ENGLAND. 



693 



>i till they have given out their vapours, is much less sub- 

 V ""V"'' ject to rain ; but, on the other hand, from being more 

 exposed to the cold and piercing east winds, its tempe- 

 rature is less pleasant, especially during the summer 

 months. It is well known that the temperature of the 

 ocean is more equable than that of the land ; and, of 

 course, at least in our latitudes, milder during winter, 

 and not so warm during the summer : hence, the wes- 

 tern counties, being exposed to the winds from the At- 

 lantic Ocean, generally experience a winter rather 

 moist than severe. Snow seldom lies in this part of the 

 kingdom for any length of time. This remark applies 

 with peculiar force to the south-western counties of 

 England, particularly Cornwall and Devonshire, which 

 being exposed to the winds both from the Bristol and 

 English Channel, is favoured with uncommonly mild 

 winters. 



The science of meteorology is, even in this inquisi- 

 tive and enlightened age, so little advanced, and so 

 bare of facts, that it would be rash to attempt to give 

 particular details, either respecting temperature, or the 

 quantity of rain, which would be accurately correct, 

 and unquestionably well-founded, except such as relate 

 to some few districts of England and Wales. These, 

 however, it may be proper to give, in order that a 

 clearer insight may be gained into the nature of our 

 climate, and into its difference in different parts, and 

 its variations in the same part. 



Quantity of First, with respect to the quantity of rain which 

 nun in dif- falls in different parts of England. It has been already 

 fcrent parts observed, that in the western counties much more rain 

 compared. f a j] s j n tne course o f the year than in the eastern coun- 

 ties : and it may be added, that a greater proportion of 

 rain falls on the north-western const, compared with coun- 

 ties that are situated on the south-eastern side of the 

 island. The proportion of rain which fell in the course 

 of a year at Townley, in Lancashire, was measured, 

 upwards of a century ago, and compared with. the 

 quantity which fell during the same space of time at 

 Axminster, in Essex ; on an average of six years, from 

 1 700 to 1 705, inclusive, it appeared that there fell at 

 Townly 42^ inches, while at Axminster there fell only 

 19i inches. The mean quantity of rain that has been 

 obferved to fall in the county of Rutland, in the course 

 of the year, is 20<J inches. At Sell>ourne, in Hamp- 

 shire, where the country is rather hilly, the average 

 quantity of rain which fell annually, between 1780 and 

 1786, was 36.98 inches. 



Perhaps no circumstance more evidently and strong- 

 ly proves the variableness of our climate, with respect 

 to rain, than the following facts, detailed by Dr Hex- 

 ham, concerning the quantity of rain which fell in cer- 

 tain years in Devonshire. There can be no doubt, that 

 in this county, the climate is not only much moister, 

 but the actual quantity of rain that falls is much great- 

 er, than in the south and south-eastern counties ; and 

 yet he informs us, that in 1731, the rain which fell 

 measured only 17 inches, and 26f> IPths; in 1711, 20 

 inches and 314 lOths ; and in 1743, 20 inches and 908 

 lOths. 



It appears, from a meteorological journal kept by 

 M;ijor Rooke, that the quantity of rain which fell at 

 the four following places in the year 1798, was as fol- 

 lows : I-ondon, 26.22 inches ; West Bridgford, Not- 

 tinghamshire, '27.22 ; Lancaster, 48.19; Kendal, 60.85. 

 A farther comparison of the quantities of rain which 

 fall at these places, may be made by the following 

 tables, given by Mr Lowe in his Agricultural Survey 

 of the County of Nottingham: In 1794:, there fell at 



London, 23.32 inches ; at West Bridgford, 26.27 ; at Statistic. 

 Lancaster, 50.8 1 ; and at Kendal, 69.65. In 1 795, at T*""' 

 London, 18.1.5; at West Bridgford, 24.64; at Lan- 

 caster, 48-98 ; and at Kendal, 57-98. In 1796, at Lon- 

 don, 17.86; at West Bridgford, 18.16; at Laiigar, also 

 in Nottinghamshire, 19-212; at Lancaster, 37.4; and 

 at Kendal, 45.24. The fall of rain this year at Hull, 

 was 22.98. In the year 1802, there fell at London 

 15.12 inches, while at Brecon the quantity was 26.25. 

