The state republican. (Jefferson City, Mo.) 1871-1896, 1894-01-18
FAMOUS METEORIC STONES.
The Largest known Weighs 10000 Pounds
and Was found in Greenland.

Tho Largest Il udwn Weighs 10000 Pounds
and Was Found in Greenland.
A meteoric stone, Which is described
by Pliny as being as large as s. wagon.
fell near 4Egospotami in Asia Mirror irs
467 b. c. About A. d. 1900 n stone
weighing one thousand four hundred
pounds fell in Mexico and is now in
the Smithsonian institution at Wash
ington. The largest mctcoric masses
on tcehrd were heard of first by Capt.
Ross, the Arctic explorer, through
some Esqimo. These lay on the
west coast of Greenland and were sub
sequcitiy found bT the Swedish eX-
ploring party II 1870. One of them,
now in the Royal Iiiuseum of Stock
holm, weighs over fifty thousand
p5bpds and is the largest specimen
known.
Two remarkable mctcoritcs have
fallen Iowa within the past twenty
years. February ~, 1895, an exceed
ingly brilliant meoter, in the form OF
an elongated horseshoe, was scer
throughout n region of at least fonr
hundred mllcs in length and two hun
dred and fifty in breadth, lying in Mis-
souri, and Iowa. 1t is described as
without tail, but having flowing
Jacket of flame. Detonations were
heard so violent as to shake the eatth
ard 70 jar the windows like the shock
of I'm earthquake" as it fell about
half-past ten in the evening, n few
miles east of Marengo, ia. The ground
for the space of some seven miles in
length by two to four mics in
breadth. was strewn with fragments
of this meteor varying in weight from
Il few ounces to scventy-four pounds.
On May 10, 1879, large and eStraor-
dinarily luminous meoter exploded
with terrific noise, followed at slight
intervals with less violent detonations,
and struck the earth in the edge of a
ravine near Estervillc, Emmet county,
Ia, penetrating to a depth of fourteen
feet.
Within two miles other fragments
were found, one of which weighed one
hundred and seventy pounds, and an
other thirty-two pounds. The princi-
pal mass weighed four hundred and
thirty-one pounds. All the discovered
parts aggregated about six hundred
pounds. The one of one hundred and
seventy pounds is now in the cabinet
Of the state university of Minnesota.
The composition of this aerolte is
peculiar in many respects; but, as in
nearly all acrolites, there is n consider
able proportion of iron and nickel
1t is generally held that metcors at
one time or another formed internal
parts of comet. The meteor enters
the earth's atmosphere from without
with velocity relative to the earth
that is comparable with the enrth's
velocity in its orbit, which is nineteen
miles per second. BY the resistance IL
meets in penetrating the air, the light
and other phenomena of the luminous
train are produced. Many small me-
tcorites are undoubtedly consumed by
this fire, caused by friction, before
they reach the earths surface. San
Francisco Call.
First Person Cremated In America.
The first white person lawfully ere
mated within the present limits of the
United States, according to wishes and
desires expressed by himself was Col.
Henry Laurens, one of the revolution
ary patriots. He was born in Charles.
| ton, 5. c., in the year 1724, and died on
his plantation near that place on De-
cembcr s, 1893. His will, which he had
requested them TO open and read the
next day after his death, was supple
mented with the following: II solemn
ly enjoin it upon my son, as an indis-
pensable duty, that, as soon as he con-
veniently can after my deceasc, he
cause my body to be wrapped in twelve
yards of tow cloth and burned until it
be entirely consumed" The request
was carried out TO the letter, and was
the beginning of cremation in Amer
ica.-St. Louis Repub bile.