1848.] Meteoric Iron from the Kurruckpore hills. 543 



IV. — Magnetism. 



I have not been able to detect Dr. Wollaston failed also to find 

 any thing approaching to polarity any polarity in Mr. Mornay' s 

 in our mass. It attracts like fragments, 

 common iron both ends of the nee- 

 dle indifferently. 



V. — Hardness, Toughness, fyc. 



It is by no means hard, being I had provided myself with a 

 readilv indented or flattened at the sledge hammer, and tools for cut- 

 bosses like any soft iron, and yield- ting off some specimens of the 

 ing easily to the file. It is how- iron, but it was with the utmost 

 ever of extraordinary and almost difficulty, I could detach the few 

 incredible toughness, so that, while small pieces which you have seen, 

 it yields to the cold chisel, or steel — Mornay. 



wedges, to a certain extent, it is Though Pallas in the preced- 



half a day's work for a native car- ing page, (that is, his French trans- 



penter with steel wedges to cut off lator) has, as just quoted, called 



a small piece from the metallic the iron soft (doux), he now says 



part. In the few scoriaceous parts in the next page, 351, using the 



pieces are much more easily de- words dur and compacte to express 



tached, but when these are pulve- tenacity and toughness, that, The 



rised, the grains and minute por- iron is so hard and compact (dur 



tions of the metallic iron amongst et compacte),* that three or four 



them, are beaten into tough flat smiths have employed ten and 



disks. twelve men with steel wedges, and 



It has been found by Messrs. sledge hammers to cut off a piece, 



Jessop and Co. to forge easily at which weighed at most two pounds, 



a moderate heat and a forged piece In one instance only did they suc- 



is exhibited. ceed in cutting off a piece, which 



weighed about a pood, (36 ibs. 

 English.) 



Remarks on the foregoing physical characters. 



Amongst these the shape of our Aerolite is certainly the most notice- 

 able, and we are at first sight much puzzled to account for the foot-like 

 appendage, which, as was naturally enough at that time supposed by Mr. 

 Mornay in the Brazilian mass, we are inclined hastily to suppose a ramu s 

 or brancK attaching it formerly to some larger mass. Mr. Mornay 

 however showed for his specimen by digging under it, that there was no 

 mass or vein to which it could have been attached, and improved che- 

 mical research now satisfies us that there is no terrestrial native iron 

 which contains Nickel and Chromium, and on this conclusion we rest 

 in addition to other collateral evidence for the meteoric origin of our's. 



But the foot still remains to puzzle us. 



* The proper words are tenace, tenacite. 



