SEPTEMBER 17, 1897.] 
So we set ourselves, several of us, conjointly 
and carefully to estimate the dimensions. I 
recorded at the time one as being, honestly 
estimated, ‘2 inches long, 14 inches wide and 
& of an inch thick,’ these being rather the aver- 
age than the extreme dimensions. 
It then occurred to me to make an outline 
drawing of the largest by laying it flat upon a 
page of my pocket memorandum and carefully 
running a pencil around it. I secured, in this 
way, a rather rough but fairly accurate outline 
of two. These outlines have been exactly 
copied (including some lines due to a slipping 
of the block or to a different inclination of the 
pencil) and are given in the accompanying 
cuts. The extreme lengths of these will be 
found to be, respectively, about 24 and 3 inches ; 
their extreme breadths about 1} and 2 inches. 
The thickness of No. 1 was recorded at the 
time as being by estimate 2 inch; that of No. 2 
as being one inch. I estimate their volumes as 
about 1% cubic inches for No. 1 and nearly 3 cu- 
bicinches for No. 2. The drawing of No. 2 was 
done more hastily, as just in the midst of 
it my train rushed in and I had to leave. But 
I took my trophy with me, and, with perhaps 
pardonable enthusiasm, paraded it through the 
ears, and, exhibiting it to the passengers, asked 
expressions of opinions from them as to its size 
relatively to that of a popular object of com- 
parison, a guinea egg. Perhaps 20 jor 30 pas- 
sengers agreed, without dissent, that it was as 
large or larger. Some said, ‘It is as large as a 
hen’s egg;’ all agreed, also, that they had 
never seen so large a hailstone before. Upon 
breaking it to pieces, I found a sort of nucleus, 
of somewhat less transparent ice at the center, 
but observed no concentric layers or other 
marked structure of any kind; it was quite 
solid and tolerably transparent throughout. 
Both of these stones were characterized by 
blunt points or projections, as shown in the 
figures; and the sides also, while flat in the 
main, were uneven with low, rounded elevations 
and depressions of the same sort, the general 
thickness being fairly uniform. 
I think that very few of these stones or 
blocks fell. Perhaps they would have been a 
yard or two apart as they lay on the ground. 
I think it likely also that the storm of hail was 
SCIENCE. 
449 
of brief duration, say 10 or 15 minutes, and that 
it embraced a very limited area. 
‘It was, perhaps, about over when I took the 
train, as I infer from the fact that I have seen 
no account of it in the papers; and I found at 
the next station, only 5 miles off, that the road 
was dry and dusty. 
Iregret exceedingly that no more accurate 
observations seem to have been made of what 
must have been a most notable hailstorm, and 
I diffidently submit my own crude and imper- 
fect account in the hope that thereby something 
further may be elicited in regard to it. 
Cuas. H. WINSTON. 
RICHMOND COLLEGE, VA., 
4 August 25, 1897. 
THE DEATH OF VICTOR MEYER, 
MAny years will pass before Heidelberg en- 
tirely recovers from the shock produced by the 
recent sudden death of Victor Meyer. That 
so great a man should depart in such a way, 
and in the prime of his life, seems to be the re- 
gret of all who knew his accomplishments. 
The work of the semester was practically at 
anend and the majority of the students had 
left for the long vacation. It had been a very 
busy and fruitful period for the department. 
Every desk had been taken and many applicants 
turnedaway. Each student seemed proud of the 
privilege to work under such distinguished pro- 
fessors, chief among whom was Victor Meyer. 
His masterly leadership, scholarly attainments 
and genial manner were the constant inspira- 
tion of every one. Onthe 5th of August he had 
drawn to a close his annual course of lectures on 
experimental chemistry. After lingering fora 
moment to discuss the composition and decay 
of organic matter, and thanking his listeners for 
their faithfulness, he left the hall amid deafen- 
ing and prolonged applause. 
Returning from a social gathering rather late 
Saturday evening, he retired to his room, with 
the request that he be not disturbed on the fol- 
lowing morning. When the door was forced 
open at noon by the anxious family he had 
already been dead some time, and the cyanide 
bottle by the bedside told the story. 
When it was first reported that the beloved 
teacher had died by his own hand, not even his 
