356 THE ORGUEIL METEOtt. 



to be easily forged, and there is no doubt the inhabitants of the old world used 

 them in their employments as easily as gold, and thus may be explained at once 

 their scarcity in our countries, and their abundance in the American deserts. 

 Dr. Wollaston demonstrated quite recently this conjecture by analysing the 

 knives used by the Esquimaux of Baffin's Bay, and as they contained nickel, he 

 justly inferred that they were produced from the iron fallen from the sky. It ia 

 in fact probable that such is the common origin of these divers masses ; still 

 there was only known one authentic fall, namely in 1*751 at Hradschina near 

 Agram. But putting aside uncertain traditions, we find in history numerous 

 accounts of events like this of Orgueil. The oldest of the known aerolites fell in 

 Crete 1418. B.C. The priests of Cybele preserved it in their temple as a person- 

 ification of this goddess, and in old days every fresh fall waa naturally attributed 

 to the gods. The Chinese annals, very fully kept in this respect, abound in 

 accounts of meteors of which the description would apply without change to this 

 of Orgueil. An author, named Ma-tonau-li has given a circumstantial catalogue 

 by which we see that the Chinese entered on this question long before our era. 

 Chladni undertook the same enterprise for Europe, and collected the localities 

 and dates of more than 200 falls. 'No time or country has been free from such 

 occurrences, always observed with curiosity, related with eagerness, and frequently 

 made use of by credulity. 



The learned societies, to their honor be it said, required positive proofs before 

 admitting as realities these showers of meteoric stones. The Academy of 

 Sciences was so little in favor of this belief that it declared in 1769 that a stone, 

 picked up at the moment of its descent by many persons who had followed it 

 with their eyes to the instant when it reached the ground, had not fallen from 

 tke sky. The opposition of public opinion last»d till 1802, but at that period, an 

 abundant shower of stones having been observed at Laigle, the Academy seized 

 the opportunity thus offered to it of enlightening itself on this subject, and com- 

 missioned Blot, then the youngest of its members, to open a severe inquiry. 

 There could not have been a better choice for so delicate a mission, nor one more 

 capable of enforcing its convictions. He found the stones to be all identical with 

 one another, some of them having been picked up by himself ; he made an 

 elegant report of his mission, and the eause was decided. The most able 

 chemists, among whom may be cited Langier, Thenard and G. Rose, analysed the 

 aerolites, and found them to possess a character in common. Systems were 

 imagined; some thought that the aerolites were projected from volcanoes of the 

 moon, now extinct; others invoked the intervention of electricity which is the 

 deus ex maehind for all unsolved questions: while others said they were frag- 

 ments of planets and comets destroyed by mutual collision. Finally they ended 

 where they ought to have begun, and took observations. The number of per- 

 sons devoted to this troublesome task is now very considerable. We may cite 

 among the most distinguished, M. Haidinger, member of the Academy of Vienna; 

 Father Secchi, Director of the observatory of the Roman College, aid Prof. Heis 

 of Munster, who brings to these questions as •much perseverance as talent. In 

 England, a commission of philosophers undertook the duty of collecting and 

 instigating observations; it reckons among its members MM. Glaisher, Brayley,. 



