Meteorological Observations for December 1828. 159 



ported to have been thrown down ; and many thatched houses and barns 

 unroofed,and trees rooted up in that neighbourhood. The steeple of Nunren 

 Church, near Carlow, is reported to have been riven to its base. Much 

 damage has also been done by this irresistible storm in other parts of Ire- 

 land, and many lives lost by the sudden inundation of the low lands from 

 the overflowing of the rivers in that country ; also in Scotland and in Wales, 

 where it appears to have happened nearly a day sooner than it was felt in 

 the southern parts of England. In the present enlightened age, it is really 

 astonishing that recourse is not more generally had to the fixing oi pointed 

 metallic conductors, or connected iron rods, to lofty spires and high orna- 

 mental buildings, for their preseiTation from lightning. 



In the evening of the 26th, a faint aurora borealis appeared in the 

 northern horizon, behind a low stationary cirrostratus cloud, from six till 

 nine o'clock ; but no perceptible coruscations emanated from it. A hard 

 gale prevailed from the S.E. through the evening and night. 



The mean temperature of the external air this month is nearly six 

 degrees higher than the mean of December for the last thirteen jears. 

 The nights in general were very mild, — in eleven of them the thermometer 

 did not recede lower than 49 degrees, and they were warmer than some 

 nights in the middle of last summer. 



Although it cannot be positively asserted that comets have any direct in- 

 fluence in increasing the temperature of the earth's atmosphere, yet argu- 

 ments may be adduced to show the probability of their having such influ- 

 ence when near their perihelia. Encke's comet was nearest the earth on the 

 14th instant, and will be nearest the sun on the 10th of January 18.29. 



The atmospheric and meteoric phaenomena that have come within our 

 observations this month, are five parhelia, one solar and two lunar halos, 

 twelve meteors, three rainbows; two aurorae boreales, lightning and thun- 

 der on the 7th and 8th, and thirteen gales of wind, or days on which they 

 have prevailed; namely, one from the North, one from the North-east, 

 two from the South-east, one from the South, five from the South-west, 

 and three from the West. 



KEMARKS, 



Zo7^f/o;^.— Dec. 1. Stormy. 2. Cold and cloudy. 3. Fine. 4 — 6. Cloudy. 

 7. Fine: stormy and wet at night, with much thunder and lightning. 8. Stormy 

 and wet. 9. Fine. 10. Fine: stormy at night. 11. Stormy. 12. Cloudy, 

 1 3. Drizzly : cloudy and mild. 1 4. Fine. 1 5. Slight fog in morning : cloudy. 

 1 G. Cloudy : rain at night. 1 7. Drizzly: stormy night. 1 8. Stormy. 1 9. Fine : 

 stormy at night. 20. Cloudy : fine. 21. Fine. 22. Cloudy. 23. Drizzly. 

 24. Fine : slight rain at night. 25 — 27. Fine. 28. Foggy morning: fine. 

 29. Foggy. 30. Slight fog in morning : cloudy. 31. Fine : drizzly. 



Penzance. — Dec. 1. Fair. 2. Clear. 3. Fair : showers. 4. Misty. 

 5. Clear. 6. Clear: rain: 7. Fair: rain. 8. Rain : hail. 9. Hail showers. 

 10. Showers. 11. Fair. 12, 13. Misty : rain. 14. Fair : rain. 1.5. Fair: 

 showers. IG, 17. Fair: misty: rain. 18. Showers. 19. Clear : showers. 

 20. Showers. 21. Misty: rain. 22. Misty: showers. 23. Fair: rain. 

 24. Rain : showers. 25. Showers. 26. Fair : rain. 27. Clear : rain at 

 night. 28,29. Clear. 30. Fair. 31. Rain: fair. 



Jluston. — Dec. 1. Stormy. 2. Fine. 3. Cloudy. 4. Fine. 5. Foggy. 

 G. Fine. 7. Stormy. 8. Fine: rain early a.m. 9, 10. Fine. 1 1. Cloudy. 

 12, ):j. Fine. 14. Rain. 15, 16. Cloudy. 17. Cloudy: rain early a.m. 

 1 8. Rain anil stormy. 1 9. Stormy. 20— 22. Cloudy. 23. Fine. 24. Cloudy : 

 rain i>..M. 25. Cloudy: rain a.m. 26, 27. F'inc. 28. Fine: rain p.,\r. 

 29. CIr.udy. 30. Fine. 31. Cloudy. 



Meleoro- 



