April 29 , 1880] 



NATURE 



623 



shows 41 tracks registered at the end of July, chiefly in 1S7S, at 

 Bristol. 



III. Beginning to observe at about 9b. 30m. on August 2 1, 

 1879, I immediately found a very active shower of slow, trained 

 meteors proceeding from a point in Draco. I noted 9 of them in the 

 jh. before ioh. 15m., though afterwards the display became less 



decided, and of the 68 meteors which I counted up to 13I1. 30111. 

 (when clouds overspread the sky) 21 belonged to this system. 

 The two ensuing nights were clear, and I saw 143 shooting stars, 

 including 31 additional paths conforming to the special shower 

 in Draco, the exact position of which I determined at 291° + 6o" 

 (near o Draconis). The total number directed from this stream 



was 56 out of an aggregate of 225 meteors seen on August 21, 

 22, 23, and 25. The Draconids were generally brilliant, with 

 short paths and spark-trails ; motions rather slow. Ten ex- 

 ceeded or equalled the 1st mag. and 15 were estimated = 2nd 

 mag. The shower is evidently identical with the Draconids II. 



(No. 78) of Greg's "Catalogue of Meteor Showers" (1876), in 

 which the position is averaged at 282° + 60' and the whole dura- 

 tion extends from June 28 to August 25 (?) from 12 observations. 

 There are other conspicuous showers directed from the same 

 region in Draco at many other periods of the year. The diagram 



