95 



the mountains of Los Cocuyzas. I found by 

 meridian altitudes of Canopus the latitude of 

 the Hacienda de Manterola, on the 9th of Fe- 

 bruary, 10° 16' 55"; the 10th of February, 

 10° 16' 34". Notwithanding the extreme dry- 

 ness of the air, the stars twinkled even at alti- 

 tudes of 80° ; a very rare phenomenon in this 

 zone, and which perhaps announced the end of 

 the fine season. The dip of the needle was 

 41 6° (cent, div.) ; and 228 oscillations in ten 

 minutes time indicated the intensity of the mag- 

 netic power. The variation of the needle was 

 4° 30' North-East. During my stay in the 

 valleys of Tuy and Aragua, the zodiacal light 

 appeared almost every night with extraordin- 

 ary brilliancy. I had perceived it for the first 

 time between the tropics at Caraccas, on the 

 18th of January, after seven in the evening. 

 The point of the pyramid was at the height of 

 53°. The light totally disappeared at 9 h 35' 

 (apparent time), nearly 3 h 50' after sunset, 

 without any diminution in the serenity of the 

 sky *. La Caille, in his voyage to Rio Janeiro 

 and the Cape, had already been struck with the 

 beautiful appearance displayed by the zodiacal 

 light between the tropics, not so much on ac- 



* On the 15th of February, the total disappearance took 

 place 2 h 50' after sunset. Altitude of the pyramid, 50° 

 above the horizon. 



