Part 2 (1/2)

I wish to be understood to preserve mere records, the full authority for which, deserves to be investigated more and more.

Having, nevertheless, gone so far as to say thus much; I ought to add, that the memorial of such sort of large stones having fallen from the clouds is still preserved also in Germany.

For one is recorded to have fallen in _Alsace_, in the midst of a storm of hail, November 29th, A. D. 1630;[DD] which is said to be preserved in the great church of _Anxissem_: and to be like a large dark sort of flint-stone; having its surface operated upon by fire: and to be of very many pounds weight.

And another is said to be still preserved at Vienna.

This last is described by _Abbe Stutz_, a.s.sistant in the Imperial cabinet of curiosities at Vienna, in a book printed in German, at _Leipsyc_, in 1790: ent.i.tled _Bergbaukimde_ (or _the Science of Mining_.)

After describing two other stones, said to have fallen from the clouds: one in the _Eichstedt_ country in Germany; and another in the _Bechin_ circle, in Bohemia, in July, 1753; concerning the _real_ falling of which he had expressed some doubts; he proceeds to describe the falling of two, (whereof this was one,) not far from _Agram_, the capital of _Croatia_, in Hungary; which caused him to change his opinion; and to believe, that the falling of such stones from heaven, was very possible.

His words, fairly translated,[EE] in the beginning of his narrative, are, ”These accounts put me in mind of a ma.s.s of iron, weighing seventy-one pounds, which was sent to the imperial collection of natural curiosities: about the origin of which _many mouths have been distorted with scoffing laughter_. If, in the _Eichstedt_ specimen, the effects of fire appear _tolerably_ evident; they are, in this, not to be mistaken.--Its surface is full of spherical impressions, like the ma.s.s of iron, which the celebrated _Pallas_ found on the Jenisei river; except that here the impressions are larger, and less deep; and it wants both the yellow gla.s.s, which fills up the hollows of the _Siberian_ iron; and the _sand stone_, which is found in the _Eichstedt_ specimen; the whole ma.s.s being solid, compact, and black, like hammered iron.”

And his words in the end of the narrative are,

”There is a great step from the disbelief of tales, to the finding out the true cause of a phaenomenon which appears wonderful to us. And probably I should have committed the fault into which we so naturally fall, respecting things we cannot explain; and have rather denied the whole history, than have determined to believe any thing _so incredible_; if various new writings, on electricity, and thunder, had not fortunately, at that time come into my hands; concerning remarkable experiments of reviving _metallic calces_ by the electric spark.

Lightning is an electrical stroke on a large scale.--If then the reduction of iron can be obtained, by the discharge of an electrical machine; why should not this be accomplished as well, and with much greater effect by the very powerful discharge of the lightning of the clouds?”

The substance of the account of the fall of stones, in Hungary, as given by him, after the most accurate inquiries, is what I shall now add in the following abridged detail; and it was verified by _Wolfgang Kukulyewich, Spiritual vicar of Francis Baron Clobuschiczky, Bishop of Agram_, who caused seven eye witnesses to be examined, concerning the actual falling of these stones on the 26th of May, 1751;--which witnesses were ready to testify all they affirmed, upon oath,--and one of them was Mr. George Marsich, Curate, as we should call him, of the parish.

According to their accounts; about six o'clock, in the afternoon of the day just mentioned, there was seen towards the east, a kind of fiery ball; which, after it had burst into two parts, with a great report, exceeding that of a cannon, fell from the sky, in the form, and appearance of _two chains_ entangled in one another:--and also with a loud noise, as of a great number of carriages rolled along. And after this a black smoke appeared; and a part of the ball seemed to fall in an arable field of one _Michael Koturna.s.s_; on the fall of which to the ground a still greater noise was heard; and a shock perceived, something like an earthquake.

This piece was afterwards soon dug out of the ground; which had been particularly noted to be plain and level, and ploughed just before; but where it was now found to have made a great fissure, or cleft, an ell wide, whilst it singed the earth on the sides.

