III. 



THE GALE OF THE 14TH OF OCTOBER, 1881, AND ITS EFFECTS 



IN HERTFORDSHIRE. 



By the Rev. C. W. Harvey, M.A., F.M.S. 



Read at Hertford, 22nd December, 1881. 



From a meteorological point of view tlie year 1881 may most 

 decidedly be regarded as an " annus mirabilis.'^ There are three 

 days especially which I think will fix themselves upon our 

 memory: (1) Tuesday, .January 18th, when England, and more 

 especially the south of England, was visited by an easterly gale 

 and heavy snowstorm, which for two or three days impeded, and 

 in many cases stopped, all traffic by road and rail; (2) Friday, 

 July loth, when a heat-wave passed over us, the temperature at 

 Greenwich Observatory reaching 97°- 1, while at Alton, Hants, and 

 Alderbury, Salisbury, it was reported to have even reached 

 101° and 100° respectively ; in our own county 91° at "Watford 

 and 89°- 6 at Throcking were recorded by verified thermometers 

 enclosed in Stevenson's stands; (3) Friday, October 14th, when 

 the whole of the British Isles was visited by a terrific gale. It is 

 the third of these visitations which forms the subject of the present 

 paper. The facts which I have to lay before you with regard to this 

 gale are drawn, partly from the daily weather report and weekly 

 summary of weather issued by the Meteorological Office, partly 

 from the London and local press, anl partly — I may say largely — 

 from the letters of correspondents, whom I would take this oppor- 

 tunity of thanking. 



A serious depression of the barometer, which gave signs of its 

 approach during the 13th, at 8 a.m. on the 14th lay over the north 

 of England and south of Scotland, when readings were as low as 

 28-42 ins. The wind circulating round the centre of the system was 

 N.W. in Ireland, W. to S.W. in the south of England, S. on the 

 east coast, and E. to jS'.E. in the north and east of Scotland. At 

 Oxford Observatory the velocity of the wind between 1 and 2 p.m. 

 was 65 miles an hour, whilst at Holyhead between 2 and 3 p.m 

 it at one time equalled 91 miles, at another 144 miles an hour. 



At Greenwich the pressure on the square foot at one time was 

 56 lbs., the highest ever registered in that locality; while at 

 Bidston Observatory, Birkenhead, it is said to have reached 

 77 lbs. When we reflect that this latter pressure represents a 

 weight of air equal to 20 tons on a building 30 feet high by 20 

 broad, the only wonder seems to be that more damage was not 

 done by the gale. 



I think the following extract from ' The Times ' for October 1 5th 

 will show better than anything else how terribly telegraphic com- 

 munication was interrupted. "Owing to the hurricane which raged 

 over the country yesterday from very early morning, and which, 

 though less fierce, had by no means abated when we went to press 



VOL. II. — PA RT I. 



