146 RAINFALL IX DORSET. 



This was followed by only 1^92 in. in July, the whole of which 

 fell before the i8th of that month, and from that date until 

 the 1 9th August there was practically a rainless period of 31 or 

 32 days. This drought had a very disastrous effect on the root 

 crops of the district. 



The last 1 3 days of August brought plentiful rains, amounting 

 to a total of 3'65 in., the whole of the rain of the month having 

 fallen in those days, and they gave August a greater rainfall than 

 that of any other month in the year except December, which had 

 a total of 3*77 in. 



On 2ist October there was a remarkable thunderstorm at 

 Weymouth and its neighbourhood, accompanied by a most 

 unusually heavy fall of rain. At Westham 4 in. is reported to 

 have fallen on that day within about 4 hours, but as the heavy 

 rain began some time before 9 a.m., at which hour the rain for 

 "the previous day" is measured, a considerable part of the rain 

 which fell in the storm would have been credited to 2oth 

 October, and so " spoilt the record " for any very heavy day's 

 record. 



This storm appears to have been confined, in its intensity, to 

 the southern and western parts of the county. No heavy rainfall 

 is recorded on that day much to the eastward of Dorchester, or 

 northward of Sherborne and Milton Abbey. 



The heaviest rainfall recorded for any one day was 3*73 in. on 

 2ist October, at Weymouth (Massandra), and upwards of 2 in. 

 fell on the same day at seven other stations. 



At places not so much affected by the storm of this day their 

 heaviest rainfall mostly occurred in the heavy rains of 26th, 27th, 

 and 3 1 st of August. 



At 14 other stations no fall amounting to one inch oc- 

 curred on any day during the year, and in Table II., 

 giving these particulars, it will be seen that the parts exempt 

 from heavy rains are mostly situated in the north of the 

 county. 



December had the heaviest rainfall of any month in the year 

 (3*77 in.) and it was pretty evenly distributed over the county, 



