Morning appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1877-1906, 1899-09-12
For sale at Nevada Drug Store.
Meteorites Astonish African Villa
gers and Are Sent to London.
Fine Collection OF Celestial Visit
ants 10 the British Mu-
scum - Explosions Of
IeteDrites.

The Nue representative collection of
m~eteOrites in the department Of min
erals in tne British museum has J4st
been euriched by four stones which
were s%tn to fail OIL the morning OF
January % last in native villages on
the eastern slopes OF Mount Lomba,
British Central Africa. Two Of Them,
COr.T}%te}y t~IsrruStpd and weighing II
uHr'y# ard = nnces res ertile!\. are
presented to the trustees 10y MIR. Alfred
>~1H"''" I. =. H." m"jc&tr'7 e@n-:@;5-.
sioHrr and rouo1' general: part. weight
ing ~ ounces, OF a tnird stone by Air.
j. F. Cunningham, secretary to the
p~Totector"te. aud part, weighing -
ounces, OF Il fourth stone by MIR. j. Nc
(Iuut'.e, acti"r collector OF revenues.
1t was about eight O'clock on the
morning Of the 27th Of january that
there was heard II IDmba a cr"sa Ike
thunder. the TeverbeTatiouS i&stiI.- t1r
a few minutes after"ard. 1he de;ona-
ton was beard At Chrome. Ai:a"fed
about &c rifles south OF Zomba, uud at
Fort ,lnhrston aud beyond. a distance
Of about 70 miles in ffr opposite direc-
lion. Lonha WaS th"s roughly the
ccnter 9 the district over which the
actual explosion Of the ueteorite took
place. About nine a. ID. news reached
the T~esiiency that several stones had
fallen in native villages on the eastern
slopes q ZoInha mountain, which is sit
lated immediately behind the Zomba
settlement, aud rises to a height OF
COCO feet above the sea, the settlement
being al 2,Oe0 feet.
Ten fragments in ali were found,
the largest weighing five pounds 121a
ounces. At II of the villages the peo-
pie were found squirting round the
stone in a circle discussing the mir
acle," as they called it. No II had
touched or approached the stone. and it
was still lying where it fell. when the
officials sent to investigate the matter
arriyed. The story OF it's fall was given
AS follows:
"A woman was pounding corn under
a tree within about ten yards OF her hut
when the stone fell. The whole village
heard thedetonatiou Immediately after
ward. and gathered to where the VOL
an was standing to view the stone.
Thsy were afraid of il, thinking it en-
chanted, and t!!"v sat at a distance
round it, each "ivjre a version. of its
probable origin "r>! s~reaning."
1t fell on hard -'n..2d. but, as there
were IL rocks a-'a-.:, no G:r"~.'ty WIS
Experienced IN 0,~~."g it W complete.
Al E13"5rrr = .":lo Ltfrr, eight GA
the s"-:- l".lo~utr~ g. tar ot >.sr>tional
~br;l.ja"es vas a,.s,. 10 Ia>% across the
sky in tie G;recfiou of Lake ShiINu
(rourhly, west to ca<t}, leaving a trail
or tail behind i, ~5,..1ndiateIv followed
by an explosion hS~ Il crash Of thunder.
Mir. McGIOuuie sia'-- that the report
was heard witi Ia recession of a can
non boom, while NJ. Sharpe. who, at
the time of the explosion, was on top
ofZOnba mountain, heard n very loud
report; then for so1ue two minutes a
long rumbling or buzziug noise, grad
ually getting fainter and fainter.
Explosions of mettcrites are general
ly followed by sounds which have been
%variousiy likened to he Tapping of the
wings OF wild geese, the believing OF
oxen. Turkish music. the roaring OF q
fire in a chimney. the noise of a ca
rage on the pavement. and the tearing
Of calico. Mr.. Fletcher, the keeper OF
the department OF minerals, in his In
PRODUCTION to the Study o; Meteorites,'
states that these sounds are probably
due to he whiriing OF the fragment!
through the air in the neiRhborhood o
the observers.
" far as at present known. the are;
! c1rl Hhi"h the Zeynba stones fell repre-
sents about nine miles long by abou
three wide, but. inasmuch as the frag
n,ents collected are only those wbicl
we've seen to fall close to people o
houses, it appears probable that a larg
number Of stones may have reached tn
earth.--London Times.