where perceptible, as
though the universe were on the verge of some imminent catastrophe.
Men's faces assume a cadaverous hue similar to that given at night by
the flame of spirits of wine and salt, a livid funereal light, the
sinister illumination of the world's last hour.

"At the moment when the last line of the solar crescent disappears, we
see, instead of the Sun, a black disk surrounded with a splendid
luminous aureole shooting immense jets into space, with roseate flames
burning at the base.

"A sudden night has fallen on us, a weird, wan night in which the
brightest of the stars are visible in the Heavens. The spectacle is
splendid, grandiose, solemn, and sublime."

This impression was actually felt by us all, as may be seen from the
following notes, written in my schedule of observation during the event,
or immediately after:

"3.50 P.M. Light very weak, sky leaden gray, mountains standing out with
remarkable clearness from the horizon, and seeming to approach us.

"3.55 P.M. Fall of temperature very apparent. Cold wind blowing through
the atmosphere.

"3.56 P.M. Profound silence through nature, which seems to participate
in the celestial phenomenon. Silence in all the groups.

"3.57 P.M. Light considerably diminished, becoming wan, strange, and
sinister. Landscape leaden gray, sea looks black. This diminution of
light is not that of every day after the sunset. There is, as it were, a
tint of sadness spread over the whole of nature. One becomes accustomed
to it, and yet while we know that the occultation of the Sun by the Moon
is a natural phenomenon, we can not escape a certain sense of
uneasiness. The approach of some extraordinary spectacle is imminent."

At this point we examined the effects of the solar light upon the seven
colors of the spectrum. In order to determine as accurately as possible
the tonality of the light of the eclipse, I had prepared seven great
sheets, each painted boldly in the colors of the spectrum, violet,
indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, red; and a similar series in pieces
of silk. These colors were laid at our feet upon the terrace where my
wife, as well as Countess de la Baume, were watching with me. We then
saw the first four disappear successively and entirely and turn black in
a few seconds, in the following order: violet, indigo, blue, green. The
three other colors were considerably attenuated by the darkness, but
remained visible.

It should be noted that in the