 The average gauge of rain at Sheffield is 33 inches in a 

 year, which is about a medium betwixt what falls in 

 Lancashire and on the eastern coast At Langrove, in 

 Shropshire, a register was kept of the dry and wet day* 

 for the years 1796, 1797, 1798, 1799, 1800, and 1801 ; 

 the result of which is, that in 1796, there were 201 

 dry days, and 164 wet; in 1797, 184 dry, and 181 

 wet; in 1798, the same ; in 1799, H8 dry, and 217 

 wet; in 1800, Ifil dry, and 204 wet; and in 1801, 

 163 dry, and 202 wet. In Staffordshire, the annual 

 rains generally exceed 36 inches ; whereas, in Worces- 

 tershire, under the same meridian of longitude, they 

 fall short of 30 ; a proof of what was remarked above, 

 that those northern counties which lie as far to the west 

 as the southern counties, in general have a moister cli- 

 mate. 



In 1806, the fall of rain at Chertsey, in Surrey, was 

 25 inches; at London, 27; at Dip, in Norfolk, 25; at 

 Chatsworth, in Derbyshire, 30 ; at Horncastle, in Lin- 

 colnshire, 26; at Nottingham, 25; at Hull, 30; at 

 Lancashire, 40 ; at Dalton, in Lancaster, 49; and at 

 Kendal. 53 inches. 



From the observations on the quantity of rain which Quantity 

 fell at Liverpool, for a period of 1 8 years, beginning of rain 

 with the year 1775, made by Mr Hutchinson, dock at I-'ver- 

 master at that place, it appears, that the mean annual PJJ* 1 ' ^ 

 quantity of rain which falls at that place, is 34.4168 ( v 



inches ; and that the mean falls of rain in each month, 

 and each season of the year, on an average of the same 

 period, were as follows: February, 1.8471 ; March, 

 1 .5227 ; April, 2. 1 041 : mean fall in the spring, 5.4739. 

 May, 2.5729 ; June, 2.8159 ; July, 3.6628: mean fall 

 in summer, 9.056. August, 3.3106; September, 3.65H; 

 October, 3.7239: mean fall in autumn, 10.6889. No- 

 vember, 3.4408; December, 3 2876; January, 2.1741: 

 mean fall in winter, 8.9025. At Dover, the mean 

 annual fall is 3752 inches; at Garsdale, which is a nar- 

 row valley, 13 miles to the north-east of Kendal, the 

 quantity of rain that fell in the year 1777 was 49.5290 

 inches, and the number of rainy days 222. In the 

 year 1778, the quantity of rain was 6 1 . 3660 inches ; 

 and the number of rainy days 249 : and in the year 

 1779, the quantity of rain was 45.999 inches, and the 

 number of rainy days 1 97. 



The comparative wetness of the climate in the north- 

 west of England, will further appear from the follow- 

 ing results of an account of the quantity of rain which 

 fell at Manchester during eight years, from 1786 to 

 1793, both inclusive. In 1786, the number of days Chester, 

 on which rain or snow fell, was 207, and the quantity 

 of rain 40.5; in 1787, there were 200 rainy or snowy 

 days, and the quantity of rain 47-5 ; In the year 1783, 

 rain or snow fell on 178 days, and the quantity of rain 

 was 27.15; in 1789, there were 263 days on which 

 rain or snow fell, and the quantity of rain was 51 inches; 

 in 1790, there were 210 of such days, and the rain 

 amounted to 42-75 inches; in 1791, rain or snow fell 

 on 2 ;3 days, and the quantity of rain was 44 inches ; 

 in 1792, there were 248 days of rain or snow, and the 

 quantity of rain was 55.25 inches ; and in the year 



