The Oxford intelligencer., 1860-06-20

tirely consumed in the blaze which marks their
passage, and this seems particularly to be the
case with the vast numbers which appear in the
occasional sO-called I" star-showers," Ike that
memorable one which occurred on the morning
of the 18th of November, 1888.
Some of the hypothesis which have bsen sug-
gested to account for aerolites would equally eS-
plain, and have been employed to explaia the
phenomena of shooting stars. Others are more
limited in their applicability, and leave the latter
class of phenomena to find an independent solu-
ton.
You viii not expect me 10 go into a. discussion
ofthe merits of these several hypotheses- 10 do
this would occupy much larger space than
can at present devote to the subject. twill prob
ably be sufficient to state, in brief the substances
ofthe hypothesis themselves. In the first place,
and before the actual fall Of meteoric bodies from
the atmosphere had been incontestably proved,
the burned and vitrified appearance of the masses
as they were occasionally found, together with
their general uniformity Of chemical constitution,
and their dissimarity to any other minerals, sug-
gested the idea that they are produced out of
,arthy materials, by lightning strokes upon the
spots where they are found. 1t is true that no
good rationale ofthis peculiar effect Of lightning
could be given, but still the theory had its adhe-
rents, until the fact of the fall of the bodies had
been fully established.
Another suppositon which has, in past years,
had the sanction of some eminent names, attrib-
uted the origin of meteoric stones to concrctions
formed in the atmosphere ITSELF of elements rais-
ed from the earth in gaseous form Hydrogen
gas, having the power of carrying with it in gas
eous combination, metals of different kinds and
notably iron, this gaswas presumed to be the me-
dium ofconycying sufficient quantity of such
substances into the upper regions of the atmos-
phere, to furnish the materials for the meteors;
and then as this gas is highly nllammable, it was
supposed only to need the occurrence ofan cleo
tric flash TO bring on the necessary chemical ac-
ton. need hardly say that modern chemistry
finds in hishypothcsis no adequate account ofthe
matter; and even if the formation of the solid
masses could be thus satisfactorily explained,
their great velocity, and the directions ofthcr mo-
ton (rarcly, ircver, yerticaD would still remain
unexplained mysteries
A third hypothesis has regarded aerolites as
proiectiles thrown from terrestrial volcanoes
The difficulties in the way of such a mode of ac-
counting for the phenomena are entirely insuper
able. The carth's atmosphere offers so enormous
a resistance to bodies moving swiftly through il,
that it could not Gail to bringal bodies so thrown
out back again to the surface within very limit
ed distance. from the point of projection; and,
moreover, the power of gravity toward the earth
is so great as to require a projectile force too
large, even had the Garth no atmosphere, to be
reasonably looked for from sucha source. These
bodies fall, moreover, on every part ofthe carth's
surface, hundreds and even thousands of miles
from any active volcano.
Still another mode Of accounting for the phe-
ncmcna, is one which received so far the sanction
Of the celebrated Laplace, as to have been math-
ematicaly demonstrated by him to be physically
possible; and one which has still its advocates
among our men of science, one Of whom-Dr. j
Lawrence Smith-read before the American As
soeaton for the Advancement ofSciencc, at their
meeting ofApri, 1854, a very elaborate and, it
must be confessed, able argument in advocacy of
this view. According to this hypothesis, aero
ltes are bodies projected from volcanoes in the
moon. The moon has no atmosphere none at
least sensiblc) and its force Of attraction is so
much less than that of the earth, that procctile
thrown Immediately toward this planet, with a
velocity three or four times greater than that of
a cannon ball (when it leaves the gIn)-that is to
say, with avclocity of 1900 or 5000 feet per sec
ord, would pass beyond the point of equilibrium
between the moon and earth, and would ncccssa-
rily come to us, with a velocity derived from the
must be. observed however, that if not thrown
exactly or very nearly in our direction, such a
body would inevitably go back to themoOn. Not
withstanding the plausibility Of this hypothesis,
it is by no means regarded with favor in the sci
entifc world generally.
\ Ahypothesis having some analogy to this was
originated carly in this century, after the discov-
eryof two or three of the numerous group of
small planets whose orbits lie between Mars and
Jupiter. II was favorite notion of DR.. Olbcrs,
the dscoverer of the second of these bodies that
there had once been larger planet occupying
this position in the solar system which, by its
explosion, from some unknown cause, had pro-
duced the lesser ones then brought TO light, and
he accordingly predicted that other fragments
would be subsequently discovered. The verifi- |
cation of his prediction There have in all, up to
this time been discovered nearly sixty, secured
for this theory, for time, somewhat general IA
vor, if not an absolute acceptaton but the study
Of the orbits of the entire group has since shown
that it is far from being probable. Assuming
however, that such planetary explosion had oc-
Cured, it was not very difficult to believe that
while the larger masses might have continued to
follow pretty nearly the path ofthe original plan
ct, the minuter fragments might have been SO
widely scattered as TO rcach-some Of them at
least-to our own neighborhood.
DIR Day late President of Yale College threw out I