during the Quarter ending June 30, 1848. 191 



eluding latitude 52° ; north of this parallel very heavy rain 

 fell. At many places on this day more than an inch of rain 

 fell in R few hours. Generally, however, the storms during 

 this quarter, and more particularly in the month of April, were 

 local, in many cases not extending beyond a radius of a mile. 

 The observer at Cardington says, " On April 2, at 4 p.m., an 

 exceedingly heavy storm of hail and rain fell ; within twenty 

 minutes water to the depth of 0*64 inch was collected." By 

 inquiries it appeared that this storm was confined within a cir- 

 cumference of three miles. The observer at Whitehaven says, 

 "that on May 14 a violent thunder-storm occurred, accom- 

 panied by a heavy fall of triangular pieces of ice; near Gras- 

 mere, garden plants, shrubs, and vegetables were completely 

 riddled, and eighty panes of glass were broken in a conserva- 

 tory by the ice-shower. Though the ground was previously 

 quite warm, the hail, or rather ice, remained on the ground for 

 several hours, and in some places till the following morning." 



This storm continued for about forty minutes, and was con- 

 fined to a radius of less than two miles. Many other storms 

 of a similar character took place in different parts of the 

 country. 



Snow fell at Saffron Walden on April 9, at Greenwich*, 

 Lewisham, and Stone on April 10, and at Leeds on April 11. 

 The flakes at Stone measured three inches by two inches. 



The mean monthly temperatures of the places in Cornwall 

 and Devonshire have not been very different from those at 

 other places during this quarter ; usually in the summer 

 months they are below those of other places. 



The reading of the barometer during the month of April was 

 fluctuating, and exhibited a continuance of those oscillations 

 and low readings mentioned in last report in February and 

 March. On April 1, at 9 h a.m., the reading was 29*969 in- 

 ches ; slight variations only took place till the 5th, on this 

 day the reading decreased 0*3 inch, and on the 6th, at 6 h p.m., 

 was 29*516 inches, and still decreasing ; on the 8th, at 6 h p.m., 

 it was 29*198 inches, it then turned to increase, and was 

 29*330 inches at midnight. On the 9th, at noon, it was 

 29*430 inches, when it again turned to decrease, and was 

 29*183 inches on the 10th at midnight; shortly after this the 

 reading increased, and was 29*639 inches on the 11th at 

 3 h p.m. ; it again decreased, and was 29*301 inches on the 

 12th at 6 h A.M. ; it then turned to increase, at first slowly, and 

 then quickly. The reading on the 12th at midnight was 



* The fact of snow having fallen on April 1 atGreenwich and Lewisham, 

 was inadvertently omitted in the remarks accompanying the Registrar- 

 General's report. 



