250 



Selections. 



[NO. 2, NEW SERIES. 



" Whatever may have been the origin of the metalliferous mass 

 from Battersea, its discovery has at all events served to develop 

 certain peculiarities in the growth of plants which appear to be of 

 high interest to the eminent botanists who have examined the parts 

 of this tree which surrounded the supposed meteorite. Unwilling 

 to endeavour to anticipate the final decision as to the origin of the 

 body in question, I may be permitted to feel a satisfaction that its 

 discoverer brought it to the Establishment of which I am the Di- 

 rector, and which numbers among its officers a Fellow of this Society, 

 who is so well calculated, by his analytical researches, to settle the 

 question on a permanent basis. Should the metallurgical analysis 

 now under the conduct of Dr. Percy lead to the inevitable conclu- 

 sion that the composition of this body is different from that of well- 

 authenticated meteorites, and is similar to that of undoubted iron 

 slags, we shall then have obtained proofs of the great circumspec- 

 tion required before we assign a meteoric orign to some of these 

 crystalline iron masses, which though not seen to fall, have, from 

 their containing nickel, cobalt and other elements, been supposed 

 to be formed by causes extraneous to our planet, 



" Postscript, 30th June 1855. — The following are the analyses 

 above referred to which have been given to me by Dr. Percy since 

 the preceding notice was read : — 



" The slag-like matter (1) attached to the metal in the tree, as well 

 as the similar matter (2) with adherent metal which was found by 

 Mr. Reeks in the vicinity of the tree, has been analysed. The results 

 are as follow : — 





No. 1. 



No. 2. 







63-52 





, 35-46 



32-30 





, 0-30 



0-59 





, 0-74 



021 



Protoxide of manganese. . 



. trace 



trace 





, 3-40 



2-85 





043 



0-57 





, trace 



trace 





99 03 



100 04 