The other piece, which fell in a meadow, was also dug up; and weighed sixteen pounds.

And it is fairly observed, that the unadorned manner in which the whole account from _Agram_ is written; the agreement of the different witnesses, who had no reason to accord in a lie; and the similarity of this history to that of the _Eichstedt_ stone; makes it at least very probable, that there was indeed something real, and worth notice, in the account.

The _Eichstedt_ stone (somewhat like that said to have fallen so lately in Yorks.h.i.+re) is described as having been composed of ash-grey sand stone, with fine grains intermixed all through it, partly of real native iron, and partly of yellowish brown ochre of iron: and as being about as hard as building stone.--It is said not to effervesce with acids, and evidently to consist of small particles of siliceous stone and iron.--It had also a solid malleable coat of native iron, as was supposed, quite free from sulphur, and about two lines thick; which quite covered its surface; resembling a blackish glazing. And the whole ma.s.s exhibited evident marks of having been exposed to fire.

A plain testimony of the falling of this was affirmed to be, produced as follows; that a labourer, at a brick-kiln, in winter, when the earth was covered with snow, saw it fall down out of the air immediately after a violent clap of thunder;--and that he instantly ran up to take it out of the snow; but found he could not do so, on account of its heat; and was obliged therefore to wait, to let it cool. That it was about half a foot in diameter; and was entirely covered with a black coat like iron.[FF]

And I must now add that there is a record;[GG] that stones, to the number of some hundreds, did once fall in the neighbourhood of a place called _Abdua_; which were very large and heavy;--of the colour of rusty iron;--smooth, and hard;--and of a sulphureous smell:--and which were observed to fall from a vehement whirlwind; that appeared (like that in Tuscany) as an atmosphere of fire.

Here I intended to have concluded all my observations. But a recent publication, which I knew not of, when these sheets were written, obliges me to add a few more pages.

In a very singular tract, published in 1794, at Riga, by Dr. _Chladni_, concerning the supposed origin of the ma.s.s of iron found by Dr. Pallas in Siberia; which the Tartars still affirm to be _an holy thing_, and, _to have fallen from heaven_; and concerning what have been supposed, by him, to be similar phaenomena; some circ.u.mstances are also mentioned, which it would be an unjust omission not to take notice of shortly, on the present occasion.

With the author's hypothesis I do not presume to interfere; but surely his facts, which he affirms in support of his ideas, deserve much attention; and ought to be inserted, before I conclude these observations: and the rather, as they were adduced to maintain conclusions very different from these now offered to the consideration of the curious.

On the 21st of May, 1676, a fire ball was seen to come from Dalmatia,[HH] proceeding over the Adriatic sea; it pa.s.sed obliquely over Italy; where an hissing noise was heard; it burst SSW from Leghorn, with a terrible report; _and the pieces are said to have fallen into the sea_, with the same sort of noise, as when red hot iron is quenched or extinguished in water. Its height was computed to be not less than thirty-eight Italian miles; and it is said to have moved with immense velocity. Its form was oblong, at least as the luminous appearance seemed in its pa.s.sage.

_Avicenna_ mentions, (Averrhoes, lib. 2do Meteor. cap. 2.) that he had seen at Cordova, in Spain, a sulphureous stone that had fallen from heaven.

In _Spangenberg_'s Chron. Saxon, an account is found, that at Magdeburg, in A. D. 998, two great stones, fell down in a storm of thunder: one in the town itself; the other near the Elbe, in the open country.

The well known, and celebrated _Cardan_, in his book, _De Varietate Rerum_, lib. 14. cap. 72. tells us, that he himself, in the year 1510, had seen one hundred and twenty stones fall from heaven; among which one weighed one hundred and twenty; and another sixty pounds. That they were mostly of an _iron colour_, and very hard, and smelt of brimstone.