OF SELBORM;. 267 



known circumstance strangely overbalance latitude, and render 

 the cold sometimes much greater in the southern than in the 

 northern parts of this kingdom. 



The consequences of this severity were, that in Hampshire, 

 at the melting of the snow, the wheat looked well, and the 

 turnips came forth little injured. The laurels and laurustines 

 were somewhat damaged, but only in hot aspects. No ever- 

 greens were quite destroyed ; and not half the damage sus- 

 tained that befell in January 1768. Those laurels that were 

 a little scorched on the south-sides were perfectly untouched 

 on their north-sides. The care taken to shake the snow day 

 by day from the branches seemed greatly to avail the author's 

 evergreens. A neighbour's laurel-hedge, in a high situation, 

 and facing to the north, was perfectly green and vigorous ; 

 and the Portugal laurels remained unhurt. 



As to the birds, the thrushes and blackbirds were mostly 

 destroyed ; and the partridges, by the weather and poachers, 

 were so thinned that few remained to breed the following year. 



LETTER LXIII. 



TO THE SAME. 



As the frost in December 1784 was very extraordinary, you, 

 I trust, will not be displeased to hear the particulars ; and 

 especially when I promise to say no more about the severities 

 of winter after I have finished this letter. 



The first week in December was very wet, with the barome- 

 ter very low. On the 7th, with the barometer at 28 five 

 tenths, came on a vast snow, which continued all that day and 

 the next, and most part of the following night ; so that by the 

 morning of the 9th the works of men were quite overwhelmed, 

 the lanes filled so as to be impassable, and the ground covered 

 1 \vclve or fifteen inches without any drifting. In the evening 

 of the 9th the air began to be so very sharp that we thought 

 it would be curious to attend to the motions of a thermo- 

 meter : we therefore hung out two ; one made by Martin and 



