520 



NATURE 



{Oct. 24, 1872 



violent report, followed by a rumbling noise, was heard in 

 thecommune of Lancd,cantonof St. Arnaud(Loir-et-Chcr). 

 On the following day it was ascertained that the noise had 

 been heard over a wide area of country, and had caused 

 much uneasiness ; and a letter arrived from a landowner 

 of Lile-Bouchard, announcing that he had seen a " fiery 

 lance " shooting across the sky in a direction from S.W. 

 to N.E. with great swiftness. Whilst on its way its point 

 appeared to split, giving rise to two meteors, which con- 

 tinued their way parallel to each other for some distance. 

 Another observer south of Tours had alsg seen them, and 

 described them as having the shape of a bottle, and being 

 of an orange colour. M. De Tastes, who communicated 

 the first account to the Academy, on proceeding to St. 

 Arnaud, was fortunate enough to learn that one of these 

 meteorites had been seen to fall near Lanc(5, and he was 

 also successful in finding it. Its weight was 47 kilo- 

 grammes (about 103 lbs.), and it had penetrated to a depth 

 of r40 metres (about 5 ft. 9 in.). On being removed, it 

 broke into three pieces. Of the second meteorite nothing 

 was heard for some time, but it was ultimately found at a 

 place called Pont-Loisel, about 12 kilometres (j\ miles) to 

 the south-west of the place where the other had fallen ; 

 and an account of it is given to the Academy by M. 

 Daubrde. It is of exactly the same mineralogical charac- 

 ter as the one first found, thus showing it originally be- 

 longed to it, but its weight is only 250 grammes, and it 

 had only penetrated to the depth of about half a metre. 

 On ascertaining the course of the meteorite, it was found 

 that this, the smallest portion, had fallen first, and that 

 the larger one had continued its course for some distance 

 farther. In this respect it resembled the meteorite which 

 fell on March 14, 1864, near Orgueil (Tarn-et-Garonne), 

 in which the smallest portion, weighing about 15 grammes, 

 first fell, and then the heavier one, weighing 40 grammes. 



M. Daubrcfe has recently analysed the meteorite, and 

 his results are somewhat remarkable. The largest piece 

 is of an unequal spheroidal shape, with a rounded sur- 

 face ; it is covered all over with a crust, probably 

 caused by the incandescence and superficial fusion. In 

 appearance the fracture is black, and almost basaltic 

 looking, shov/ing a globular structure and numerous small 

 spheroidal grains. Here and there small metallic grains 

 are to be seen, yellow in colour, like iron bisulphide, these 

 and other metallic-looking grains showing much better 

 when the surface is polished. Its specific gravity was 

 3'8o. Treated with water, a very small quantity of 

 chloride of sodium dissolved out, and M. Daubrde re- 

 marks that this is not the first time that this salt has been 

 found in meteorites ; and he brings forward evidence to 

 show that it could not have been derived from the soil in 

 which the meteorite was buried, but that it must have 

 formed part of it when it fell. No traces of any salts of 

 potash, nor of any sulphates or hyposulphates could be 

 found. Dissolved in nitric acid, a silicate was found, 

 which was proved to consist chiefly of magnesium and 

 proto.xide of iron, and there was an undissolved residue, 

 part of which was colourless, the remainder dark black. 

 By means of spectrum analysis, copper was thought to be 

 recognised ; but calcium, barium, and strontium were 

 shown to be absent. No carbon was found ; but, as 

 usual, cobalt and nickel accompanied the iron. The fol- 

 lowing is the complete analysis : — 



Free iron combined with nickel and cobalt... 



Iron and other metals combined with sulphur 9^09 



Sulphur combined ... ... ... ... 5-19 



! Silica ... ... ... ... 17-20 

 ?'^g"^^'f ■■:, ■3-84 

 Iron protoxide ... ... . . If33 

 Manganese protoxide, ... ... 0"05 



Part unattacked by acid ... ... 33-44 



Sodium chloride ... ... ... ... ... o' 1 2 



Water 1-24 



7-Si 

 I4-2S 



■ 42*42 



In its general appearance this meteorite resembled that 

 which fell July 11, 1868, at Ornans (Doubs), but differs 

 from it in the absence of free iron oxide. Other characters 

 distinguish it from the black meteorites of Rutlam (East 

 Indies) and that of Tadjera, near Sdtif (Algeria). 



