46 Meteorology. 



what they found at other stations. December was not the 

 wettest month in Ewes, but August. For December it was 

 9'7 in. ; for August, 107 in. 



The Weather and Disease. 

 Dr Ross proceeded to offer some observations on the relation 

 between the seasonal prevalence of disease and the meteorology 

 of the year. Although Mr Andson had noted that last year was 

 a somewhat changeable one, it had not affected the health of the 

 county seriously, for we had one of the lowest death-rates in the 

 landward portion of the county which had been recorded since he 

 had had to make up the register. It was 15-147 per thousand 

 for the year. If they added the seven burghs (Dumfries, Annan, 

 Lochmaben, Sanquhar, Lockerbie, Moffat, and Langholm), the 

 death-rate of the whole county for the year amounted to 16 6 

 per thousand. In making the calculation, he explained, he 

 excluded deatlis which occurred in the Infirmary and in the 

 Crichton Royal Institution of patients who had been brought 

 from places outside the county. Although the weather was 

 changeable, up till Deceuiber there were no very marked 

 extremes of weather. The highest death-rates were in March 

 and April ; the lowest in September. In both March and April 

 the excess of deaths was due to zymotic causes. With regard to 

 infectious diseases throughout the county, we had had a very 

 favourable year compared with some others. If we deducted 

 measles, we had under three hundred cases reported during the 

 year all over the county landward. There had been less scarlet 

 fever, and on the whole less diphtheria and less typhoid fever 

 than in past years. Scarlet fever was at its maximum in January 

 and November, but that was due rather to local than to seasonal 

 causes. During tlie past year scarlet fever had been at its 

 maximum prevalence in the district around Dumfries ; yet during 

 the third quarter we ha,d a considerable number of cases of 

 diphtheria. There were during that quarter only five or six cases 

 of scarlet fever, but there were eighteen of diphtheria. The 

 cases were very mild, contrasting very favourably with our 

 experience in 1896, when there were eight deaths out of 29 cases. 

 In connection with this prevalence of diphtheria there was a 

 question which he ventured to suggest to observers. During the 

 past autumn we had an exuberance of fungus growths ; at least 

 of mushroom growth. The question arose, had the seasonal or 



