86 JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS. 
on February 14, 1891, at 9 p. m., through the telescope, the ex- 
posure being only one second. 
In addition some splendid photographs of the lunar scen- 
ery, as taken by the great Lick and Yerkes telescopes, were ex- 
hibited. These photographs were kindlv lent for exhibition by 
the president of the society. Another of the fallacies to which 
Mr. Jenkins referred was one which is still very general in re- 
lation to the bright light which is often seen darting across the 
sky, and to which the term a falling star is commonly applied. 
He pointed out that as far back as records went there were re- 
ference to these meteors, and that Virgil even thought these 
shooting stars predicted changes in the weather. It was now 
known that the light was no star at all that had fallen, but 
simply a mass of matter attracted from its orbit by the earth, 
and that its rapid passage through the air had rendered it so hot 
that it had become ignited. Sometimes such a body was only 
partially consumed and remained solid until it reached the sur- 
face of the earth, accompanied by a great noise. It was then 
called a thunder bolt. The museums contain many specimens 
of these meteoric stones. They traveled round the sun as the 
other planets did, and about every 33 years the earth encoun- 
tered a great swarm of them, and on such occasions there was a 
meteoric shower. 
