Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1871-12-27

as well as an aggregate of millions. The
millions move together only because each
one for itself obeys the force of attraction.
and each one will obey when alone, Just
as certainly as in the mass. The atoms
in the universe are not like children. who
sometimes stop to conside if it is best to
mind or not, the force says "cOme and
each comes without delay.
This rate Of motion tells still more. 1t
shows the shape Of the orbit in which the
meteOrs move, and the distance at which
they are nearest and farthest from the
sun. The November meteors come about
as near the sun as our earth, and when
farthest away they are near the path of
Of the planet Uranus. that Is, about 500
millions Of miles from the sun,
1t is believed that these meteors tray-
erse this orbit in about thirty-three years.
That there is a long and broad stream or
procession Of them, 50 long that they are
three or four years in passing a single
point IN their orbit, just as a large pro-
cession of men may be several hours in
passing the place where you stand to see
it.
The stream of meteors moves IN direc-
ZION opposite to that of the earth, and So
when the earth gets to a certain place in
its path on the 18th Of November. it
meets this procession, and the stars are
abundant, flying in all directions as the
earth goes through them, some turning by
one side, some by another, but all seeming
to come from the point in Leo. But the
stream Is so long that when the earth, a
year later, comes back to the same place
in its path, the meteors are still passing,
and even on the third year the last have
not gone by. Then In thirty-three years
more the procession Will come round
again. and the whole series Of appearances
will be repeated.
The August meteors have "a longer or
bit, and longer period; but instead OF
collecting IN q vast crowd, they seem TO
be distributed all along their path, so that
the earth meets one every year.
And then besides these large streams,
the whole space Of the solar system APP
pears 10 be full Of these little bodies, Just
as IN a summer evening, you may look up
into the air and see it filed with myriads
Of minute insects, which way So ever you
look
Ordinarily, when flying through space
the meteors are so small that they do not
gather enough sunlight 70 make them WIS.,
able. When they come into our air
moving as they do, so very swiftly, about
ten miles in "a second faster than the
earth itself, the friction against our air,
and ITS resistance To their motion, heats
them red hot, and they are consumed in
the oxygen OF the air Then we see them
blazing IN this burning. auG going ont az
they are consumed.
But they Ere not al so sinai. as % &,
burned up and 20 out In the air Occa.
sionaliy one is so large that il becomes a
blazing meteor, or fire ball that j. drawn
more and more swiftly 20 the earth. and
finally strikes, aud Il broken IN pieces
and buries its fragments in th= ground
such bodies are called moteor.e stones.
Many have been found iu an quarters 81
the world Some are no larger than dust
Others weigh several tons. One tor ex
ample. found near Buanos Ayr1s, lu Bra.
III weighed more than $4,000 pound
Such stones usually contain very hard iron
which may even be worked .u-1 suIse'
and other tools More than twenty Of
the chemical clements ot tla earth hat,
been found 10 mcteoric stones. 1uc DO e.e-
men. has set been discovered. lu auy one
which j. not known 10 the earth.
>ayera. cases are known .u which eym,
cts have followed the path OFF the meteori,
ring. Tins would Indicate thal some oi
the comets are similar in nature De- tbt
shooting stars.