The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-11-17
WE'RE OUT IN
FORCE TO CATCH GLIMPSE
OF FALLING METEORS
MAJORITY WERE DISAPPOINTED
SOME FEW, HOWEVER, WE'RE RE
WARDED FOR THEIR MID
NIGHT EXPEDITION
WANDERER AT WASHINGTON


With the BriIIiancy Of the Planet
Venus In It's Greatest SplendOr.-
AerOlite in Illinois Causes Panic.
Prof. Hogan, of Georgetown university
observatory, who watched for the Leonfd
meteors, saw only one meteor during last
nights observation. This was between
and 1870 Thursday morning. The meteor,
the professor says, flashed up from the
radiant point, at 1:05 like a star of
second magnitude. and moved rapidly in
a direction southwest leaving a short
trail and exploding with a brilliancy like
the planet Venus in its greatest splendor
1t was a genuine Leonid but solitary
wanderer.
DISPLAY DISAPPOINTING.
NEW YORK. Nov. 16-Prof Rees, of
Columbia, and Mr. Moore of Harvard,
are at Charles A. Posts observatory at
Dayport, L. L, watching for the shower
Of meteOrs. They had little luck up to
o'clock this morning, when the sky,
which had been overcast for four hours,
cleared. During the four hours before
morning two photographs were obtain
ed. Fifty-nine meteors in all were count
ed during the morning. Only one of these
was classed of the first magnitude. None
of the meteors exploded, and few left
the trails. Prof Rees caid he feared the
observations in this part of the country
have all been failures, and it was to be
hoped that observers in other parts of
the world had better success. He said
there was a possibility the showers had
not yet passed by, and that as tonight
promised to be clear, valuable data might
yet be obtained.
SAW FIVE METEORS.
LONDON, Nov. 16.-A balloon with Per-
cival Spencer, the aeronaut, the Rev.
John NJ Bacon and Miss Bacon ascend
ed from Newbury Berkshire, for the pur-
pose of observing the Leonid shower, de-
scending near Meath, South Wales, this
afternoon. The observers saw only five
meteors, but were near enough to catch
some of the fiery vapor by a special ap-
paratus. They were obliged to make
sudden descent, as the balloon was drift
Ing toward the sea AS a result Mr.. Ba-
con was badly shaken and his daughters s
arm fractured.
SHOWER AT DENVER
DENVER, Col, Nov. ia shower Of
meteors was observed this morning at
University park by Dean Howe and a
corps of assistants, but there was moth
ing like the number that had been ex-
pected. Photographs were taken. About
! o'clock the Leonids commenced to
shoot, but rapid work did not commence
until nearly 4 o'clock. One company of
watchers counted sixty-three Leonids 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.
SWARM MAY BE LATE.
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 16-Prof
James E. Keller director of the Lick
observatory, telegraphs as follows: THE
sky was visible at intervals last night.
Some leonids were seen, but the few
We're not unusual. The main swarm may
be a day or two late, otherwise possibly
a whole year, or it may fail altogether,
as in 1776."
ANTICIPATE FAILURE.
PRINCETON, N J., Nov. 16.-At-
tempts of Prof. Young and Prof Libbey
to photograph the meteors last night met
with but little success. Prof. Young saw
eight meteors between l and 4 o'clock
this morning and exposed one plate, but
says he doubts if it will show any me-
teors when developed. Prof Libbey set
up his camera at Hamilton square, eight
miles south of Princeton. He saw twelve
meteors, but failed to get any photo
graphs. Prof. Reed exposed four plates
from the university, but has not devel-
oped them. He thinks his attempts a
failure also.
NONE HAVE APPEARED.
VIENNA, Nov 16.-Dr Weiss, director
of the Vienna observatory, who headed
a scientific expedition to Delhi, India, to
observe the Leonids, cabled this morning
that they had not yet appeared.
OF COURSE, AT CHICAGO,
CHICAGO, Nov 16-Thirty meteors
| were reported in sight in the eastern sky
just before dawn this morning and sew
eral photographs were secured by Prof
+ Hough at Northwestern university Ow-
ing to the brilliancy of the moon at the
time of the observation, no Leonids faint
er than a star of the second magnitude
could be seen. Three particularly bright
ones were observed.