The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1867-01-26

HE MEIEnRlc Dl>tIAN.-ih mere does nov appear
20 have been any unusual display Of meteors in
the United States. on the night Of November Is.
Al the N.w Haven Observatory about 500 We're
counted. hut this number Is not extraordinary. In
England the display seems to have been larger as
about 1900 mrteorS were seen at the Greenwich
Observatory. The following is the report from
that place:
GEEENwICH OBSERVATORY. ENCrANp
November 1T A. N.
TIL" expected mrtcoric showers were observed
last night. Al . O'Clock a few meta0rS IN: at II
o'clock they had Increased in number and size. and
between ! and , o'clock this morning the maximum
was reached. The night was clear and the Stars
were out in great numbers. The whole heavens
were brilliantly Illuminated.
The showers of mcteors were Of great beauty
and briiliauCy. and radigted from the constellation
Leo. near the star Gamma Leouia. Their direction
was mostly from the east 10 the vest. The paths
of the meteerS We're from three TO four degrees in
the north. Near Ursa Major 20 or % We're obServ-
ed at one time. and crossing the zenith % or GO
more of unusual size and duration. the majority
being larger than stars Of the first magnitude.
Several cXoded from the vicinity of Jupiter {; one,
at immense dimensions. was culored red, huc.
green. orange and amber. Nearly all had trails of
fire. OF two flaming from Leo At the same time.
one crossed Beta Geminorum ana the other Mars.
Two more. one red and the other of an oriental
sapphire color. crossed Alpha Orionis.
Some of the metcors burst forth in splendor :;
one. breaking behind the rising clouds. flashed like
sheet lightning, and another Of emerald blue burst
near Eta Laouis at II minutes after , o'clock. \. NJ,
its trail of fame being visible for a minute and a
half, and then faded away il brilliant nebulP.
At 3 4. ". they commenced to diminish gradually.
until. AZ the present moment, they are all. meteors
and stars, fading away in the morning light
We counted 5000 in one hour, nearly 1900 in
all. with the naked eye.
Astronomers in the United States appear to have
been much disappointed by the non-appearance Of
the showers The occasion las given rise to
some efforts of jeu d'esprit, among them the fol-
lowing:
received dispatches explaining the non-appearancc
of the meteors. 4. j. stopped them. lest in d" swing
ing around the circle of the heavens they might
come in contact with his accidency.
IMMENSE MErEoR.-Sam. Smith, night Waterman
in Petaluma. says the journal OF that place. informs
us that last Sunday morning. about , o'clock. n
meteor as large a. a barn door sped from North 10
South, whirring as it went, and lighting up the
earth as if old Sol was in nidIheaven.
JAPANESE JUGGLERs.-A party of japanese per
formers recently arrived in San Francisco. who
from all accounts, are creating quite an excitement.
Their performances are more like those Of Prof.
Anderson than anything lately exhibited, and some
of the tricks are said to be really marvellous. The
Bulletin notices them in the following item. 1t is
stated that on their return TO Japan, they will visit
Honolulu and give some exhibitions of their skill ::
zone of the performers, a man Of mighty limb stretches
out on his back, with hi. bare feet in the air. and on these he
balances a bamboo pole about fifteen feet long. A little boy
then mounts the Old mans feet and climbs to the summit OF the
pole, where he performs many feats Of strength and balancing,
hanging by one foot, and twiring about, changing his position
so rapidly that the spectator wonders how the ol man gu ms
back manages to keep the pole upright throughout the per-
frmance. Another trick is with a lot of oval tubs. The same
old fellow, who appears to be the strong man, arrangrs himself
as before described, with pedals in the air, the hoy mounts
them, an oval tub il thrown to the boy, which he places under
his feet and upon the mans and stands upon it, another tub is
a pile Of tub tubs reaching to the hight Of the proscenium. the whole
being supported on the old mans feet. The little chap at this
dizzy hight makes his salaam to the audience, seats himself on
the box and fame himself a. unconcerne1 a you please. sud-
denly one OF the chaps on the stage cries out Hi yu;' another
cries Ilou you;' the little hoy calculates Hi hi;' the old man
on his hack gives his feet a kNk-all the boxes appear to be
the entire sympaihles OF the audience. VIII have his meek
broken or he bruised and battered among the boxes, and that
the old man must receive the load upon lis head; but no, he
kicks the boxes entirely away, from him. While the hoy
drops Ike a shot and lights with his feet upon the old mans.
They perform some feats even more surprising than this-one
wi.r "A large tub, some five feet n diameter and a foot deep,
it about with wonderful rapidity on his feet, the old man
turns 1t upon its edge, when the boy gets into the tub, and
otter a variety Of performances, climbs over the upper edge,
while the tub is thus balanced, without disturbing its equhib-
rum. These are only a few Of their many tricks. The per-
hrmance is novel in its character. They have an orchestra
somewhat similar TO that in the Chinese theater, but their
music is not SO harsh aud dicorlant. Their orchestra CON-
prises a couple of instruments similar to a guitar, three drums,
and an earthen kg on which the performers keep time A
very interesting feature of the performance IS 4 loud nouthed
japanese who walks backwards and forwards before the foot
lights, beating a couple OF sticks together and apparently de-
liyering a lecture explanatory OF the teats performed. lie
seems to think that the whole interest o. the auilence IS en-
tered in his eloquent discourse. When the performers first
appear they resemble gigantic butterflies from the cut and
trimming of their dress. They make a low salaam 20 the
then retire to the back of the stage, where their fnery 10
stripped OF and they come cut prepared for action with tight
seeing"