410 



NATURE 



{^Scpt. 2, 1880 



top of the chimney, a terrific explosion was heard, and a 

 great deal of damage was done to the chimney and the 

 roofs around it. 



The next is even more striking : In June, 1849, in the 

 evening of one of the days when cholera was raging most 

 formidably in Paris, tlie heat was suffocating, the sky 

 appeared calm, but summer lightning was visible on all 

 sides. Madame Espert saw from her window something 

 like a large red globe, exactly resembling the moon when 

 it is seen through mist. It was descending slowly towards 

 a tree. She at first thought it was a balloon, but its colour 

 undeceived her ; and while she was trying to make out 

 what it was she saw the lower part of it take fire (" Je vis 

 le fin prendre au bas de ce globe " ), while it was still some 

 yards above the tree. The flames were like those of 

 paper burning slowly, with sparks and jets of fire; When 

 the opening became twice or thrice the size of one's hand, 

 a sudden and terrific explosion took place. The infernal 

 machine was torn to pieces, and a dozen flashes of zig-zag 

 lightning escaped from it in all directions. The debris of the 

 globe burned with a brilliant white light and revolved like 

 a catherine-wheel. The whole affair lasted for at least a 

 minute. A hole was bored in the wall of a house, three 

 men were knocked down in the street, and a governess 

 was wounded in a neighbouring school, besides a good 

 deal of other damage. 



I have never seen one myself, but I have received 

 accounts of more than one of them from competent and 

 thoroughly credible eye-witnesses. In particular on a 

 stormy afternoon in November, 1868, when the sky was 

 densely clouded over, and the air in a highly electrical state, 

 there was heard in Edinburgh one solitary short, but very 

 loud, clap of thunder. There can be no doubt whatever 

 that this was due to the explosion of a fire-ball, which was 

 seen by many spectators, in different parts of the town, to 

 descend towards the Calton Hill, and to burst whilst still 

 about a hundred feet or so above the ground. The 

 various accounts tallied in most particulars, and especially 

 in the very close agreement of the positions assigned to 

 the ball by spectators viewing it from difterent sides, and 

 in the intervals which were observed to elapse between 

 the explosion and the arrival of the sound. 



The remaining phenomena of a thunderstorm are 

 chiefly the copious fall of rain and of hail, and the almost 

 invariable lowering of the barometer. These are closely 

 connected with one another, as we shall presently see. 



{To be coniimted.) 



THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION 

 'VXJ'E had but just time before going to press last week 

 '^ • to indicate the general arrangements made for the 

 I'eception at Swansea of the British Association. We 

 have now to chronicle the events of the meeting which, 

 although small, has not been destitute of many points of 

 interest. The actual number of members and asso- 

 ciates in attendance has been smaller than is shown 

 by the returns for many previous years. This is pro- 

 bably accounted for by the geographical isolation of 

 Swansea and the smallness of its population ; but there 

 are doubtless other collateral causes — such, for example, 

 as the coincidence of the meeting of the Iron and Steel 

 Institute at Diisseldoi'f — which have contributed to dis- 

 courage a large attendance. 



At the General Committee meeting on August 25 the 

 Report of the Council for the year 1879-80 was presented. 



The Council having been requested by the General 

 Committee at Sheffield to take such further action as re- 

 gards the correspondence with the Treasury about the 

 Natural History Collections as they should think desirable 

 in the interests of science, prepared and sent to the Secre- 

 tary of the Treasury, in reply to his letter of July 22, 1879, 

 the following letter : — 



" Brilish Association fir the Advancement of Science, 

 "22, Albemarle Street, London, W.,Junc 8, 1880 



" Sir,— The letter of the Council of this Association, 

 of March 25, 1879, respecting the administration of the 

 Natural History Collections, and your reply thereto of 

 July 22, have been laid before the British Association, at 

 the meeting held at Sheffield in August last, when the 

 subject was again referred to the Council. 



"On the part of the Council I am now requested to 

 inform you that they learn with satisfaction that the 

 action of Her Majesty's Government, in passing the 

 British Museum Act of 1878, does not prejudice the 

 question of the future administration of the Natural 

 History Collections at South Kensington, but that the 

 sul^ject is still under the consideration of the Lords 

 Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury. 



" Under these circumstances the Council of the Asso- 

 ciation must again express their hope that, when the 

 period arrives, as it must shortly do, for the settlement of 

 tlie question, the recommendations of the Royal Commis- 

 sion on Science will have their full weight and importance 

 accorded to them. 



" If, however, the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's 

 Treasury are prepared, as they would seem to indicate, to 

 constitute a Special Standing Committee, or Sub-Com- 

 mittee, of the Trustees of the British Museum, for the 

 management of the Natural History Collections, the 

 Council of the Association are of opinion that such a 

 form of government, though not the form suggested by 

 the Royal Commission on Science, might possibly be so 

 organised as to be satisfactory both to the public and to 

 men of science. 



" Trusting that the Lords Commissioners will do the 

 Council the favour of considering these observations on 

 a subject which keenly interests many members of the 

 British Association, 



" I have the honour to be, sir, 



" Your obedient servant, 



" G. J. Allm.\n, 

 "President of the Britisli Association 

 for the Advancement of Science. 

 " Sir R. R. W. Lingen, K.C.B., &c., &c." 



The receipt of this letter has been acknowledged. 



The Council have elected Prof. Cornu, of Paris, and 

 Prof. Boltzmann, of Vienna, Corresponding Members 

 since the Sheflield meeting. 



The president's address was very well received ; and 

 suffered nothing from the extempore style adopted by 

 Prof. Ramsay, who held his audience to the end. The 

 presidential addresses of the sections were of an unusually 

 high order, and happily no hitch occurred this year to 

 necessitate the delay of any of them beyond the day and 

 hour fixed for their delivery. We reprinted some of them 

 last week, and others will be found in our columns to-day. 

 Of papers in the different sections there has not been, 

 perhaps, as plentiful a supply as in other years. Section G 

 exhibiting a decided lack. There has been certainly a 

 less amount of illustration by diagrams and experiments 

 in the Section meetings than is usual, though several 

 papers in Section A were accompanied by the exhibition 

 of new forms of apparatus. The Neanderthal skull ex- 

 hibited by Prof. Schaffhausen of Bonn in Section D drew 

 an inquisitive crowd of admirers. The excursions to the 

 local centres of industry— the Dowlais AVorks, the Landore 

 Steel Works, and the various copper and tin works thrown 

 open by the courtesy of their proprietors — were deservedly 

 liopuLir. Some of these specially invited the notice of 

 Section G, which on the very first day of meeting adjourned 

 for a visit to Dowlais. The promoters of the new East 

 Dock have not omitted to seek for possible shareholders 

 in the members of the Association. 



The Saturday excursions to Milford, Gower, St. 



