 12th. These 
comes were slight ; the streamers few in number, not reaching an altitude 
e than 4°. 
Pies chee trataone of the morning of the 11th, (even supposing that the 
moon-light obscured half of the meteors, ) sore! to oe but a slight 
recurrence of the exhibition usual at this period. e results of the 
evening of the 1ith seem however to jutity the inference that the display 
did not fail this year; and perhaps, in favorable circumstances, we might 
have seen the meteors nearly as abundant as on former piiecreatien; 
vurnal states that on the morning of November ee meteors were 
usually numerous. A communication signed B., in “ The New 3” of 
Jacksonville, Florida, (of Nov. 13, 1846,) alleges A on the morning of 
Oct. 20th, 1846, numerous shooting stars were seen and explosions heard. 
As no numbers e given in either case, it is not easy to decide how re- 
markable these athe really were. E. C. H. 
New Haven, Conn. 
2. Ancient returns of Halley’s Comet.—In a paper read May 8, 1843, 
to the French Academy of Sciences, ( Comptes Rendus, xvi 1003 ) M. 
Laverer announced that amo mong the notices o of comets, extracted by M. 
Edouard Biot, from Chinese then (and communicated to the Bureau 
des Longitudes, ) were observation n 1456, and also in 1378, of a body 
which was undoubtedly the comet of "Halley 
Laugier gives the following elements for ‘i378, which very well repre- 
sent the Chinese observations. 
Perihelion ape A. D. 1378, Nov. 8°77. 
dist 
Inclination, ie 56 
Longitude of ascending node, 47 : 
© ae eahelion art Equin. of 1378 
“Motion, Rawapiatie 
He adds the following table of the comet’s revolutions. 
1456 - - 77°58 years. 
fon 1 * 1531 . - i) 
Peete 1531 “ 1607 - - 7615“ 
~ 1607“ 1682 . - 7491.“ 
1682 “17 - : 76:49“ 
1759 “ 1835 - - 7663 “ 
