An Account of a Luminous Appearance in the Sky, Seen at London on Thursday March 13. 1734-5. by John Bevis, M. D.

of it was of a pale Brightness, like that of burnished or new-washed Silver. It darted out of my Sight with a seeming Coruscation, like that of Star-shooting in the Night; but had a Body much larger, and a Train much longer, than any thing of that Kind I had ever seen before. At my coming home, one Brown assured me, he had seen the same thing, for the Continuance of a Minute; and that the Body and Train appeared to him to be about twenty Foot long, and seemed to him to fall to the Ground somewhere about the Kennel-garden, whither I accompanied him in Expectation of finding some of those Jellies which are supposed to owe their Beings to such Meteors: But we might have searched long enough, as I understood the next Day, when Mr. Edgcombe informed me, that he and another Gentleman had seen the same Appearance at the same time about fifteen Miles from us, steering the same Course from East to the West, and vanished from them between Walkhampton and Oakhampton: They gave the same Account of its Figure, Length and Colour. XIV. An Account of a Luminous Appearance in the Sky, seen at London on Thursday March 13. 1734-5. by John Bevis, M.D. As I was observing Mars near a small fixt Star, then in the West, on the Top of my House in Buckingham-street, about five Minutes after Eight, equal Time; happening to turn my Face Southward, I was surprised with an uncommon bright Glade of Light. Light. It was strait, about $2\frac{1}{2}$ Degrees broad, and 110, or 120 Degrees long, ill defined at either End, but pretty well at the Sides, that is, much as the common Rainbow, or one of those Pyramids which are used to dart up from the Horizon in an Aurora Borealis, which Light it resembled in all respects, except in its Place and Position, and that this was steady, and altogether without that tremulous kind of Motion, which usually accompanies that. Besides Saturn, Mars, Venus, and the fixt Stars, there was then no other Light in the Sky, nor the least Cloud, nor any of that horizontal Blackness which we see Northward in the Aurora. The Stars were as discernible through it, as if nothing had been there. A Gentleman who was with me, fancied it to be the Tail of a Comet; but as neither he nor myself had ever seen one, I gave but little Heed to that Conjecture: However, I carefully directed a 17 Foot Glass to all Parts of its western Extremity, but could discern nothing like a Nucleus. When I first saw it, it extended itself from about the Mid-way between Aldebaran, and Orion's Left Shoulder, through Gemini a little under $\beta$, and so on through Cancer and Leo, just above Cauda Leonis, till it arrived between Vindematrix and Coma Berenices, where it ended very dilutely. In about half an Hour it grew dim about the Middle, where in a short time it separated in two, or rather became quite dark there; but then methought the disjoined Parts were more luminous than before; but they too in a little while after grew dimmer, and shortened away, on to their remote Extremities, which remained visible the longest; the Western one about Nine o'Clock, the Time Time of its Extinction, being near Orion's Right Shoulder, and the other near the Left Knee of Boötes; so that this Meteor seems pretty nearly to have accompanied the Earth in its diurnal Motion, and to have had little or no Motion besides. I have looked for this Light since, but could find nothing like it. The Day was exceeding fine, and by my Journal I find, that, At Noon, the Barometer was 29.98. Thermometer 57. Wind . . . East. Decl. of the Needle 14° 10'. At 10 at Night, Barometer 29.86. Thermometer 57.5. Decl. of the Needle 13° 50'. XV. An Account of the Case of a Calculus making its Way through an old Cicatrix in the Perinæum, by David Hartley, M. A. F. R. S. William Farman, of the Parish of Bayton in Suffolk, was cut for the Stone about 15 Years ago, and a large Stone taken from him. The said William Farman says, that he continued easy for about four Years after he was cut; that the Wound was quite healed up, and that he made Water in the natural Way, without any Leakage at the Wound. In July last, he says, he felt great Pain at the Place where he was cut, and that it was much swelled.