WHICH FELL IN ORKNEY. 197 



Mr Taylor's house. The cloud, when at its highest pitch of 

 accumulation, appears to have extended at once between five 

 and six miles in length. 



In the afternoon the sky was clear, the wind hushed, and 

 the air warm and genial. 



Being aware that at all the Northern Light-houses, registers 

 of the state of the barometer and thermometer are regularly 

 kept, (an attention to the interests of science which is high- 

 ly praiseworthy,) I applied to Mr Stevenson, Engineer to 

 the Commissioners, for an extract of the register at the light- 

 house at the Start Point, or eastern extremity of Sanda ; 

 which he most readily granted me. It appeared that the hail 

 had not at all touched the light-house, although, as already 

 mentioned, it had broken the glass of the windows of the 

 house of Lopness, not an English mile distant. Mr Charles 

 NisBET, the principal light-keeper, writes thus to Mr Stevenson. 

 " I was at work in the field, putting up some hay at the time : 

 the sky was very black to the south-west, with thunder. In a 

 short time rain began to fall heavy, with a sharp breeze of 

 wind, but not the least appearance of hail. I was therefore 

 surprised the next day, when I heard of the mischief done by 

 the hail at Lopness, The fall of rain at the farm-house of Se- 

 libuster" (situated as far to the west of Lopness as Start Point 

 is to the east) " was very heavy, and was followed by some 

 hail." 



The following is an extract from the Start Point register, 

 from 20th to 30th July 1818. 



State 



