collected by him respecting the great
shower of stones which fell at Aigle, in Normandy, is as follows:--

"On Tuesday, 26th April, 1803, about one o'clock, P.M., the weather
being serene, there was observed from Caen, Pont d'Audemer, and the
environs of Alencon, Falaise, and Verneuil, a fiery globe, of a very
brilliant splendour, and which moved in the atmosphere with great
rapidity. Some moments after, there was heard at Aigle, and in the
environs of that town, in the extent of more than thirty leagues in
every direction, a violent explosion, which lasted five or six
minutes. At first there were three or four reports like those of a
cannon, followed by a kind of discharge which resembled the firing of
musketry; after which, there was heard a dreadful rumbling, like the
beating of a drum. The air was calm and the sky serene, except a few
clouds, such as are frequently observed. This noise proceeded from a
small cloud which had a rectangular form; the largest side being in a
direction from east to west. It appeared motionless all the time
that the phenomenon lasted; but the vapours of which it was composed,
were projected momentarily from different sides, by the effect of
successive explosions. This cloud was about half a league to the
north-north-west of the town of Aigle. It was at a great elevation
in the atmosphere; for, the inhabitants of two hamlets, a league
distant from each other, saw it at the same time above their heads.
In the whole canton over which this cloud was suspended, there was a
hissing noise, like that of a stone discharged from a sling; and a
great many mineral masses, exactly similar to those distinguished by
the name of 'meteor-stones,' were seen to fall. The district in
which these masses were projected, forms an elliptical extent of
about two leagues and a half in length, and nearly one in breadth,
the greatest dimension being in a direction from south-east to
north-west; forming a declination of about 22 degrees. This
direction, which the meteor must have followed, is exactly that of
the magnetic meridian, which is a remarkable result. The greatest of
these stones fell at the south-eastern extremity of the large axis of
the ellipse, the middle-sized in the centre, and the smaller at the
other extremity. Hence it appears, that the largest fell first, as