150 DORSET WEATHER LORE. 



I think it will be noticed that in the large majority 

 of seasons the oak leaves are out before those of 

 the ash. But I will leave it to observers themselves 

 to say which of the two versions given above they 

 consider the more correct one. For myself I can 

 say that the oak leaves were first out last year, and 

 what a summer we had ! 



(vi.) I will conclude this paper with a reference to the 

 rainbow, which, somewhat curiously, seems to have 

 been made but little use of as a weather portent, 

 at least, so far as it has come to my notice. 



A correspondent in Notes and Queries (7th S., 

 xi., 17) (1891) states that in Dorset, half a century 

 before, the secondary rain-bow was called the " water- 

 gull," and was supposed to be necessary to make 

 the weather sign a satisfactory one. If one was 

 seen alone, or with only an imperfect " water-gull," 

 it was deemed unlucky. In other parts of England 

 (e.g., Yorkshire) it would seem that attempts 

 were made to " cross out," or get rid of, 

 the bow, by making a cross on the ground. 

 Sometimes this was done by the foot, or by 

 taking two pieces of stick and laying them 

 on the ground and placing a small stone at 

 the end of each stick. Sometimes straws 

 were similarly used, or even the crossing of the 

 forefingers of each hand was considered quite as 

 effectual. This charm was supposed to cause the 

 rainbow to disappear ; but one may well believe 

 that by the time some of these charms were got 

 ready the rainbow had disappeared of its own 

 accord. (X., 366, 471.) 



