april— june 1857.] Fall of Meteoric Stones. 131 



there, having been made acquainted with the fact, proceeded him- 

 self to examine the spot, and at the request of the villagers report- 

 ed the circumstance of their fall to the Collector. The following 

 are Extracts from his letters upon the subject: — ■ 



u Near the Village of Pavnallee in this Talook two Meteoric Stones have fallen. 

 I have heen on to the ground and seen the places where they fell, and the exact 

 impression made in the earth where they lay. As no rain has fallen since, I was 

 nhle to see that there wis no mis lake ahout it. The noise made as they came 

 through the air, made a deep impression on the minds of the people in that region, 

 and was heard, I find from reports, along the sea shore up to Teruchooly. 

 They fell ahout three miles apart from each other. The smaller one weighs 

 ahout 37 pounds, and sunk in the earth when it fell two feet and eight inches. 

 The larger one is from three to four times as large, and sunk in the earth two 

 feet and four inches. It struck the earth flatwise. The smaller one fell ahout 

 perpendicularly. The larger fell (coming from the North a little to the Wei;) 

 making an angle with a perpendicular line, of ahout fifteen degrees. Persons 

 Were standing near each place when they fell. Many worshipped them. The 

 villagers gave them up to me on condition that I should inform you, and save 

 them from trouble made (or rather which they feared some officials might make). 

 I do not make this statement officially, hut I am ready, if you desire it, to make 

 an official statement on the subject. In writing this I have fulfilled my promise 

 to the people there. 



***** i n respect to Mr. Murray's request through you, I would state 

 that I gave a somewhat minute account of their fall, &c to Dr. Colebn oke with 

 liberty to publish should bethink best in the Athen^um* If he has done so, 

 this may not be needed. I will however give a few particulars. 



* TO THE EDITO.il OF THE ATHENAEUM. 



Sin,— Some of your readers may be interested to learn that two Meteoric stores 

 fell in the village of Farnallee in this district, and not far from liamnad on the 

 28th of February and at noon. The fall was preceded by a noise which it is 

 stated, b' re an analogy to the reverbei ation of thunder, though it was much 

 louder, and the stones were propi-lled with such force that though one of them 

 weighed 37 pounds, and the other was four times larger, they were neither of 

 them seen in their transit through the air, though numbe s of persons were 

 standing by at the time. Tbey fell ahout 3 miles apart and both became deeply 

 imbedded in the ground, sending up a cloud of dust when they struck. They 

 were forwarded to Madura and are now in the Collector's Cutcherry. They 

 bear evident appearances of having been subjected to the action of fire and are 

 covered with a black smoke-like coating. Their formation appears to be partly 

 granit'c, with a good deal of ferruginous matter interspersed. The natives of 

 couise accounted for their presence by attributing them to the wrath of a swamij 

 whom they sought to appease by worshipping them. Others held an equally 

 extravagant hypothesis and supposed them to have been blown from a caunoii at 



