Meteorological Observations. 375 



drawings of things which exist only in their phantasy. These per- 

 sons are evidently in a situation similar to that of an acquaintance of 

 mine, director of some iron-works, -who had once occupied himself a 

 long M'hile in making damask steel, and during this time wherever 

 he looked he fancied he could perceive curved lines similar to those 

 which occur on that steel. But certainly no one has ever yet been 

 so dreamy as the author of the memoir bearing the above title, which 

 relates it is true to animal fibre, but also enters into the structure of 

 plants ; for in all organic substances he saw nothing but fibres, which 

 sometimes had a spiral, sometimes a circular, sometimes a longitudinal 

 position ; but he moreover observed in these fibres a very complicated 

 structure, viz. their being composed of adjacent spiral fibres with an 

 opposite direction of the spiral, and with the convolutions fitting into 

 each other, so that the figures which the author has given of these 

 fibres are no bad representations of the knot of plaited hair on a 

 woman's head. As the committee who decide upon the admission of 

 the memoirs into the ' Philosophical Transactions' have to attend 

 not only to the importance but also to the ** singularity of the sub- 

 jects," the publication of the memoir in question will appear perfectly 

 justified. — Botanische Zeitung. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS FOR SEPT. 1843. 



Chiswick. — Sept. 1. Foggy : sultry. 2,3. Slight haze : sultry. 4. Clear and 

 fine. 5. Heavy dew : clear. 6. Cloudless. 7. Slight haze : cloudless and hot. 



8, 9. Very fine. 10. Foggy : heavy thunder-showers. 11. Very fine. 12. Over- 

 cast. IS. Clear and fine. 14. Overcast. 15 — 20. Exceedingly fine. 21. Foggy: 

 very fine. 22, 23. Clear and fine. 24, 25. Overcast. 26. Fine : clear and cool. 

 27. Cloudy and cool : clear, with slight frost at night. 28. Very clear : over- 

 cast. 29. Cold and dry : overcast. 30. Rain. — Mean temperature of the month 

 3°'81 above the average. 



Boston. — Sept. 1 — 6. Fine. 7. Fine: quarter-past 2 p.m. heat 77°. 8. Foggy. 



9. Cloudy. 10. Fine: rain P.M. 11, 12. Cloudy. 13— 15. Fine. 16. Cloudy. 

 17 — 19. Fine. 20. Cloudy: rain early a.m. 21,22. Fine. 23,24. Foggy. 



25. Cloudy : rain a.m. 26. Windy. 27. Cloudy. 28. Windy. 29. Cloudy. 

 30. Cloudy : rain early a.m. 



Sandwick Manse, Orkney. — Sept. 1 . Clear. 2. Cloudy : showers. 3. Showers. 

 4. Showers: cloudy. 5. Damp : drizzle. 6. Damp: fine. 7 — 9. Clear: hot: 

 fine. 10. Damp. U. Haze : fog. 12. Fine. 13. Haze : clear. 14. Clear. 

 15. Clear: cloudy. 16. Clear. 17. Cloudy: fine : damp. 18. Showers. 19. 

 Clear: aurora. 20. Rain. 21. Showers: cloudy. 22. Cloudy. 23. Damp: 

 drizzle, 24, Drizzle. 25. Showers : drizzle. 26. Bright : cloudy : aurora. 

 27. Showers. 28. Showers : cloudy. 29. Rain. 30. Cloudy : rain. 



Applegarlh Manse, Dumfries -shire.— Sept. 1. Fair and fine : one slight shower. 

 2. Fair and fine. 3. Showery. 4,5. Fine harvest-day. 6. Fine harvest-day: 

 one slight shower. 7. Fine harvest-day : fair. 8, 9. Fine harvest-days. 10. 

 Fine harvest-day, but cloudy. 11. Fine : shower early a.m. 12,13. Fine har- 

 vest-days. 14. Fine harvest-day : thunder. 15. Fine harvest-day. 16. Fine 

 harvest-day: sheet lightning. 17. Showery. 18. Fair and fine : thunder. 19. 

 Fair and fine. 20 — 24. Fine harvest-day. 25. Fine harvest-days : hoar-frost. 



26. Fine harvest-day : no frost. 27. Fine harvest-day : hoar-frost. 28. Dull : 

 wet evening. 29. Cloudy : rain. 30. Cloudy. 



Sun shone out 28 days. Rain fell 7 days. Thunder 2 days. Hoar-frost 2 

 days. 



Calm 14 days. Moderate 9 days. Brisk 4 days. Strong breeze 3 days. 

 Mean temperature of the month 56°*S 



