NOTES AND REMARKS UPOX THE WEATHER. 197 



Owing to the changeable, wet weather, field crops made little 

 progress towards ripening. Cereals certainly made plenty straw 

 and looked well, but few fields were showing change of colour 

 towards the end of the month. Root crops were soured and 

 sickly, except on favoured spots. In late and high-lying parts 

 the hay crop, where uncut or unsecured, got much wasted in 

 colour and quality. Towards the end of the month the defolia- 

 tion of the Lime and Elm trees in the city parks became some- 

 what pronounced, though fully ten days later than usual. 



September. — During the first week the weather was somewhat 

 variable, several days being fine till evening, and then 

 becoming w T et. The tendency, however, w T as towards more 

 settled conditions, and after the 5th very little rain was 

 registered; in fact, after the 17th there w r as not any. The 

 weather became warm and dry, though somewhat hazy at times, 

 and the atmospheric conditions were of a very delightful 

 description. 



With the variable weather of the first week the atmospheric 

 pressure was erratic. From 29*85 inches on the 1st it fell to 

 29" 20 inches on the 2nd. Thereafter it increased, till on the 

 8th and 9th it was at 30' 30 inches, the highest reading for the 

 month. For several days the pressure declined slightly, then 

 rose a point or two and kept steady until the 22nd, when from 

 30'25 inches it gradually eased off to 29'50 inches on the 26th, 

 then rising as the month closed. 



The rainfall was low, only 1'24 inches being registered. There 

 were 18 dry days. These conditions were somewhat similar to 

 those of the previous September, when the rainfall was 1'41 

 inches, with 21 dry days. 



Though there was a slight tendency towards frost in the first 

 week, no frost was registered, except by the radiating thermo- 

 meter on the surface of the grass. No damage, however, was 

 caused to plants. The average maximum temperature was 60°, 

 and the average minimum 48°, the former 2° lower and the 

 latter 1° higher than the respective figures of the previous 

 September. 



The warm, genial weather rapidly brought cereals to ripeness, 

 and harvesting operations were in full swing by the second week. 

 Unfortunately, owing to the absence of wind, most mornings were 

 too dewy to admit of cutting or leading in the grain until mid- 

 day, therefore harvesting operations were much hindered, The 



