28S EAINFALL AT CLIFTON IN 1890. 



Eemarks. — From the table it will be seen that the rainfall 

 of the year 1890 was seriously deficient, amonnting to barely 

 25 inches, and falling short of the average by nearly 9 inches. 

 The deficiency was even greater than in 1887, which will be 

 remembered as a very dry year. So small an annual fall has 

 not been recorded since 1870, when the total was 23'429 

 inches. In 1864 a still smaller amount was collected, namely, 

 22*746 inches, and that was the driest year in a period of 

 38 years. 



It is worthy of note that of the last four years three have 

 been marked by a considerable deficiency of rain, and one 

 by a trifling excess. The average annual deficiency during 

 the four years has been about 5 inches, or nearly 15 per 

 cent. 



Regarding the rainfall of the past year in detail, we find 

 that three of the months — January, June, and July — pre- 

 sented an excess of rain, but the excess was in no case large. 

 The other nine months were all short of the average. Janu- 

 ary was the rainiest of the months, February was the driest ; 

 the former yielding nearly four inches of rain, the latter not 

 much more than half an inch. 



Notwithstanding the general dryness of the year, the dis- 

 tribution of the rainfall was such that indications of drought 

 were seldom conspicuous. In the summer months, when from 

 various causes a deficiency of rain attracts special attention, 

 the weather was frequently unsettled and showery, and at 

 no time of the year was there any such prolonged absence of 

 rain as characterised the year 1887. The longest intervals 

 of nearly rainless weather were — (1) from January 28th to 

 February 14th (17 days) ; (2) from February 19th to March 

 7th (16 days) ; and (3) from August 29th to September 

 17th (19 days). In neither of these periods did the down- 

 fall amount to more than a few hundredths of an inch. 



