SCIENTIFIC SUMMARY. 
429 
METALLURGY, MINERALOGY, AND MINING. 
Meteorites in 1875. — In a paper published in the “ Geological 
Magazine ” Dr. Walter Flight gives an account of two recent falls, one in 
America the other Hungary. He says, an account of a very sensational 
hind is given in the “ Dubuque Times ” of a brilliant meteor which was 
seen at Iowa City and other points of Central Iowa at this date. Its course 
was from S.E. towards N.W. It had apparently about half the diameter of 
the moon, and was accompanied by a beautiful train ; it was seen to separate 
into several fragments, and after an interval of about three minutes three 
explosions were distinctly heard. One of the fragments of the meteorite fell 
about three miles south of the village of West Liberty in an open field, 
sinking, so it is stated, 15 feet into the ground. Of- the 100 kilog. which 
have been found, the greater portion is in the Iowa State University 
Museum j 25 kilog. have been sent to Paris. Daubree traces a resemblance 
between this stone and the aerolites of Vouilld and Aumale. — 1875, April — • 
Zsadany, Hungary. A preliminary note on this fail of meteorites has been 
communicated to the Natural History Society by Krenner, the Keeper of 
the Minerals in the Hungarian Museum at Pest. Their descent was at- 
tended with an explosion, and the peasants who were witnesses of the fall 
state that the fragments were cold at the moment they reached the ground. 
Nine fragments, rather smaller than walnuts, were collected, six of which 
weighing 144 grammes are in the possession of the above Society. The 
investigation of this aerolite has been undertaken by Wartha and Krenner ; 
the former will subject it to analysis, the latter examine its mineralogical 
characters. It may be mentioned that the stones which fell at Dhurmsala 
in India (1860, July 14) are stated to have been so cold that they could not 
be held in the hand. 
On Serpentine Pseudomorphs after Monticellite , a Lime-magnesia Chrysolite . 
— The pseudomorphs described recently in the monthly notices of the 
Academy of Berlin by Her Vom Rath are from the Pesmeda Alp. on Mt. 
Monzoni in the Tyrol. The syenite, dioryte and u augitic greenstone,” 
which constitute the Monzoni peak, come up through limestone (of the 
Triassic formation) which is in part crystalline ; and this limestone con- 
tains many crystallised silicates near its junction with the other rocks, viz., 
fassaite, vesuvianite, gehlenite, garnet, spinel, &c. In a high ridge adjoin- 
ing the Pesmeda Alp, at a height of about 2,500 yards, the limestone, near 
its contact with “ augitic greenstone,” affords crystals of the form of 
monticellite, along with others of anorthite, garnet, and spinel. The monti- 
cellite crystals, some of which are two inches long, are all changed to 
serpentine. They occur mixed with fassaite, and with a blackish green 
spinel which is also in part serpentine. The colour of the pseudomorphs is 
light brown, yellowish, and occasionally white. The crystals within are 
irregular in texture and colour, as is well represented on a plate showing 
magnified sections. Vom Rath gives several excellent figures of the 
crystals. Unaltered monticellite has not been found at the locality, but it 
occurs massive (Breithaupt’s batrachite) to the west of Pesmeda and to the 
south-east of Mt. Monzoni, near the junction of the limestone and syenite. 
