83 T'ransactioiis. 



much as we have ali-eady had tliis year — during January and the 

 first week of February. 



Hygrometer. — The annual mean of the dry bulb thermometer 

 was 47 3 deg., and of the wet bulb 45 deg. ; giving 42-2 deg. as 

 the temperature of the dew point, and a relative humidity of 84 

 — saturation being equal to 100. This differs little from previous 

 years ; the average difference between the annual means of dry 

 and wet bulb being 2-3 deg., the same as during the past year, 

 and the average relative humidity 83 — altliough in 1893, the 

 year of highest mean annual temperature, it fell to 82. 



Thunderstorms, (fee. — These have not been of frequent occurrence 

 during the year. There was one in February, one in April, 

 three in May, two in July, and two in August— in all nine. On 

 some of these occasions, however, they were distant, and there 

 was either thunder without lightning or lightning without 

 thunder. Tlie most severe storm of the year was that of the 6th 

 July, which began about 5 p.m. and continued till 7.30, with 

 loud thunder peals and incessant flashes of lightning. The 

 maximum temperature of that day was 78'8 deg., and the wind 

 was south in the morning, and backed in the course of the day to 

 E.S.E. The storm was accompanied by a rainfall of 071 in. 

 There was a repetition on the 8th of electrical disturbance, but 

 on a much diminished scale. I have noted the occurrence of 

 liail showers eleven times, four of which occurred in May and 

 three in November ; lunar halos, twice in February and twice in 

 August ; and solar halos, twice, once in March and once in May. 

 There were probably more of these latter phenomena in the course 

 of the year, but I did not observe them. 



Wind. — The summary of wind directions shews that on 19 

 days it blew from due north, on 39J days from N.-E., on 47 days 

 from the E., on 24^ from S.-E., on 70^ from S.-W., on 61 from 

 W., on 37| from N.-W., and that on 17^ it was variable or calm. 

 As usual, the S.-W. wind was the most frequent, and taking the 

 S., S.E., and W. along with it, it appears that 203 days out of 

 the 365 were characterised by winds from these directions, and 

 that the northerly and easterly, including the north-west, had 1 43 

 days. Comparing this with the wind record of 1893, it appears 

 that there was a preponderance of southerly and westerly winds 

 in 1893, as contrasted with 1894. There were 20 days more 

 wind from the S. and W., and 12 days less from the N. and E. 

 The effect of this upon temperature is evident from the fact that 



