94 Transactions. 



In comparing the rainfall and temperature of the months 

 following February, only May, June, July, and August have been 

 considered, as they are really the important and critical months 

 of the year as regai'ds vegetation. The mean temperature of 

 these four months is 56'1 deg. In the first series of consecutive 

 years we tind : — 



Mean temp, of May, 

 Mean rainfall. Mean temp. June, July, August. 



Inches. Deg. Deg- 



1866-72 (7 yis), wet, Feby. 6-28 41-9 57-1 



1873-79 (6 yrs), h-regular, ,, 2-90 39-4 56-8 



1880-85 (6 yrs), wet, ,, 5-03 41-1 55-6 



1886-92 (7 yrs), dry, ,, 1-25 37-2 55-1 



The exception here as regards the mean temperature of the 

 summer months is in the series 1880-85, when the temperature 

 was below the average. 



The temperature of February seems to have been generally dis- 

 regarded in these old " weather prognostics," although there are 

 one or two referring to it : — 



When the gnats dance in February, the husliandnian becomes a beggar. 



The Germans have a similar one : — 



Wen in Februar tanzen die Mucken auf dem Mist, 

 So verschliess dein Futter in de Kist. 



(If in February the midges dance on the dunghill, then lock up your 

 food in the chest.) 



Generally speaking, a wet February is a mild one, unless a 



large precipitation is in the form of snow, which seldom occurs, 



the temperature is then below the average. February of this 



year (189-3) may be taken as an instance of this, when we had a 



precipitation of 2 '03 inches above the average, and a mean 



temperature of 1*2 deg. below it. There is only one instance I 



have in the last 34 years, viz., February, 1862, when, with a 



rainfall below 2 inches (1-49 inches), the mean temperature (41-6 



deg.) was 2-2 deg. above it. 



February fills the ditch, 



Black or white (i.e., rain or snow), don't care which ; 



If it be white, 



It's better to like. 



