At six o'clock in the evening a round body, which diffused the most vivid light, was observed in the vi cinity of Villefranche, moving westward and producing a hissing noise, like that of a bomb which traverses the air. This luminous body, which was seen at the same time at Lyons, and on Mont Cenis, marked its passage by a red track of fire, and exploded when about 200 toises from the earth, producing a loud report, and a commotion in the neighbourhood. One of the flaming fragments fell on the vineyard of Pierre Crepier, an in habitant of Sa.e-, making in the earth an opening of about twenty inches in depth, and eighteen in width. The analysis of Messsrs. Vauquelin and Howard first prompted M. Sage to examine this fragment and its history with more critical accuracy, and, finally, to re nounce his scepticism with regard to the existence of meteoric concretions.
An account of the same meteor was published in the Journal de Physique, for Floreal, year 11, by M. de Dree, who visited the spot in 1802. From his mi nute and deliberate investigation, it appears, that, at the time above specified, a luminous and extraordinary globe, in the eastern quarter of the heavens, had scarce ly arrested the attention of the inhabitants of Sales, and the adjacent villages, when its rapid approach, ac companied by a terrible whizzing noise, like that of an irregular hollow body, traversing the atmosphere with unusual velocity, inspired the whole commune with alarm, especially when they observed it passing over their heads, at an inconsiderable elevation, leav ing behind it a long train of light, and emitting, with an almost unceasing crackling, small bright flames, like little stars. Its fall was remarked by three labour ers, at the distance of only fifty paces. M mtillard, one of the three, a young man, who happened to be next the falling body, was struck with terror, and threw down his coat and bundle of sticks, that he might run the faster. The other two, Chardon and Lapoces, fled, with equal precipitation, to Sale-,, where the alarm had become general. These three witnesses attest the asto nishing rapidity of the meteor's motion, and the hiss ing which proceeded from the spot where it fell. Cre pier, who happened to be at home, was so much terri fied with the noise of its fall, within twenty yards of his house, that he locked himself up with his family, first in his cellar, and then in his private apartment, whence he ventured not to stir till next morning, when he was called to join Chat don, Lapoces, M. Mandel, and many others who had repaired to the precise spot where they had seen the fire-ball enter into the earth ; and there, at the bottom of a wide aperture, eighteen inches deep, including the whole thickness of the mould, they found a large black mass, of an irregularly ovoid form, having some resemblance to a calf's head, completely incrusted with a black varnish, cracked in several places, and smelling of gun-powder. It was
first of all brought to Crepier's house, and very closely examined : on breaking it, however, and observing no thing but stone, indifference succeeded to the curiosity of the observers; and they coolly attributed its appear ance to causes more or less supernatural.
The simplicity of most of the accounts, their perfect agreement in every important point, and the number and integrity of the witnesses, removed all doubt and suspi cion from the mind of M. de The weight of the Villefranche stone, before it was broken, was about twenty pounds. Its black, vitrifi ed, and opaque surface, gave fire with steel. Within, it was hard, earthy, of the colour of ashes, of a granu lated texture presenting different substan:es scattered through it, viz. iron, in grains, from du stnaltest %isi ble size to a line, or even mote, in diameter. somewhat malleable, hut harder and whiter th tr forged iron, white pyrites, both lamellar and granular, and ap proaching, in colour. to nickel, some grey globules, which seemed to present tht chat actors of trap, and a very few and minute p•.rticd:s .;f steatite, inclining to an olive hue. On account or its heterogeneous com position, its specific gre-ity could not be easily ascer tained. One hundred parts of the mass gave, accord ing to Vauquelin, Silica, . 46 Oxyd of iron, . 38 Magnesia, 15 Nickel, 2 Lime, . 2 103 The excess of this result was ascribed to the absorp tion of oxygen, by the native iron, during the pro cess.
December 19, 1798. About eight o'clock in the evening, a very luminous meteor, in the form of a large globe of fire, and accompanied by a loud thun dering noise, was observed in the heavens by the inha bitants of Benares, and the parts adjacent. It was said to have discharged a number of stones near Krak hut, a village on the north side of the liver Goonay, about fourteen miles from Benares. This meteor ap peared in the western quarter of the hemisphere, and was visible only for a short time, to several Europeans, as well as natives, in different parts of the country. In the neighbourhood of Juanpoor, about twelve miles from the spot where the stones fell, it was distinctly perceived by various European ladies and gentlemen, who described it as a large ball of fire, accompanied by a rolling noise, which they compared to bad platoon firing. Alr. Judge Davis observed the light to come into the room which he occupied, through the casement, and so strongly as to project shadows very distinctly on a dark-coloured carpet.