276 



their own hands, drew the plummet up 50 fathoms several times, 

 and after it had renewed its descent, it stopped, on each occasion, 

 abruptly at the original mark to a fathom, and would not take an- 

 other turn off the reel. The velocity with which the line run out 

 was as follows : — 







h 



m 



s 



The first 1000 fathom; 



5 in . . 



. 



27 



15 



1000 to 2000 fathoms 



in . . 



. 



39 



40 



2000 to 3000 fathoms 



in . . 



. 



48 



10 



3000 to 4000 fathoms 



in . . 



. 1 



13 



39 



4000 to 5000 fathoms 



in . . 



. 1 



27 



06 



5000 to 6000 fathoms 



in . . 



. 1 



45 



25 



6000 to 7000 fathoms 



in . . 



, 1 



49 



15 



7000 to 7706 fathoms 



in . . 



. 1 



14 



15 







9 



24 



45 



The whole time therefore taken by the plummet in descending 

 through 7706 fathoms, or nearly 7' 7 geographical miles of 60 to the 

 degree, was 9^ 24"^ 45^ The highest summits of the Himalaya, Dha- 

 walagiri and Kinchinginga, are little more than 28,000 feet, or 4*7 

 geographical miles above the sea. The sea-bottom has therefore 

 depths greatly exceeding the elevation of the highest pinnacle above 

 its surface. 



The strength of the line tried before the sounding was found to 

 be equal to bear 721bs. in air. The 7706 fathoms which ran out 

 weighed, when dry, 771bs., exclusive of the plummet, 91bs. Great 

 care was taken in the endeavour to bring the plummet again to the 

 surface to show the nature of the bottom, but, vrhilst carefully reel- 

 ing in, the line broke at 140 fathoms below the v/ater-line, carrying 

 away a Six's thermometer which had been bent on at 3000 fathoms. 



A paper was also in part read, entitled " On the Eclipses of Aga- 

 thocles, Thales and Xerxes." By George B. Airy, Esq., F.R.S. &c.. 

 Astronomer Royal. Received December 15, 1852. 



January 27, 1853. 

 The EARL OF ENNISKILLEN, V.P., in the Chair. 



A letter was read giving an account of " An Explosive Meteorite." 

 By Francis Higginson, Esq., R,N. Communicated by Thomas Bell, 

 Esq.. Sec.R.S. &c. Received December 23, 1852. 



The writer states that his attention having been aroused b}" the 

 highly electrical state of the atmosphere during a severe gale of wind, 

 he proceeded along the beach in the vicinity of Dover, at 2 a.m. on the 

 morning of P'riday, the r7th of December 1852. 



It had blown very hard during the night, the wind veering from 

 West to W.S.W., in occasional heavy squalls of rain and sleet, 

 accompanied at intervals by faint- flashing scintillations, which at 



