Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1892-10-27
al ARoUr MErEoRs.
Foster Sheds Light Upon an Interesting
But Obscure subject.


which includes meteors, erOlites and
comets as being the same, differing
only in age and size. further history
of the @roIites will be given as evil
dence that comets have struck the
earth.
In Dicks works we find this state
ment: ''Mr Barham states that
when he was riding in Jamaica one
evening, he beheld a ball of fire, ap-
parently about the bigness of a bomb,
swiftly falling down with a great
blaze. Approaching the place where
it fell, he found the ground strangely
broken up and plowed, and several
holes appeared the bigness of mans
head. all the heritage burned up near
the holes and strong smell of sui
phur in the vicinity" This is a fair
description of the general appearance
and effects of serolites striking the
earth.
DIR. Dick also gives the following:
SIN the year 1876, great globe of
fire was seen in Bonona, in Italy,
about forty minutes after sunset. It
! passed with the most rapid course,
and at the rate of not less than l60
miles a minute, and at last stood over
in its course, and by computation it
was found that it could not have Leen
less that thirty-eight miles above the
surface of the earth. Wherever it
approached, the inhabitants below
could distinctly hear it. with his
sing noise resembling that of a fire
work. 1t was heard to go off with a
violent explosion. It's magnitude at
Bonona appeared twice as large as the
moon one way; and as broad the
other. 1t was estimated to be mile
long and half mile broad"
Again from DR.. Dick, and no one
will deny that he is good authority:
Zone of the most striking and extra
! ordinary meteors of this kind made
its appearance on the 18th of August
! 1888, about o'clock in the evening
1t was seen in all parts of Great
Britain, from the Shetland Isles to
the English Channel, over all France,
| and the greater part of Italy, and is
supposed to have described a path of
at least 1000 miles over the surface
OF the earth. 1t appears to have
burst and reunited several times, and
the first bursting noticed was some
where over Lincolnshire in England.
Its appearance produced universal
wonder and alarm. When 1t was
observed at Brussels, the moon APP
peared quite red, and the illumina-
tion was so great as to totally Obliter-
ate the stars. A report was heard
sometime after it disappeared, which
was loudest at Lincolnshire, and af-
| forwards in the eastern parts ofKent.
A Kissing sound was also said to ac-
company its progress. At Greenwich
two bright balls parallel to each
other led the way, and were followed
! by an expulsion of eight others. The
| balls were tinted first with a pure
bright light, then followed yellow
mixed with azure, red and green,
which, with coalition of holder
| tints and reflection from the other
balls, gave the most beautiful ro-
tundity and variation of color with
which the human eye could be
| charmed. The height Of this freball
was reckoned from seventy to ninety
miles, its diameter nearly two miles,
and its velocity l 200 miles a min
ute.'
In his celestial Scenery, DR.. Dick
says: November II, 1892. a stone
of 26O pounds fell at Ensisheim in
| Alsace. and is now in the library Of
| Colimar. The famous Gassendi re-
lates that stone weighing 81 pounds
and of black color fell at Mount Val
son Nov. %, 1857. It's specific CRAWL
| ty was three and half times that of
water. A small stone fell at Milan,
and killed a Franciscan June 7, 1706.
A stone Of Y pounds fell at Larissa
| in Mascedonia, smelled of sulphur,
and was like the scum of iron. In
| 1851 two masses of iron of II and Is
pounds fell in the district of Agram.
the capital of Croatia, and the largest
of these is now in Vienna. July "A,
| 1890, a great shower Of stones fell at
Barbotan near Roquefort. in the vi
cinity of Bordeaux. a mass, fifteen
| inches in diameter, penetrated hut
and killed a herdsman and bullock.
| The stones weighed % to 80 pounds
| July, 1910, a large ball of fire fell
from the clouds at Shahabad, burned
five villages, destroyed the crops, and
killed several men and women.
Alden's Cyclopedia gives an account
of the remains Of metallic erolite
in the museum at ST. Petersburg,
weighing IA, 900 pounds.
1t is said that in the great fall of
meteors in 1888, some of them ap-
peared to be as large as the moon,
with trains from five to forty de-
grees in length.
These trains or tails of the meteors
are caused by friction on the atmos-
phere. The depth Of our atmosphere
is not known but no one now claims
| it to be less than 200 miles. Proba-
bflities are that it is nearer 1000
miles in depth, and that it so gradu-
| ally becomes attenuated. that it in
sensibly passes into the ether ofspace,
which rotates with the earth far out
| beyond the orbit of the moon.
Meteors that fall to the earth YER
| tically do not become lighted, because
| 4l,orr d not rnacc ffror1nh arntrnh Of