Meteorological Observations. 239 



used to be at a placed called Newgate, about one mile from Margate ; 

 but now they visit not only Newgate, but all along the range of fields 

 from Newgate to Updown and to Chapel Bottom. They are very 

 wild ; I have tried from year to year to catch them with a lark-net 

 at night, but never could succeed, except only in taking a few. As 

 they visit the clover-lay all the day, I thought that they roosted at 

 night ; but I now find this not to be the case, for on returning from 

 a shooting tour at dusk in the evening along the cliffs near the Infir- 

 mary, my attention was attracted by a number of small birds sitting on 

 the fissures of the cliff. On examination they proved to be snow bunt- 

 ings in thousands. This, then, accounts for my not finding them in 

 the fields. On questioning the coast-guardsmen, they told me that 

 about half an hour before dusk they arrive in immense numbers, get- 

 ting into the small holes and crevices of the cliff; but as soon as 

 daylight appears they depart in small flights, making a very musical 

 noise. 



Stephen Mummery. 

 144 High Street, Margate. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS FOR JANUARY 1844. 



Chiswick. — January 1-. Snow and sleet : clear and frosty at night. 2. Clear : 

 sharp frost at night. 3. Severe frost : overcast : thavt^ing rapidly. 4. Hazy : 

 overcast. 5. Overcast : rain. 6. Mild and fine. 7. Exceedingly clear and fine : 

 frosty. 8. Frosty : fine. 9. Thick haze : cold and dry : overcast. 10. Hazy : 

 drizzly. 11. Overcast. 12. Foggy: heavy rain. 13. Slight drizzle : heavy 

 clouds: squally, with rain. 14. Hazy and drizzly : clouds in strata: densely 

 overcast. 15. Clear and frosty. 16. Sharp frost : very fine. 17,18. Overcast. 

 19. Fine: densely clouded. .20. Cloudy, cold and dry. 21. Overcast. 22. Hazy: 

 very fine. 23. Foggy : very fine. 24. Slight fog. 25. Frosty : very fine. 26, 

 Very fine. 27. Slight rain. 28. Rain : fine. 29. Clear: overcast: squally. 

 SO. Fine: showery. 31. Brisk wind, with small hail: stormy showers, snow, 

 sleet, rain: densely overcast. — Mean temperature of the month 2^° above the 

 average. 



Boston. — Jan. 1. Cloudy: rain early a.m. 2, 3. Fine. 4, 5. Cloudy: rain 

 early a.m. 6. Fine: rain early a.m. : rain p.m. 7. Cloudy. 8. Fine. 9. Cloudy : 

 snow P.M. 10. Fine : rain P.M. 11. Cloudy. 12. Fine : rain p.m. 13. Cloudy: 

 rain P.M. 14 — 16. Fine. 17. Cloudy. 18 — 20. Fine. 21. Cloudy: rain 

 early a.m. 22. Cloudy. 23. Cloudy : rain early a.m. 24, 25. Foggy. 26. Fine. 

 27. Cloudy. 28. Cloudy: rain early a.m. : rain p.m. 29. Fine. 30. Stormy. 

 31. Fine: stormy P.M. 



Sandwich Manse, Orkney. — Jan. 1. Snow-showers. 2. Snx)W : bright : cloudy. 

 3. Snow-showers : clear. 4. Bright : frost : clear. 5. Rain. 6. Bright : rain. 



7. Damp : clear. 8. Bright: clear. 9. Cloudy: rain. 10. Showers. 11. Bright: 

 cloudy. 12. Rain; showers. 13. Bright: cloudy. 14. Frost: snow: clear. 

 15. Cloudy. 16. Cloudy: drizzle. 17. Drizzle. 18. Showers. 19. Hail- 

 showers. 20. Snow-showers: cloudy. 21. Showers. 22. Bright: cloudy. 

 23. Drizzle. 24. Bright : fine. 25, 26. Showers. 27. Bright : drizzle. 28. 

 Sleet-showers. 29. Rain: showers. 30. Sleet: showers. 31. Snow-drift: clear. 



Applegarth Manse y Dumfries- shire. — Jan. I. Frost: snow-shower. 2. Frost, 

 severe. 3. Thaw : rain p.m. 4. Small rain. 5, 6. Heavy rain. 7. Showers. 



8. Frost. 9. Snow: rain p.m. 10. Frost. 11. Fog. 12. Small rain. 13. Frost: 

 fair and fine. 14, 15. Frost : fine. 16. Slight frost. 17. Frost : fine. 18. Frost. 

 19. Showery. 20. Frost, slight. 21. Fair and clear. 22. Frost: fine. 23. 

 Frost: mild. 24. Fair and mild. 25. Rain at noon. 26. Fair and fine. 27, 

 Fail-, but cloudy. 28. Shower, heavy. 29. Wet. 30. Rain : snow-shower. 

 31. Frost and snow. 



Mean temperature of the month 38°'4 



Mean temperature of January 1843 37 '8 



Mean temperature for twenty years ., ,,. 34 '2 



