99 



while Kent comes only seventh with 81. (Asa member of this Committee I am extremels glad to say 

 that a very useful set was sent in this year by Mr. Buckingham, of the East Kent Natural History 

 Society, but was too late t.. be included in our annu:il report, it will therefore help to raise the score of 

 East Kent for next yiar). I think the Society might do more for this very important work ; con- 

 siderin"' the ephemeral character ot some of the features record? 1 the work may be said to be of 

 unique importance. That it is thorousfhly appreciated is shown by the world-wide demand 'or the 

 portfolios of typical geological photographs selected from our collection ot 3,771, which we are publish- 

 ing annually and of which the third is now nearly ready. 



(3) Finally, I would call attention to the work of the similar Committee on bot.inic«l photographs. 

 Kent is a c.ianty abounding in botanical interest and I believe some of the indigenous oicbids have 

 already disappeared or are threatened with destruction at the hands of the unscrupulou^i collector or 

 herbarium fiend, who preys on Nature's b-autiful children that h.' may gloat over their deal and 

 mummi.-d bodies crushed between the jaws of his botanical press. Photographic lecoids ot such 

 plants, in their natural habitat, ere the destroytr works his wicked will on them, will l.e hereafter of 

 incalculable value, while there is a large field open to the photographing bolanist in le^urding plant 

 life, plant diseases, etc. Moreover, the photographer in this case need not be a botau.st, provided he 

 understands the proper use of orthochromatic plates and the adjustment of colour screens to smt his 

 work, he can leave the selection of subject and all .1-tails as to what to take and when to taken to his 

 friend the botanist. 



I have the honour. Gentlemen, to remain, 



Your obedient servant 



ARTHUR S. REID, M..A., F.GS. 



iWETEOROLOQICAL NOTES FOR YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBtR ^oth, 1903. 



The past year, as anticipated in my last report and in my lecture nearly tiro yeirs ago, was cold 

 and very w. t Thi wi iter mmths. Decemoer, 1902, to March, 1903, were drier and warm r than the 

 averao-e, but the ^umaior was culd, aod proved the wettest summer on record, worse even than _18(9. 

 In June, at Canterbury, rain f e 1 on eleven days, Stn to 19th, the most falling 01: 11th. viz., b-. -.2 on 

 14th, -67 on 10th, and -61 on 8th and 19th. There was practically continuous mm for sixty hours ou 

 .Tune 13th ti l.ith. On morning of 13th severe frost at Waltham turned the fern fonds quite black, 

 acd at Canterbury a Christmas rose was seen in bud. , ,, . , „n .-,0 1 



In July it rained at intervals every day from 16th to 30th, on 17th -94. 20th and 21st 109, 23ra 

 1-80, 25th and 2i;th 112 inches. (See tables, pages 31 and 32). 



August was a very cold and dull month. A cyclone did much destruction at Dover on August .)cn. 



A fierce thunderstorm swept through the East Kent hop fields on September 4th and did extensive 

 damaw. Gales have been very prevalent, and on September 10th a terrific storm raged o er the whole 

 of the" South of England and split and tore up huge trees and did an immense amount of harm 



The fruit crops and general harvesf was this year almost completely ruined, but all this ram cleared 

 and purified the air and kept the dust low so that there was much less sickness than usual. Many 

 of the papi-'rs have incorrectly reported Lockyer as saying that the weather would grow wetter ana 

 wetter until about 1915 owing to the sunspot maximum being due about 190.5. It is probable that 

 next year will be drier and warmer, but not so dry as during the drought of the p.ist .seven years, 

 especially 1898 and 1901. Early on Sunday morning, February 22nd, 19U3, the ground was covered 

 with a reddish dust brought down with the tain. Tne previous day a peculiar yello .ish base was 

 noticed in the sky, partially ob.scuring the sun. The dust was at the time thought to be volcanic, 

 but later investigation indicated the Sahara de-ert as i's origin. (See Mr. Hammonds report, 

 page 27 for this, and also particulars of two or three days with blactc rain caused by unicellular alga;). 



The sunshine at Tunbridge Wells appears to be 200 hours less than the average, but this may 

 probably be due to the ferio-prussiate paper used in the Jordan recordt-r being less sensitive than 

 formerly, other places in Kent with other recorders being only very slightly below the average. 



It is interesting to find that James Six,aCin:erbury chemist, made reguUr meteorological obser- 

 vations in this City 125 years ago. He placed tnermometers in his garden, on St. Thomas Hill, and on 

 the top of the tall Cathedral tower. He also invented and made the well-known Six s thermometer, 

 thousands of which are still sold and are in general use (See the President's address, page 3 . 



We still seem as far as ever from finding out the direct causes of the weather. Meteorologists 

 are too intent on their observations, and too little observant of the useful end to which obserya' ions 

 should leiid. Our methods are hopelessly and helplessly empirical How frequently are we told that 

 there is a depression or cyclone off Ireland, and that if this depression conti ues on its usual eastward 

 track it will rain over England, etc. ; but how often this cyclone suddenly stjps on its eastward 

 course, and strikes off northwards, ur even retreats westwards, and the rain does notcome. W hy, in 

 defiance of all established theory, do our official forecasts thus frequently fail ? What causes the 



