Meteorology in South Africa. 65 



-minimum temperatures from what would now be termed Third Order 

 ■or CHmatological Stations, while the necessity for a wider distribution 

 of rain-gauges was also realised and apparently acted upon. It will 

 thus be seen that even at this early date there was a division of sta- 

 tions into the same three classes that obtain at present. 



Unfortunately, in spite of this excellent start of a proper plan of 

 campaign for investigating the climates of the Cape Colony, the 

 enthusiasm with which the work was originally undertaken seems to 

 have gradually declined, with the result that observations were only 

 carried on to the year 1868, when they were dropped altogether. 



In 1875 the Meteorological Committee, under its present title 

 of the " Meteorological Commission," was resuscitated, or reorganised, 

 under the direction of the Honourable C. Abercrombie Smith,* who 

 continues to hold the position of chairman ; while the results of the 

 observations which had formerly been included in the Blue-books 

 for the Colony, were published separately, and have been presented 

 yearly to Parliament ever since. 



Shortly after the re-formation, the Commission began to realise 

 the necessity for providing proper shelters for the exposure of ther- 

 mometers, and the original small pattern of " Stevenson Screen " was 

 adopted, with greatly improved results. In 1879, with the appoint- 

 ment of Mr. — now Sir David — Gill as a member of the Commission, 

 the very important step of providing for the inspection of stations 

 was taken, and the results showed that such a proceeding was abso- 

 lutely necessary. At some stations a most ludicrous state of 

 ignorance regarding the proper use of the various instruments was 

 found to exist. Rain-gauges were kept inside the house, and were 

 only put out when it was likely to rain. In one case the same instru- 

 ment had been converted into a target for rifle practice ; ther- 

 mometers were found hung up in rooms instead of being exposed in 

 the open air, etc. It also became evident in the course of the 

 energetic inspections of the Secretary — first of Mr. Ellerton Fry and 

 subsequently of Staff-Commander May, R.X. (recently deceased) — 

 that the Siphon Barometers in use were very unsatisfactory, with the 

 result £hat Sir David Gill recommended the substitution of the 

 " Kew " pattern of Marine Barometer, with a " ^^ernier '"' scale read- 

 ing to o'oo2 in. 



On the writer's taking up the duties of Secretary in 1897 as 

 successor to Mr. Roland Pillans, it soon became painfully evident 

 that, in spite of the verbal instruction given during inspection visits, 

 the proper method of handling and reading the various instruments 

 was but imperfectly understood by many observers, while others 

 seemed to have no idea of how to remedy the defects to which their 

 instruments are liable. A comparison of the barometer readings 

 inter se also showed the presence of faulty instiuments or inadequately 

 trained and incapable observers. Accordingly a set of instructions 

 for the use of '"Marine Barometers " was prepared and sent to each 

 observer. This was followed by the issue of a Meteorological Note- 

 Book and " Register." To the latter were prefixed instructions deal- 



'■ Now the Honourable Sir Charles Abercrombie Smith. 



