J. norKINSON — THE CLIMATE OF ST. ALBANS. 217 



nortli-novth-cast. It rises very slightly from the river, close to 

 ■which there is another pumpiiig-station. 



There are a few large trees on the north and east of the rain- 

 gauge and thermometer-screen, but they are sufficiently distant to 

 have no appreciable effect on either the temperature or the rainfall 

 recorded. The wind-vane, wdien first erected, was rather too near 

 them, but it was removed to above the roof of the house in 1890. 



IxSTErsiENTS, AND MeTHOD OF OBSERVATION AND REDUCTION. 



Barometer, a Fortin standard witli tube half an inch in inteiTial 

 diameter. Thermometers, dry-bulb, -wet-bulb, Negretti maximum, 

 and Rutherford minimum, 4 feet above the ground in a Stevenson 

 screen, over grass. Rain-gauge, Snowdon pattern, 5 inches in 

 diameter, top of rim 1 foot above the ground (grass), capacity of 

 receiver 8 inches depth of rain. "Wind-vane on a pole erected on 

 the top of the house, with nothing to interfere with the free action 

 of the wind upon it, the nearest objects of equal height being some 

 trees about 100 feet to the east. 



Observations taken at 9 a.m. (or a little before that hour). 

 Readings of minimum thermometer entered to the day of observa- 

 tion, of maximum thermometer and rain-gauge to the previous 

 day. Readings corrected for index-errors of instruments, and 

 barometer-readings corrected to 32° in accordance with the temper- 

 ature shown by attached thermometer, and reduced to sea-level. 

 No corrections made for diurnal range of pressure or temperature, 

 the mean temperature adopted being the arithmetical mean of the 

 minimum and maximum readings. Reductions made from tables 

 in the Royal Meteorological Society's ' Hints to Meteorological 

 Observers,' by "William Marriott (2nd and 3rd editions). 



During the whole of the ten years there has been no intermission 

 in any of the observations except in the reading of the barometer, 

 the observations during my absence from home having been taken 

 by others. Barometer-readings have been supplied by calculation 

 from the readings at other stations in Hertfordshire for each day on 

 which they have been omitted. 



General Results and Inferences. 



All the more important elements of the climate of St. Albans 

 being given in the tables, it is only necessary to state here some 

 of the general results which may be arrived at from their examin- 

 ation, and inferences which may be drawn from their study, the 

 tables giving the information, and these remarks being merely 

 a commentary upon them. Occasionally, however, a fact may 

 be stated which is neither shown in the tables nor can be deduced 

 from them. Such of the values given as are considered to be 

 approximately correct elements of the climate of St. Albans are 

 usually expressed in the present tense. 



In dividing the year into seasons, the months of March, April, 

 and May are considered as spring ; June, July, and August as 

 'Ummer; September, October, and November as autumn; and 

 December, January, and February as winter. 



