58 



The Committee on the solar eclipse of the 18th of Septem- 

 ber, made a further Report in part, comprising the following 

 observations : — 



No. 30. Observation of A- Holcomb, at his Observatory, South- 

 wick, Mass., with a seven feet Herschelian of his own construction, 

 power 225, with red screen glass. Southwick is in latitude 42° 0' 

 41" north; longitude Ah 51m 12s, by Mr. Holcomb's triangulation 

 with Springfield Court House, one of the points determined by Mr. 

 Paine. Mr. S. C. Walker finds, from Mr. Holcomb's observation of 

 the solar eclipse of 1836, for this longitude Ah 51m 13.2s. Mean 

 yalue Ah 51m 12.6s. 



h m s 



Beginning, 3 20 19 Mean time. Observation satisfactory. 



End, 5 50 27 Do. Doubtful one second. Sun's limb 



Duration, 2 30 8 tremulous, and near horizon. 



No. 31. Observation of Prof. Albert Hopkins, at the Observatory 

 of Williamstown College, Mass. Latitude, 42° 42' 44", longitude Ah 

 52m 52s. Astronomical clock regulated by a four feet transit instru- 

 ment. 



h m s 

 Beginning, 3 17 19.9 Mean time. Good observation. 

 End, (not observed) Sun too near the horizon. 



The Committee on Dr. Hare's paper on the Tornado which 

 passed over a suburb of Providence, R. I., in August last, re- 

 ported in favour of publication, and the Report was adopted. 



The phenomena and facts, stated in this paper, are quite consistent 

 with those mentioned upon the authority of Prof. Bache, Mr. Espy, 

 and other observers, relative to the Tornado which took place in New 

 Jersey, at or near New Brunswick, in June, 1835, and of which an 

 account will be found in the last volume of the Transactions of the 

 Society. This paper embraced a letter from Zachariah Allen, Esq., 

 a highly respectable gentleman of Providence, who was an eye-wit- 

 ness of the Tornado, having been quite as near to it as was consistent 

 with safety. One of the facts noticed by Mr. Allen, Dr. Hare con- 

 siders as tending to justify his opinion, that the exciting cause of these 

 meteors is electrical attraction. Mr. Allen alleged that, as soon as 

 the Tornado came into contact with the surface of the river, the 

 water rose in a foam; that, under these circumstances, two flashes 

 pf lightning passed between the water and the overhanging clouds; 



