Omaha daily bee., 1899-11-17
REWARD FOR STAR GAZERS
Some Observers Catch a Glimpse Of the
Falling Meteors,
LEoNIDsS APPEAR AT SEVERAL PLACES
where There Is n Clear sky Watchers
Arc Rewarded with n sight
of the Glowing
Globuies.

| Copyright, 1899. by Press Publishing COD
| LONDON Nov. 16.-(New York World
Cablegram-special Telegram )-The Daily
| News Odessa correspondent says: The
marvellous display of eonid meteors has
led to veritable panic during the last three
| nights in many parts Of Russia.
Ignorant and superstitous peasants be-
| lieved that an awful cataclysm was at
hand; that II the world was not really ccm-
| ing to an end it would certainly be rent bJ
series of terrific earthquakes.
| I'm all the smaller towns and villages
the churches were kept open all night with
attendant priests, who strove to allay pub
! lie terror. Hundreds of thousands of peo-
pie have passed the last three nights IN
| the open air, despite the cold weather.
From many quarters come reports of ter
ror, demented parents having murdered their
| children to save them from the horrors OF
the worlds destruction. Even in large
cities like Odessa, tens of thousands have
| spent the nights in the parks and on the
boulevards in fear and trembling"
| DENVER. Nov. 16.-Prof. Howe of the
| University of Denver reports that from :l5
| to o clock this morning he counted eighteen
Leonids, besides large number OF meteors
| in other portions of the sky. The sky was
perfectly clear after midnight.
| CHICAGO, Nov 16.-Thirty meteors were
| reported in sight in the eastern sky just be-
| fore dawn this morning and several photos
were secured by Prof. Hough at Northwest
ern university. Owing TO the brilliancy OF
| the moon at the time of the observations no
| Leonids fainter than a star Of .he second
magnitude could be seen. Three particu-
larly bright ones were observed.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 16.-The government
observers at the naval observatory report
| last nights watch for Leonid meteors dis
appointment. But six or eight meteors were
observed, less than on the preceding night,
and these were small and not brilliant.
PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 16.-The meteoric
display here early this morning was dis
appointment 1t was cloudy until midnight
and thick haze obscured the sky when the
constellation of Leo arose. Just before day
break the radiant could be plainly seen and
during the short time remaining for observa-
tion the moeors were seen az the rate Of
twenty five or thirty an hour
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 16.-Prof James
E. Keeler, director of the Lick observatory,
Mount Hamilton, teegraphs as follows:
"The sky was visible at intervals last night.
Some leonides were seen, but the few were
not unusual. The main swarm may be
day or two late, otherwise possibly whole
year, or it may fail altogether, as in 1776.
DENVER, Nov. ia shower Of meteors
was observed this morning at University
park by Dean Howe and corps OF assist
ants, but there was nothing like the num-
ber that had been expected. Photographs
were taken. About 1 o'clock the leonides
commenced to shoot, but rapid work did not
A oplppk One
pany of watchers counted sixty-three leo
hides in fifteen minutes Although DR..
Howe is hoping that the climax OF the
shower is not yet reached, he is not certain
that it has not passed already, in which
case 1t has been missed. by astronomers all
over the world. s ., go. an
LONDON, Nov 16.--A balloon, with Mr..
Percival Spencer, the aeronaut; Rev. j.
NJ Bacon and Miss Bacon, ascended at
O'Clock yesterday morning from Newbury,
Berkshire, for the purpose of observing the
leonid shower, descending near Meath South
Wales, this morning. They only observed
five meteors, but were near enough to catch
some of the fiery vapor by special ap-
paratus. They were obliged to make sud
den descent, as the balloon was drifting
toward the sea. AS a result Mr.. Bacon was
badly shaken and his daughters arm was
fractured.
WASHINGTON Nov. 16.-Rev Prof. Ho-
gan of Georgetown University observatory
who watched for the Leonid meteors, saw
only one meteor during last nights OBJ
servation This was between / and 1:3O
o clock Thursday morning. This meteor, the
professor says, flashed up from the radiant
point FIVE minutes past /, like star of Sec
ond magnitude, and moved rapidly IN
direction southeast leaving short trail
and exploding with a brilliancy like the
planet Venus in its greatest splendor 1t
was a genuine Leond, but solitary wan
derer.
LONDON, Nov. ia few leonides were
seen from the Greenwich observatory, al
though no photographs were secured and
few were observed at Romsey. Hampshire
from the Treptow observatory. None, how
ever. seem to have been seen elsewhere.
In Russia the leonid displays caused
panic in many places. 1t was believed that
the end of the world had come. Churches
were opened all night long and hundreds
spent the night in the open air, fearing
earthquakes and general cataclysm. There
ara even rumors that Russian parents mur-
dered their children to save them from an
expected worse fate. There was brilliant
display between 2 and o'clock Thursday
at Berlin
AeroIite wrecks n Residence.
CRESCENT, H.. Nov. 16.-By the falling
of an aeroite, seven miles south of Cres-
cent City. the residence of John Meyers was
partially wrecked and the neghborhood 10
rII.