148 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



of the wreck was found, and near to an old camping ground or pa of the 

 Maoris, on the south side of the Maita River, but which was, I have been 

 told, burnt by a party of diggers. The figure-head, I have been told, was a 

 female figure, but much destroyed. 



In conclusion I am inclined to think that the vessel of which those pieces 

 once formed a part was not of British build, and the timber certainly indicates 

 to my mind that it was either French or Netherlands, as supposed by Shannon, 

 and I would recommend that a portion be sent to London to Lloyd's rooms 

 for inspection. 



The vessel seems to have been built altogether of a number of thicknesses 

 of planks, placed in the following order : 



1st, or outside, horizontal, Baltic oak. 



2nd, perpendicular, Baltic pine. 



3rd and 4th, diagonal, Baltic pine. 



5 th, perpendicular, Baltic pine. 



6th, inside, horizontal, Baltic oak — with a material resembling felt between 

 the first four thicknesses from the outside, and all securely fastened with 

 metal and iron bolts, and further fastened with screw-treenails of some hard 

 dark brown wood. I have formed my opinion as to which is the outside and 

 the inside from the formation of the screw-treenails, always supposing that 

 they would be put in from the outside of the vessel, and the felt or other sub- 

 stance being also on that side of the pieces which I suppose the outside. 



Art. XIV. — Notes on the reported Collision of B tela 9 8 Comet with the 



Earth's Atmosphere. By Henry Skey. 



[Read before the Otago Institute, 11th June, 1874.] 



With reference to a paper read before this Institute on 12th March, 1872, on 

 the zodiacal light,* in which a theory is advanced tending to show that the 

 periodic November meteors form part of that illuminated medium, thus form- 

 ing a probable clue as to the real direction of solar motion in space, it will, I 

 think, be interesting to review the published results which followed the actual 

 collision of Biela's comet with the earth's atmosphere on the 27th of November 

 following, and which confirms in a remarkable manner the hypothesis set forth 

 in that paper of the action which would result from the collision of meteori 

 vapours with the earth's atmosphere j for it is now generally conceded that to 

 Biela's comet is due the magnificent display of shooting-stars which, on the 

 night of the 27th November, 1872, streamed into our terrestrial atmosphere. 



♦Trans. N.Z» lust., V., app. p. lxiii. 



