Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1899-10-04
Aeteorites Astonish African villa.
gers and Are Sent to London.
Fine Collection OF Celestial vislt-
ants Ia tho British Mu-
scum - Explosions OF
Meteorites.

The fine representative collection Of
meteorites in the department. Of min
erals in the British museum has Just
been enriched by four stones which
were seen to fall on the morning Of
January IS last in native villages on
the eastern slopes of Mount Zomba,
British Central Africa. Two of them,
completely encrusted and weighing IA
ounces and II ounces respectively. are
presented to the trustees by Mr.. Alfred
Sharpe, c. B.. her majesty's commits
sioner and consul general; part, weigh
ing 20 ounces, Of a third stone by Mr..
j. f. Cunningham, secretary to the
protectorate. and part, weighing 10
ounces, of a fourth stone by Mr.. j. Nc
Clounie, acting collector of revenues.
1t was about eight o'clock on the
morning Of the 25th Of January that
there was heard at Zomba "a crash like
thunder, the reverberations lasting for
few minutes afterward. The detona-
ton was heard at Chrome, situated
about 80 miles south of Zomba, and at
Fort Johnston and beyond, a distance
of about 20 miles in the opposite direc-
ton. Zomba was thus roughly the
center of the district over which the
actual explosion of the meteorite took
place. About nine Il. IN. news reached
the residency that several stones had
fallen in native villages on the eastern
slopes OF Zomba mountain, which is sit
uated Immediately behind the Zomba
settlement, and rises to u height of
5000 feet above the sea. the settlement
being at 2,C20 feet.
Ten fragments in all were found,
the largest weighing five pounds I2A
ounces. At one of the villages the pco-
pie were found squatting round the
stone in circle discussing the mir
acle," as they called it. No one had
touched or approached the 81 one, and it
was still lying where it fell. when the
officials sen! to Investigate the matter
arrived. The story of it's fall was given
as follows:
"A woman was pounding corn under
n tree within about ten yards of her hut
when the stone fell. The whole village
heard the detonation Immediately AFTER
wrrd, and gathered to where the WON
an wis standing to view the stone.
They were afraid of it, thinking it en-
chanted, and they sat at a distance
round it, each giving a version of it's
probable origin and meaning"
1t fell on hard ground, but, as there
were no rocks about, no difficulty was
experienced in digging it up complete.
At Blantyre n little before eight on
the same morning star of exceptional
brilliancy was seen to pass across the
sky in the direction of Lake Shirwa
(roughly, west to east), leaving trail
or tail behind it, Immediately followed
by an explosion like a crash of thunder.
Mr.. melbourne states that the report
was heard with the precision of a can
non boom, while Mr.. Sharpe, who, ut
the time of the explosion, was on top
ofZomba mountain, heard one very loud
report; then for some two minutes q
long rumbling or buzzing noise, grad
ually getting fainter and fainter.
Explosions Of meteorites are general
ly followed by sounds which have been
variously likened to the tapping of the
wings of wild geese, the believing of
oxen, Turkish music, the roaring of a
fire in chimney, the noise of q ca
rage on the pavement, and the tearing
OF calico. Mr.. Fletcher, the keeper Of
the department of minerals. in his elm
production to the Study Of Meteorites."
states that these sounds are probably
due to. the whirling Of the fragments
through the air in the neighborhood of
the observers.
As far as at present known, the area
over which the Zomba stones fell repre-
sents about nine miles long by about
three wide, but, inasmuch as the frag-
ments collected are only those which
were seen to fall close to people or
houses, 1t appears probable that large
number OF stones may have reached the
earfh --Tondoy, T;ynes