Feb. 16, 1871] 
NATURE 
Bl: 

the first contact took place. During the time occupied 
in perfecting the necessary preliminaries, I noted the 
position and the structure of the cloud-banks which were 
instilling into our minds feelings of the keenest anxiety. 
We were standing in the centre of what I may describe 
as a comparatively cloudless longitudinal “slit” in the 
sky, which was otherwise completely covered ; so that, 
while over our heads the sun was shining brightly, its re- 
fulgence obscured only occasionally by light, fleecy, flying 
clouds ; to our front and rear were lying parallel lines of 
heavily-banked “ cumuli-strata” running from south-west 
outh-eist. Perhaps the accompanying rough diagram 
(Fig. 1) may serve to illustrate their position in relation 
to our own. 
_ Lalso set down the following readings of the barometer 
and thermometer (wind N.N.W.) :— 
At first contact. Five minutes 

before totality. At 2.20 p.m. 
Barometer 28°65 28°79 28°88 28°80 28°75 
At first contact. 
Thermometer in shade . Tove Pui ates 56° 
"9 insunexposedtowind .... 54° 
3 RORSMIURRETMRE Wate itss ce « 58° 
Immediately after totality. 
Thermometer in sun exposed to wind 55° 
Two minutes before the commencement of totality, the 
clouds behind us, and those in front of us, were black 
and threateningly lowering, as if a thunderstorm were 
imminent. Etna, which lay well in our view to the 
N.N.W., was clothed to its very base with a shroud of the 
most sombre clouds, while as the seconds flew by the 
temperature fell sensibly lower and lower. 
To the S.,, and S.W. also, the sky was filled by a 
strange, steamy, V-shaped (the point of the V being near 
the earth), filmy mist, through which the sun showed such 
a feeble and uncertain light, as to give me cause for fear 
lest our observations should be brought tu an abrupt and 
resultless termination by the total disappearance of the 
sun behind this curious veil. mediately before totality 
commenced, a dark vaporous shadow glided very swiftly 
up over the heavens from the westward, or a little south 
of west, and, as it came on towards us, seemed to swallow 
up the earth, leaving it dark in its rear, until at the moment 
of totality it reached the sun. As it drew near him, a 
herd of oxen feeding behind us, with one or two excep- 
tions, lay down. With the beginning of totality the air 
was colder than ever, and for about one minute’s space, 
not more, there fell a small thin rain, which I fancy must 
have been the result of the condensation of the steamy 
mist which I have alittle while agodescribed. Of totality 
itself, as a spectacle, 1 am almost afraid to speak. To 
endeavour to describe the inconceivable grandeur of the 
sight would be a hopeless task. I can only say that 
nothing will ever efface it from my memory. But if I 
cannot hope to give you any idea of the sublimity of the 
scene, at any rate I will do my best to state simply the 
appearances which I saw. Round the dark moon gleamed 
the luminous circle of the corona, shining with about half 
the radiance of an English sun upon a winter’s afternoon ; 
while there streamed forth from it in eight directions as 
many sets of brilliant rays. These “sets” of rays were 
composed of four sets in the position of a Greek cross, 
as in Fig. 2; with a St. Andrew’s cross, as in Fig. 3, 
placed upon it, forming something similar to Fig. 4, Fig. 
3 extending only about half as far as Fig. 2, which reached 
as far outwards as the apparent diameter of the sun. 
I described the phenomenon to Mr. Ranyard as having 
struck me by its resemblance to the “glory” round the 
heads of statues of saints in Roman Catholic shrines. 
Jarvis and Burgoyne also made sketches of the “rays” 
separately, and without consultation with me or with 
each other, at my request. The similarity of the three is } 


striking. Jarvis described the rays as resembling “the 
pipes of an organ,” 
4 
=| * WwW 
— WW 
Ir PL 
Fic. 2 Fic. 3 

As the moon passed off from the sun’s face, and for 
some seconds after the contact had wholly ceased, the 
clouds in the S.E. were suffused with deep red copper 
colours, which gradually faded away as the sun regained 
his power. During totality I made the following obser- 
vations (according to Mr. Ranyard’s previous request) 
with a Nicol’s prism with Savart’s bands, in the use of 
which instrument Mr. Ranyard had instructed me, and 
with which I had constantly practised during our week’s 
preliminary residence in camp at Agosta; viz. I deter- 
mined the polarisation of the sky at two points: (1) high 
up on the sky to the S.E. of the sun ; (2) under the sun ; 
and at both these points I found the plane of polarisation 
to be vertical. Totality ceased while I was taking a third 
observation. 
Before concluding these imperfect remarks, which I 
have only ventured to make public because I thought 
that they might be of some interest, from the fact of my 
having had the good fortune to be one of the very few 
who obtained a perfectly clear and distinct view of the 
Eclipse during totality, I should like to bear my testi- 
mony to the great kindness of Colonel Porter, R.E., in 
placing all the resources at his command at the service 
of our party, and to his care of our creature comforts 
during our ten days’ “dwelling in tents” under his 
charge. It is but just also to mention the zeal and 
alacrity displayed by his party of Sappers, and their in- 
telligence in mastering the details of duties which were 
certainly new to them. Nor will it be considered out of 
place if, in conclusion, I thank the authorities of Agosta, 
and the Italian astronomers of distinction who did so 
much, not only by giving us every assistance in their 
power to render our stay at Agosta so successful, but also 
by their hospitable attentions to make it as enjoyable as 
possible. For my own part I can only say that I shall 
always look back with feelings of pleasure to the Sicilian 
Eclipse Expedition of 1870. 
HENRY SAMUELSON 


NOTES 
THE Royal Commission on Scientific Instruction and the 
Advancement of Science is now in full work. This week they 
meet three times, and last week they met twice. 
Ir has been announced at the Royal Geographical Society that 
Livingstone has arrived at Ujiji on his return journey. 
THE Hunterian Oration has been delivered this year by Sir 
W. Fergusson, who inter alia, according to the 7imes report, 
‘playfully referred to the suggestion of a distinguished philoso- 
pher, whose views appeared in the columns of the 7Z/mes last 
autumn, that when the microscope did not seem to give satis- 
faction in minute research, imagination might be substituted ; and 
pointed out that this style of philosophy was not new, for it had 
been put into Hamlet’s mouth by Shakespeare :— 
Imperial Czsar, dead, and turned to clay, | 
Might stop a hole to keep the wind away.” 