Several meteorites have also lately been seen in Italy, 

 which have excited considerable attention. One on the 

 evening of the Sth of August, at about eight minutes past 

 II, was seen at Rome, and also at Vclletri, Naples, and 

 Palermo. A more interesting one than this was seen 

 near Rome, at about 5.15 mean time, on the morning of 

 the 31st of August, of which Padre Secchi has communi- 

 cated a long account to the Academy. At about 5.15 in 

 the early morning on that day a globe of fire, well marked 

 and a little red in colour, appeared on the horizon towards 

 the S.S.W., proceeding towards the N.N.E. Its progress 

 was at first slow, but this gradually increased, and it left 

 behind it a luminous train like a cloud lit up by the sun. 

 When it had reached its highest point, E.N.E. from 

 Rome, it suddenly expanded and took the shape of a cone 

 having its base rounded in front ; it brightened up greatly 

 and finally disappeared. Three or four minutes after its 

 disappearance a tremendous detonation was heard, which 

 caused, in many places, houses and glass to rattle. This 

 explosion was dull, different to thunder, and resembhng 

 more the explosion of a mine, and was followed by a 

 rolling sound like file-firing. This noise was heard by 

 Padre Secchi himself, but he did not sec the globe of fire. 

 The vapour-like residue left by the meteorite was at first 

 in the shape of a long straight line, but it soon enlarged, 

 and turned about like some great serpent until it disap- 

 peared about ten or fifteen minutes afterwards. 



This meteor was also seen a long way from Rome, at 

 Viterbo and at Veroli, but the noise of the explosion in 

 each place was equally strong, and caused houses and 

 glass to rattle. A small piece of the meteorite which fell 

 near him was picked up by a cure soon after the explosion 

 at Affile, near to Subiaco, where the ball of fire and the 

 noise of the explosion were well seen and heard. The 

 fragment has been recognised as a piece of a very ferru- 

 ginous meteorite, very hard, and covered over with a 

 crust. It is also said that at Orvinio " black stones " 

 have been picked up. But this is not all. A well- 

 instructed fanner had assured me, says Padre Secchi, 

 that the same morning at 3.30, being at Casale S. Lorenzo, 

 near to Porto d'Anzio, whilst he was waiting for his men, 

 he saw out at sea, at an elevation of about 30° or 40°, a mass 

 of fire or light like a fire, of a round form, apparently 

 fixed, and which could not be confounded either with a 

 lighthouse or any fire at sea. The position of this fire 

 was exactly the same as that from which the meteorite 

 afterwards appeared, and which he saw very distinctly in 

 the heavens at 5.15, when he was so much struck with 

 the coincidence of direction that he judged it to be the 

 same mass of fire which had then reached the earth. The 

 size of the meteorite at its first appearance and at the 

 moment of explosion is represented as little less than the 

 diameter of the moon. The extreme distances at which it 

 was seen are 1 50 kilometres (93 miles) apart. 



Another meteorite was seen at Subiaco on August 6, 

 at four in the morning ; and another near Ascoli on the 

 I Sth of September. J. P. E. 



Total 



99'3i 



DARDANELLES AND BOSPHORUS UNDER- 

 CURRENT 

 T T will be in the recollection of such of your readers as 

 ■•■ have followed the discussion on Ocean Currents, that 

 I ventured nearly two years ago* to predict the existence 

 of an Under-current of dense .Egean water into the 

 Black Sea, " on the double ground of a piiori and a 

 posteriori necessity ; " — that is, I affirmed it to be a neces- 

 sary result of the excess of Specific Gravity in the water 



^ Proceediiiiis of Roy.il Society, Dec. 8, 1870, § 123. 



