Meteorological Observations. 79 



either alone, or mixed with various materials, as sand, sawdust, 

 melted wax or tallow, clay, garden mould, &c. in various vessels, as 

 glass bottles, porous earthen jars, wooden boxes, metal cases, &c, 

 placed in various situations, as under-ground, in cellars, dry apart- 

 ments, &c. At certain intervals increasing in extent, — say at first 

 every two years, then every five, every ten, and, at the lapse of a 

 century, every twenty years, a small number (say twenty) of each 

 kind of seed, from each combination of circumstances, to be taken 

 out and sown in an appropriate soil and temperature, and an exact 

 register kept of the number of seeds which vegetate compared with 

 those which fail. 



Should it appear desirable for this project to be carried out by 

 the British Association, they might most effectually accomplish it 

 by committing a collection of seeds, formed on the above plan, to 

 some qualified person, whose duty it should be, in consideration of 

 a small annual stipend, to take charge of them, and at stated periods 

 to select portions for experiment, keeping an accurate register of 

 the results. 



In this manner it is believed, that in regard to the large majority 

 of plants, the limit of their vegetative durability would be deter- 

 mined in a very few years, and that a large mass of vulgar errors on 

 this subject, which now pass current for facts, would be cancelled 

 and exploded. 



N.B. — The most effectual way of exciting vegetation in seeds 

 of great antiquity, is to sow them in a hot-bed, under glass, 

 and in a light soil moderately watered. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS FOR JULY 1841. 



Chiswick. — July 1. Overcast. 2. Hazy: overcast and fine: slight rain. 3. 

 Hazy and mild : very fine. 4, 5. Very fine. 6. Rain : fine. 7. Fine : rain. 

 8. Fine: clear. 9. Very fine. 10. Fine: rain. 11. Overcast. 12. Cloudy 

 and mild. 13. Cloudy. 1#. Showery. 15. Heavy thunder-showers : constant 

 heavy rain. 16. Cloudy. 17,18. Fine. 19. Very fine. 20. Heavy rain. 21. 

 Overcast : rain. 22. Cloudy. 23. Cloudy and fine. 24, 25. Cloudy. 26, 27. 

 Light haze: fine. 28. Cloudy. 29. Cold and dry: cloudy: slight rain. 30. 

 Fine but cool. 31. Rain : cloudy. — The quantity of rain which fell on the 15th 

 was unusually great, amounting to nearly an inch and a half in the course of 

 the twenty-four hours. 



Boston. — Julyi. Rain. 2. Cloudy. 3. Fine. 4. Cloudy: rain p.m. 5. 

 Cloudy. 6. Rain and stormy: rain early a.m.: rain p.m. 7. Cloudy: rain p.m. 

 8. Fine. 9. Cloudy: rain p.m. 10. Fine: rain early a.m. 11. Cloudy. 12. 

 Fine: rain p.m. 13. Cloudy: rain p.m. 14. Fine. 15,16. Fine: rain p.m. 

 17. Fine. 18. Cloudy: rain p.m. 19. Fine : rain p.m. 20. Rain: rainy day. 

 21. Cloudy : rain p.m. 22. Cloudy : rain p.m., with thunder and lightning. 23. 

 Cloudy : rain p.m. 24 — 28. Cloudy. 29. Cloudy and stormy : rain a.m. and 

 p.m. 30. Fine. 31. Cloudy : thunder and lightning p.m. 



Applegarth Manse, Dumfriesshire. — July 1. Fine: one shower. 2. Fine and 

 fair, but cloudy. 3. Sunshine and rain. 4. Slight showers. 5. Rain all day. 

 6. Fajr and fine. 7. Cloudy a.m.: fine p.m. 8. Fine: one shower. 9. The 

 same. 10. Wet afternoon. 1 1 . Slight showers. 1 2. Slight showers, but heavier. 

 13. Heavy showers : thunder. 14. Incessant showers. 15. Heavy rain till noon. 

 16. Fair and fine. 17. Fair but threatening. 18. Fair and warm: thunder. 

 19. Fine with a few drops. 20, 21. Rain p.m. 22. Slight showers. 23. Cloudy 

 but fair. 24. Fine all day. 25. Remarkably fine. 26. Showers. 27. Showers 

 p.m. 28. One slight shower. 29. Fair throughout. 30. Fair but threatening. 

 31. Fair with a few drops. 



