552 J. R. Gregory — New French Meteorites. 



The affinities of the rocks described above have been discussed by 

 Prof, Bonney, who points out their close resemblance to that of Pen- 

 y-rhiwiau near Clynnog-fawr, Carnarvonshire, and the so-called 

 Diorite of Little Knott in Cumberland. With the latter I am not 

 acquainted, but a number of slides cut from selected specimens of 

 the Pen-y-rhiwiau mass show the closest resemblance to these 

 Anglesey dykes, especially those of Ehodogeidio, Llys Einion and 

 Hafod-in-in. There are the same minerals associated in the same 

 manner,^ the amphibolisation of the augite, the secondary marginal 

 growth of colourless amjahibole, and the apparent conversion of the 

 brown hornblende into biotite being all well exhibited. There is 

 more olivine than in the Anglesey ' dykes,' although this constituent 

 is variable in amount, and a few other differences are to be noted ; 

 but the rocks may well be classed together. Bearing in mind the 

 comparatively small quantity of olivine found, the constant presence 

 of felspar, and that not of a basic variety, the common occurrence of 

 original iron-ores, and the general structure of the rocks, they seem 

 to find their most natural place among the olivine-bearing horn- 

 blende-diabases, rather than with rocks of ultrabasic type. 



The mode of occurrence of these masses is diiSerent from that of 

 the beautiful hornblende-picrite of Penarfynydd, which forms a 

 massive. bank 200 or 300 feet in thickness, and of very uniform 

 character. It is worthy of note that the intrusions of Llys Einion 

 and Llaneilian Mountain, as well as Penarfynydd, occur in Arenig 

 strata, and the slates at Pen-y-rhiwiau are refen-ed to the same age : 

 I do not know with what degree of probability the Skiddaw slates of 

 Little Knott can be assigned to the Arenig also. 



V. — Two New French Meteorites. 

 Preliminary Notice by James E. Gregory. 



TWO Meteorites from France have recently come into my possession 

 from a private source, one of which, though not of a recent fall 

 (1836), has neither been described nor chemically examined, and 

 •which I now briefly bring to notice, it being of a most rare type. 

 The other is of a much more recent fall (1875), and is of a much 

 more ordinary character, being similar to many other meteorites of 

 the same class ; this stone also appears not to have been described, 

 nor has any notice of it been published. It is somewhat a remark- 

 able coincidence that these two stones should have fallen in the 

 same Department, although at such widely different dates, and from 

 the data and notes I have received from careful inquiries, I now 

 bring forward the following details of these two aerolites. 



L AuBRES, Commune of the Canton oe Nyons (Drome), France. 



This meteoric stone fell on September 14, 1836, at 3 p.m., in calm 

 weather and blue sky, at Aubres, Commune of the Canton of Nyons, 

 in the department of Drome, France. It fell on a hard and pebbly 



^ The resemblance even extends to the ' solution -planes ' in the bro-wn hornblende, 

 parallel to the clinopiuacoid (010). The slides from Pen-y-rhiwiau, however, 

 contain an abundance of pale grass-green actinolite in blades and fan-shaped bundles. 



