M Meteorological Observations, ^.^ 7^ 



I noticed a sudden downward rush of the liquid the moment before 

 the explosion. 



The detonation, with occasional fracture of the vessel, observed by 

 Wagner and Couerbe * to take place when sodium floating fused on 

 water is struck with a spatula, probably proceeds from the same 

 cause, the highly heated globule being forced mechanically into sud- 

 den intimate contact with the liquid. 



While on the subject of sodium, I may add that when it is melted 

 with a little naphtha in a sealed tube containing no air, it presents 

 to the full extent the high lustre and mobility of mercury, from which 

 indeed it cannot be distinguished by the eye ; but as soon as it so- 

 lidifies, it assumes a slightly crystalline and dead white surface, more 

 nearly resembling frosted silver. 



Bristol School of Chemistry, 



June 19, 1856. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS FOR MAY 1856. 

 Chiswick. — May 1. Overcast: cold showers, partly hail: clear and cold. 2. 

 Quite clear : cloudy : frosty at night. 3. Cloudy and cold : showery. 4. Overcast : 

 cloudy : clear, with sharp frost at night. 5. Frosty early a.m. : cloudy and cold. 



6. Fine : cloudy and cold : rain. 7. Cold rain. 8. Densely clouded : cold north 

 wind. 9. Heavy clouds. 10. Uniformly overcast : fine. 11. Light haze : fine : 

 cloudy. 12. Uniform haze : rain. 13. Rain : cloudy. 14. Heavy showers. 15. 

 Fine: showers, with some hail. 16. Fine. 17. Cloudy. 18. Boisterous, with 

 rain and hail. 19. Very fine. 20. Very fine: slight frost. 21. Fine: rain. 

 22. Rain. 23. Cloudy : fine. 24. Fine. 25. Cloudy : rain. 26. Fine. 27. Very 

 fine : heavy rain at night. 28. Cloudy : very fine. 29. Fazy : cloudy : fine. . 30. 

 Cloudy and cold. 31. Rain. 



Mean temperature of the month 5U' u» 



Mean temperature of May 1855 48 '78 



Mean temperature of May for the last thirty years 53 '55 



Average amount of rain in May 1*852 inches. 



Boston. — May 1. Cloudy : rain and sleet p.m. 2, 3. Cloudy : rain and hail p.m. 

 4, 5. Cloudy. 6. Cloudy : hail and snow a.m. 7. Cloudy. 8. Cloudy : rain a.m. 



9, 10. Cloudy. 11. Fine. 12, 13. Cloudy. 14. Cloudy : rain with thunder p.m. 

 15,16. Cloudy. 17. Cloudy: rain p.m. 18. Cloudy: rain a.m. and p.m. 19. 

 Cloudy. 20, 21. Fine. 22. Rain a.m. and p.m. 23. Fine : rain and thunder p.m. 

 24. Cloudy : rain a.m. and p.m. 25, 26. Cloudy : rain p.m. 27- Fine : rain p.m. 

 28. Cloudy : rain a.m. and p.m. 29. Cloudy : 30. Fine. 31. Cloudy : rain p.m. 



Sandwich Manse^ Orkney. — May 1. Bright a.m. : cloudy p.m. 2. Sleet-showers 

 a.m. : cloudy p.m. 3 — 5. Cloudy a.m. and p.m. 6. Cloudy a.m. : clear p.m". 



7. Clear a.m. and p.m. 8. Cloudy a.m. : clear p.m. 9. Clear a.m. : rain p.m. 



10. Cloudy a.m. : drops p.m. 11. Drizzle a.m. : fog p.m. 12. Hazy a.m. : clear, 

 fine p.m. 13. Cloudy a.m. and p.m. 14. Cloudy a.m. : rain p.m. 15. Cloudy a.m. 

 drops P.M. 16. Bright A.M. : cloudy P.M. 17. Clear, fine a.m. : cloudy, fine p.m. 

 18. Showers, bright A.M. : showers p.m. 19. Cloudy a.m.: showers p.m. 20. 

 Bright A.M. : clear p.m. 21, 22. Bright a.m. : cloady p.m. 23, 24. Cloudy a.m. 

 and P.M. 25. Clear a.m. and p.m. 26, 27. Cloudy a.m. and p.m. 28. Bright a.m : 

 cloudy P.M. 29 — 31. Clear a.m. and p.m. 



Mean temperature of May for previous twenty-nine years ... 47°*85 



Mean temperature of this month 46 '83 



Mean temperature of May 1855 43 -81 



Average quantity of rain in May for fifteen previous years ... 1*66 inches. 

 The great drought continues ; the rain during the last three months being 



less than the average for May alone, which is our driest month, and not half the 



quantity that fell in March alone last year. 



* Gmelin, Handbook (Cav. Soc), vol. iii. p. 75. BerzeHus, Trait^t 

 vol. ii, p. 83. 



