Meteorology. 45 



witli it more quickly. He could remember a time when tlie Nith 

 used to reacii once or twice in the winter to about the Blue Bell 

 in Friars' Vennel. He had seen it some distance above that 

 point. He once saw a coal wherry grounded opposite to Burns's 

 House in Bank Street. That would be some thirty-five years 

 ago. He remembered, too, quite distinctly the flood referred to 

 by Mr Lenno.K. He compared the rise this winter to what it 

 was then by looking across from his house to the fisher's lodge on 

 the other side. The flood referred to by Mr Lennox reached half 

 way up the window of that hut. On this occasion it was below 

 the window sill. 



Comparative Rainfall. 



Dr Maxwell Ross said he had a letter from the honorary 

 president of the society. Sir Emilius Laurie, giving a record of 

 the rainfall of the past year at Maxwelton, Glencrosh, Holm of 

 Dalquhairn, and at Folkestone as a contrast to these. For Holm 

 of Dalquhairn (in Carsphairn) the fall was the largest of which 

 he had obtained any record for the year, being 67 '9 in. The 

 record for Ericstane (MofTat) was 67 "85. Curiously there was a 

 great difference in the December record of these places. At 

 Holm of Dalquliairn it was 13 15 in. ; at Ericstane, 19 in. 

 There was a curious illustration of the differences in observations 

 referred to by Mr Andson. Sir Emilius Laurie gave the number 

 of wet dnys at Maxwelton House as 205 ; at Glencrosh, not far 

 away and exactly on the same level (400 feet above sea level), it 

 was given at 160, a difference of 45 days, which approached very 

 closely to the difference of 47 days which Mr Andson had 

 indicated between Dumfries and Cargen. The average rain- 

 fall nt Maxwelton House for ten years was 45*5 in. ; this 

 year it was 53 01 in., being 7i above average. At Folke- 

 stone the rainfall differed very extraordinarily from our 

 experience in this part of the country, the total for the 

 year there being 25-81 in., some five inches below the average. 

 Sir Emilius noted that there were six days on which there was 

 over an inch of rain, and the total at Maxwelton for the last 

 week in December was 5-75 in. He had obtained a record of 

 the rainfall from eiglit stations, seven of them in the county of 

 Dumfries and Holm of Dalquhairn just outside the county. It 

 varied from 42 in. at Drumlanrig to 67 '9 in. at Holm of 

 Dalquhairn. At Ewes (in Eskdale) in the observation sent by 

 Ml' Lyall, the schoolmaster, there was a curious difference from 



