After Prof. Gilbert had finished his experiments, Mr. Volz tried some
of his own along the same line. He found upon trial that the
meteorites in his possession were non-magnetic, or, practically so. If
these, being pieces of the larger meteorite which was buried in the
hole, were non-magnetic, all of it must be non-magnetic, which would
account for the failure of the needle to act or manifest any magnetic
attraction in the greater test.
Mr. Volz also made another interesting discovery in this same
connection. All over the meteorite zone are scattered about small
pieces of iron which he calls "iron shale." It is analogous to the
true meteorite, but is "burnt" or "dead." He regards these bits of
iron as dead sparks from a celestial forge, which fell from the
meteorite as it blazed through the heavens.
In experimenting with the stuff he found that it was not only highly
magnetic, but also possessed polarity in a marked degree; and was
entirely different from the true meteorite. Here was a curiosity,
indeed; a small, insignificant and unattractive stone possessed of
strong magnetic polarity, a property of electricity that is as
mysterious and incomprehensible as is electricity itself.
Another peculiarity of Canon Diablo meteorite is that it contains
diamonds. When the meteorite was first discovered by a Mexican sheep
herder he supposed that he had found a large piece of silver, because
of its great weight and luster, but he was soon informed of his
mistake. Not long afterwards a white prospector who heard of the
discovery undertook to use it to his own advantage, by claiming that he
had found a mine of pure iron, which he offered for sale. In an
attempt to dispose of the property samples of the ore were sent east
for investigation. Some of the stone fell into the hands of Dr. Foote,
who pronounced it to be meteorite and of celestial origin.
Sir William Crookes in discussing the theory of the meteoric origin of
diamonds[2] says "the most striking confirmation of the meteoric theory
comes from Arizona. Here, on a broad open plain, over an area about
five miles in diameter, were scattered from one to two thousand masses
of metallic iron, the fragments varying in weight from half a ton to a
fraction of an ounce. There is little doubt that these masses formed
part of a meteorite shower, although no record exists as to when the
fall took place. Curiously enough, near the center, where most of the
meteoritics have been found, is a crater with raised edges three
quarters of a mile in diameter and about six hundred feet deep, bearing
exactly the appearance which would be produced had a mighty mass of
iron or falling star struck the ground, scattering in all directions,
and buried itself deep under the surface. Altogether ten tons of this
iron have been collected, and specimens of Canyon Diablo Meteorite are
in most collectors' cabinets.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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