STONES FALLING FROM THE AIR. 
241 
fallen between midnight and noon, and even these stones have not 
fallen except daring the more advanced hoars of the morning — • 
that i3 to say, from eight to eleven. Upon only one occasion 
this phenomenon has been observed between the hours of eleven 
in the evening, and six in the morning, while there exist proofs 
of thirty-six falls having occurred between noon and mid- 
night, and the greatest part took place between three in the 
afternoon and sun-set. 
The geographical situation of the places where these stones aIK j ; n w ] iat 
have as yet fallen, has not been disregarded by these observers. P‘ aces > 
It seems to be a fact, that the number of these meteors decrease 
with the distance of the place from the equator ; for none 
have yet been seen in Sweden or Denmark, and it is only in 
the southern part of Russia that four have been found ; and 
lastly, only six are reckoned to have fallen in England. On 
the contrary, the number of aerolites has been very great in 
Italy, France, and Germany. 
The weather appears even to have a certain influence on the an d j n V vhat 
fall of aerolites, for they have never been known to take place ot wea 
during cloudy weather, or in a heavy rain or fall of snow, or 
with a strong wind, especially with a north, north-east, or east- 
erly wind. Out of forty-three falls, in which the weather has 
been noticed, twenty-nine happened when it was warm and 
calm. The thirtieth and thirty-first were, seen when the sky 
presented some dispersed and separated clouds. The twelve 
others were accompanied by rather violent storms and hail, 
as happened at those falls which occurred in 1103, 1249, an d 
1552. The pressure of the air seems also to be diminished 
previous to and after the fell. This was observed in 1800 at 
Alais*, and at Stannern, in Moravia, in 180Sf, and at Maur- 
kirchen, in Bavaria, in the year 181 It, when the heavens 
were obscured a short time after and before the meteor. 
* Analyse de l’aerolithe tombee k Alais, par M. Thenard ; Annales 
de Chemie, ann. 1806, p. 108. 
+ Journal de Physique de Gilbert, tain. XXIX. Analyse par M. 
Vauquelin Annales de Chemie, ann. 1809. p. 321. 
} Journal de Physique de Gilbert, tom. XXIX. 
After 
