446 



The Eclipse of August 7, 1869. 



[Oct., 



I was particularly impressed with the stability of the protuber- 

 ance. It resembled a monstrous white-hot coal, and its outline 



- E. 



DIAGRAM SHOWING SPOTS ON THE SUN DURING THE 

 ECLIPSE, AS SKETCHED ONE HOUR PREVIOUS TO THE 

 FIRST CONTACT. 



was sharp and well defined. The appellation " rosy protuberance " 

 struck me at the time as a misnomer. I detected only bright fire- 

 orange tints, like the glowing coals of an anthracite grate, with 

 delicate crimson flakes of surprising brilliancy scattered over the 

 southern part. 



These flakes stood out against the bright background as if 

 totally disconnected from the rest of the phenomenon. In the plate 

 I have endeavoured to give their positions and the direction of their 

 axes, which latter coincided with the stratification of the protuber- 

 ance. I should estimate the length of these brilliant dashes of 

 crimson light at from 3" to 5". Possibly in a future eclipse a 

 momentary spectrum of them may be obtained, as their extra- 

 ordinary brilliancy may make amends for their minute size. 



The plate accompanying this article was prepared from my 

 observations of the great protuberance, with the exception of the 

 outline of the mass, which was obtained from the last Ottumwa 



