216 ON A METEOROLOGICAL NOMENCLATURE. 



cal, if, as I conjecture, it is so named, because its parts, if 

 solid, would roll when on an inclined plane. There is a rapid 

 introversion or cur/ing of the tons of the cumulus while the 

 cloud is rapidly evaporating, or rather perhaps dispersing, 

 which is a pretty good indication of approaching rain; but 

 the mass'm this case continues well balanced. 



Cumulus. ] shall here repeat (in opposition to the assertion of Dr. 



Bo^tock, Annual Review, 1804, p. 900,) that the cumulus 

 is a production of the day ; and that it is not " frequently^' 

 but on the contrary very rarely *' seen in the aright.** He 

 may have taken for it the remnants of an evening cijmulo- 

 stratus, or the parts of a dense and low cirrocumulus, as 

 they often appear by moonlight; but if he will take up 

 again the definition, and repeat bis observations, I think he 

 will not meet with it after sunset, save by chance in a thun- 

 der group. 



Tufts, lines, Tufts, lines, flocks. These are varieties of the cirrus ; but 



cirrus is a Latin term, and to such, it seems, the Doctor has 

 at present a strong objection, founded on this reason, that 

 the farther improvement of the science will probably, in a 

 considerable degree, .depend upon the observations of the 

 unlearned (An. Rev. 1804, p. 898). But surely the un- 

 learned can learn, as they have done heretofore. Alphabet, 

 which is. greek curtailed, is as well understood as a, b, c ; 

 zenith and nadir are Arabic ; and as for Latin, our Scotch 

 gardeners can talk it fluently (I will not say classically), and 

 we have senior, junior, maximum, minimum, prospectus, 

 index, finis, quota, quantum, vacuum, and a hundred more, 

 which the unlearned u?e daily, without suspecting how 



Advantage of learned thev- are. There is a great advantage, ultimately, 



terms, the to the learner, however small his capacity, in giving- him 

 meaning of ■ ' r . / . , P f . 



^hich must be terms, the use of which mulj be acquired with some labour 



ltarmtd. by means of definitions. It packs his knowledge, if I may 



be allowed the phrase, in much less room, and enables him 



to find it with ease when wanted. But I had another motive, 



of still greater importance, to the commencement of a latin 



A latin no- nomenclature. I conceived, that the subject would interest 



f 1 n Ucl , rt 1 ture . observers on the continent ; and that, by means of a language 



telligible on p v i • i -i 



the continent, common to all, the observations of each country might with 



ease be communicated to the rest; which they never could 



be, 



