1868.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. 211 



estimated that the 1st contact had taken place about 50 seconds before 

 my observation. Afterwards, by comparing the segment with a similar 

 one at the time of last contact, I estimated the time to be about 

 35 seconds, we therefore adopted the mean of these estimated times 

 as the instant of first contact. 



The sky now remained for a considerable time over-cast with cirro- 

 cumuli and fast flying nimbi, but we occasionally obtained views of 

 the progress of the moon across the sun. 



The light except near the time of totality waned imperceptibly, 

 and when even as much as -|ths of the sun's disc was hidden, there 

 was hardly any diminution in its intensity. Daring the last few 

 seconds before totality, the light gave way very suddenly. I saw 

 darkness approaching rapidly from the west, where the gloom appear- 

 ed like a vast black thunderstorm. It was on us in a few seconds ; 

 clouds had hidden the sun just previous to his total obscuration, and 

 from their density and extent, we almost gave up hope of seeing any 

 of the interesting phenomena we had come so far to observe. Kern 

 Luximun, however, noted approximately the time of commence- 

 ment of the total phase. I myself was unwilling to believe that the- 

 totality had actually commenced, so incomplete was the darkness. At 

 this time and throughout the total phase, it was remarkable that we 

 could see to read and write in pencil, could take observations and read 

 the second's hands of our watches with great ease. The light in the 

 eastern sky was noted by me to be fading at 9. 3. 20 M. T., and had 

 completely disappeared in 25 seconds. We were now enveloped in 

 a dense leaden gloom which overspread the whole expanse of country 

 visible to us. There was nothing remarkable about the colour of the 

 sky or clouds, the darkness was that of ordinary twilight early on a 

 dull grey morning. 



Shortly after the time of greatest obscuration, light began to break 

 in the western sky (a small patch free of cloud being visible), and 

 presently we caught a view of the eclipse through the upper thin 

 stratum of cirro-cumuli. So bright -was the corona immediately 

 around the moon's limb, that for a moment I was under the impression 

 that the eclipse instead of being total was only annular. Its light 

 died away completely at a distance of half the moon's diameter. It 

 appeared to me and to Professor Kern Luximun to be quite regular 



