PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. ci. 



which will diminish the evil, but in view of the immense 

 importance of this Observatory, not only to England, but to the 

 world in general, both as regards practical and theoretical 

 science, there can be no doubt that more drastic remedies 

 ought to be applied, and the County Council station removed 

 elsewhere in spite of the cost involved. A new departure in 

 observatories has lately been made by the establishment at 

 Cardiff of a public observatory, where large numbers of people 

 are taking the opportunity afforded them of using the 1 2-inch 

 reflector presented for this purpose to the City Council, 



METEOROLOGY. 



The results of rainfall over the British Isles in 1906 were, on 

 the whole, average in England and Wales, 9 per cent, above in 

 Scotland, and 4 per cent, below the average in Ireland. In 

 Dorset the fall was above the average for the year, caused by 

 large falls in January, February, May, and October. At the 

 meteorological station, Weymouth, an unusual amount of bright 

 sunshine, 1,908 hours 20 mins., was recorded by Mr. I. J. Brown, 

 the hon. observer, being 130 hours 8 mins. above the average. 

 During a part of January the barometer was unusually high over 

 a large part of the north of Europe, the highest reading being 

 3 1*5 Sin. at Riga on January 23rd, whilst parts of England, 

 Scotland, and Ireland showed readings of over 3 1 inches, those 

 at some of the stations being the highest recorded there. The 

 highest reading ever recorded was 3172^., and occurred on 

 December 2oth, 1896, at Irkutsk, and on December i6th, 1877, 

 at Semipalatinsk, the highest in this country being 3 ruin, at 

 Aberdeen on January 3ist, 1902. The lowest is 27*i2in. at 

 False Point, on the coast of Bengal, and in the British Islands, 

 27'33in. at Ochtertyre on January 26th, 1884. These observa- 

 tions are all reduced to sea level. The thermometer, too, has 

 given a record, as temperatures of 94*3, 91-9, 93-5, and 91 degrees 

 were registered at Greenwich on August 3ist and September ist, 

 2nd, and 3rd, 1906. Though the highest record at Greenwich is 



