Transactions. 89 



the mean annual temperature of 1893 exceeds that of 1894 by 

 nearly a degree and a half— 49'4° as compared with 48°. 



THE COUNTY MEDICAL OFFICER ON THE WEATHER AND HEALTH. 



Dr Maxwell Ross moved a vote of thanks to Mr Andson. 

 They were all indebted to Mr Andson for these papers, which he 

 gave from year to year, and speaking for himself there was no 

 paper he enjoyed more. The reason for that was partly a 

 professional one, for as was known to the fathers of medicine 

 certain diseases were remarkably subject to weather influence. 

 For example, he thought it was very well established that, in the 

 case of respiratoi'y diseases, when they had a winter with a high 

 temperature the mortality was small, and when they had a winter 

 with a low temperature the mortality was greater. Then, taking 

 diarrhoea, when they had a high temperature in summer the 

 deaths from this cause would be increased. Again, in relation 

 to diphtheria, there were some curious points to be made out. 

 The influence of subsoil water, which to a large extent depended 

 on the rainfall, seemed to be great upon diphtheria. In 1893, 

 when the rainfall was high, they found diphtheria very prevalent 

 on the Solway shore. Last year, when it was low and the people 

 rejoicing in a dry season, their condition was e.xpressed by one 

 who remarked " We all feel very tit." They were very much 

 indebted to Mr Andson for his valuable paper. (Applause.) 



2. A Famous Old Battlefield. 



By Mr Alexander D. Murray, Newcastle. 



Twenty-five years ago, when I had the honour to be secretary 

 of the Dumfriesshire and Galloway Natural History Society, the 

 late Sir William Jardine being our president, a joint-meeting was 

 held of the Society with the Berwickshire Naturalists' Club in 

 Liddesdale, which might be considered neutral ground between 

 the two Societies. Part of the programme was to visit Dawston 

 Rigg, the reputed site of the battle of Daegsastan, recorded 

 by the venerable Bede in his " Ecclesiastical History " and in the 

 '■ Saxon Chronicle." We were unable on that occasion to fulfil this 

 part of the programme, and not until recently did I have the 

 opportunity, along with the veteran secretary of the Berwick- 

 shire Naturalists, Dr James Hardy, and other friends, to spend 



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