364 Shooting Stars of December 7, 1838. 



and attended with trains. On both evenings, (before 11 p. m.) 

 most of the meteors appeared, (as all the observers agreed,) to 

 radiate from a spot not far from Cassiopeia ; or perhaps, more 

 nearly, from the vicinity of the cluster in the sword of Perseus. 

 The radiant, however, could not well be fixed, within three or 

 four degrees. So far as it could be determined, this spot was, up 

 to midnight, either stationary among the stars, or moved west- 

 ward almost as rapidly as they did. After midnight of the night 

 of the 6th — 7th, the meteors appeared not to present any com- 

 mon center of radiation. 



II. Observations i?i other places. 



1. At Middletown, Ct., on the evening of the 7th, Prof. A. "W. 

 Smith, with Messrs. Knox and Rice, saw in the eastern sky, be- 

 tween lOh. and llh., seventy eight meteors: one of the observers 

 being absent half an hour. They stood mostly on the east side 

 of the University building, and but little more than half the sky 

 was under review. Prof. S. saw 20 meteors between 8h. and 9h. 

 Most appeared to radiate '• from the zenith." The sky was over- 

 cast at llh. 



2. At Geneva, N. Y., Mr. Azariah Smith, Jr. undertook ob- 

 servations in company with Mr. M. M. Bagg. Being occupied 

 in the evening, their attention was directed chiefly to morning 

 observations, but a clouded sky interfered on the mornings of 

 both the 6th and 7th. Early on the evening of the 6th, Mr. S. 

 in a short walk, noticed meteors at the rate of one per minute, 

 but his engagements did not permit any observations until after 

 9, when the sky was partially cloudy, and not long after almost 

 wholly overcast. From 9h. and lOh. he saw between and be- 

 hind the floating clouds, only 3 or 4 meteors. Mr. S. remarks, 

 "so far as can be determined by the few observations I made in 

 these unfavorable circumstances, I should judge that the radiant 

 point was near to, but S. of, Cassiopeia, and perhaps a few de- 

 grees E. of that. — I cannot entertain the least doubt but that 

 there was an unusual display about the 6th and 7th inst., for on 

 mornings and evenings previous, I saw nothing similar in kind 

 or number to those of the evening of the 6th. I learn from some 

 friends of mine, who knew nothing of the anticipations with re- 

 gard to this phenomenon, that on being out during the evening 

 of the 6th, they saw so many falling stars that they concluded to 



