﻿FALL 
  OF 
  A 
  METEORIC 
  STONE 
  AT 
  LIBOUNEZ. 
  37 
  

  

  by 
  those 
  present 
  whom 
  I 
  questioned 
  The 
  stone 
  fell 
  on 
  the 
  15th 
  June 
  1821, 
  whilst 
  

   the 
  sky 
  was 
  clear 
  and 
  the 
  wind 
  north 
  ; 
  the 
  hour 
  was 
  half-past 
  four 
  in 
  the 
  after- 
  

   noon. 
  A 
  long 
  rolling 
  noise 
  was 
  heard, 
  then 
  an 
  explosion 
  like 
  a 
  cannon, 
  which 
  

   occurred 
  five 
  minutes 
  before 
  the 
  stone 
  fell. 
  It 
  touched 
  the 
  ground 
  within 
  a 
  few 
  

   feet 
  of 
  them, 
  perforating 
  it 
  to 
  a 
  depth 
  of 
  7 
  palms 
  (about 
  5^ 
  feet) 
  in 
  a 
  vertical 
  

   direction. 
  It 
  burnt 
  the 
  ground 
  to 
  a 
  cindery 
  state. 
  No 
  lightning 
  accompanied 
  the 
  

   fall. 
  The 
  men 
  were 
  frightened, 
  but 
  not 
  stunned 
  ; 
  the 
  noise 
  was 
  heard 
  at 
  a 
  great 
  

   distance 
  ; 
  a 
  man 
  present 
  said 
  that 
  he 
  had 
  heard 
  it 
  at 
  Argentiere 
  (five 
  French 
  

   leagues' 
  distant 
  in 
  a 
  straight 
  line). 
  The 
  people 
  of 
  Libounez 
  thought 
  it 
  was 
  the 
  

   devil 
  which 
  had 
  fallen, 
  and 
  did 
  not 
  venture 
  to 
  dig 
  up 
  the 
  stone 
  for 
  seven 
  days, 
  

   when 
  it 
  was 
  sprinkled 
  with 
  holy 
  water 
  by 
  the 
  priest. 
  The 
  hole 
  was 
  exactly 
  the 
  

   size 
  of 
  the 
  stone 
  ; 
  there 
  was 
  no 
  scattering 
  of 
  earth. 
  The 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  stone 
  was 
  

   from 
  the 
  NW. 
  ; 
  (this 
  is 
  difficult 
  to 
  reconcile 
  with 
  its 
  having 
  penetrated 
  verti- 
  

   cally, 
  perhaps 
  the 
  direction 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  noise 
  was 
  heard 
  is 
  meant.) 
  The 
  stone 
  

   had 
  wedged 
  itself 
  between 
  two 
  others, 
  and 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  removed 
  without 
  break- 
  

   ing 
  it. 
  It 
  weighed 
  220 
  pounds, 
  as 
  I 
  was 
  told 
  by 
  the 
  man 
  who 
  had 
  weighed 
  it. 
  It 
  

   was 
  sold 
  for 
  six 
  francs 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  fragments 
  have 
  been 
  so 
  dispersed, 
  that 
  I 
  with 
  

   difficulty 
  obtained 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  morsels, 
  although 
  I 
  inquired 
  for 
  them 
  in 
  all 
  the 
  

   surrounding 
  valleys. 
  

  

  Such 
  was 
  the 
  circumstantial, 
  and 
  apparently 
  authentic 
  narrative, 
  which 
  I 
  

   gathered 
  from 
  the 
  spectators 
  of 
  this 
  most 
  curious 
  occurrence 
  ; 
  and 
  they 
  are 
  en- 
  

   tirely 
  corroborated 
  by 
  a 
  manuscript 
  account 
  (or 
  proces-verbal), 
  drawn 
  up 
  by 
  the 
  

   Maire 
  of 
  the 
  Commune 
  of 
  Juvinas, 
  and 
  forwarded 
  by 
  him 
  to 
  the 
  Prefecture 
  of 
  

   Privas, 
  where 
  I 
  subsequently 
  discovered 
  and 
  copied 
  it. 
  At 
  Privas 
  I 
  also 
  found, 
  

   amongst 
  a 
  mass 
  of 
  mineral 
  rubbish, 
  preserved 
  at 
  the 
  Prefecture, 
  a 
  small 
  but 
  

   characteristic 
  specimen 
  of 
  the 
  meteorite 
  itself, 
  which 
  resembles 
  the 
  more 
  ordinary 
  

   varieties, 
  and 
  is 
  coated 
  with 
  a 
  superficial 
  glossy 
  black 
  vitrification. 
  The 
  meteor 
  

   of 
  Juvinas 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  a 
  very 
  few 
  which 
  have 
  fallen 
  so 
  near 
  to 
  intelligent 
  spectators 
  

   as 
  actually 
  to 
  endanger 
  their 
  lives. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  Table 
  contains 
  a 
  summary 
  of 
  the 
  altitudes 
  referred 
  to 
  in 
  the 
  

   preceding 
  paper. 
  They 
  were 
  all 
  obtained 
  by 
  myself 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  the 
  barometer. 
  

   Owing 
  to 
  the 
  distance 
  of 
  the 
  fundamental 
  station, 
  Marseilles, 
  they 
  have 
  no 
  pre- 
  

   tension 
  to 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  moderate 
  approximation 
  to 
  the 
  truth. 
  

  

  VOL. 
  XX. 
  PART 
  I. 
  K 
  

  

  