By the Rev. H. H. TILNEY BASSETT, R.D. 



XCESSIVE rainfall was the marked character of 

 the year 1919. The winter months on the whole 

 were very mild; but there was an exceptional cold 

 snap at the end of April, snow falling heavily 

 during the evening of the 27th, and snow lay on the ground 

 over an inch deep on the morning of the 28th; and in Wiltshire 

 over half-a-foot was measured in places. But perhaps a 

 feature of the year to be noted was the almost total absence of 

 thunderstorms. 



The longest spells of rainless weather were from May 15th 

 to June 19th, July 22nd to August 16th, October 2nd to llth. 

 During the long drought between May 15th and June 19th a 

 number of birds perished. The average rainfall for the year 

 calculated from 17 stations marked with an asterisk in the 

 tables was 34'531in. The average for the 64 years 1853 to 

 1919, 34'726in. The heaviest fall in the 24 hours throughout 

 the county occurred on August 27th, the greatest fall being 

 registered on that day at 19 stations. Eight observers record 

 the greatest record on December 1st; three observers, October 



