Naturul Philosophy. — Meteorology. 365 
forte having been sent on purpose to Exeter Change, the higher 
notes hardly attracted the elephant’s notice, but the low ones 
roused his attention. The effect of the higher notes of the piano- 
forte upon the great lion in Exeter Change was only to excite 
his attention, which was very great. He remained silent and 
motionless. But no sooner were the flat notes sounded, than he 
sprang up, attempted to break loose, lashed his tail, and seemed 
so furious and enraged as to frighten the female spectators. 
This was attended with the deepest yells, which ceased with 
the music. Sir E. Home has found this inequality of the fibres 
in neat-cattle, the horse, deer, the hare, and the cat. See Phil. 
Trans. 18S3, pp, 23-26. 
METEOROLOGY. 
9. Remarkable Waterspout in France in 1823. — In the 
arrondissemens of Dreux and of Mantes, about 3 o’clock of the 
26th of August 1823, a storm came on from the SW., accom- 
pahied with a sudden and powerful heat. A waterspout was 
seen not far from the village of Boncourt, having its broad base 
resting on the ground, and its summit lost in the clouds. It 
consisted of a thick and blackish vapour, in the middle of which 
were often seen flames in several directions. Advancing along 
with the storm, it broke or tore up by the roots, in the space of 
a league, seven or eight hundred trees of different sizes, and at 
last burst with great violence in the village of Marchepoy, one 
half of the houses of whicli were instantly destroyed. The walls, 
overturned to their foundations, rolled down on all sides ; the 
roofs, when carried off, broke in pieces, and the debris were drag- 
ged to the distance of half a league by the force of this aerial 
torrent. Some of the inhabitants were crushed to pieces, or 
wounded by the fall of their houses, and those who were occu- 
pied in the labours of the field, were overthrown or blown away 
by the whirlwind. Hailstones as large as the fist, and stones 
and other foreign bodies carried off* by the wind, injured several 
individuals. Carts heavily loaded were broken in pieces, and 
their loads dispersed. Their axle-trees were broken, and the 
wheels were found at the distance of 200 or 300 paces from the 
spot where they were overturned. One of these carts, which 
had been carried off* almost bodily, was pitched above a tile- 
VOL. X. NO. 20. APRIL 1824, B b 
