THUNDER STORMS. 331 



into the trees and summits, as soon as they come 

 in contact with these turbulent meteors; while the 

 humble vales escape, because they are so far beneath 

 them. 



But when I say I do not remember a thunder- 

 storm from the south, I do not mean that we never 

 have suffered from thunder storms at all; for on 

 June 5th, 1784, the thermometer in the morning 

 being at 64, and at noon at 70, the barometer at 29 

 six-tenths one half, and the wind north, I observed 

 a blue mist, smelling strongly of sulphur, hang along 

 our sloping woods, and seeming to indicate that 

 thunder was at hand. I was called in about two in 

 the afternoon, and so missed seeing the gathering 

 of the clouds in the north, which they who were 

 abroad assured me had something uncommon in its 

 appearance. At about a quarter after two, the storm 

 began in the parish of Hartley, moving slowly from 

 north to south ; and from thence it came over 

 Norton-farm, and so to Grange-farm, both in this 

 parish. It began with vast drops of rain, which 

 were soon succeeded by round hail, and then by 

 convex pieces of ice, which measured three inches in 

 girth. Had it been as extensive as it was violent, 

 and of any continuance, (for it was very short,) it 

 must have ravaged all the neighbourhood. In the 

 parish of Hartley, it did some damage to one farm ; 

 but Norton, which lay in the centre of the storm, 

 was greatly injured ; as was Grange, which lay next 

 to it. It did but just reach to the middle of the 

 village, where the hail broke my north windows, 

 and all my garden lights and hand-glasses, and 

 many of my neighbours' windows. The extent of 

 the storm was about two miles in length and one in 

 breadth. We were just sitting down to dinner; 

 but were soon diverted from our repast by the clat- 

 tering of tiles and the jingling of glass. There fell 

 at the same time prodigious torrents of rain on the 



