JANUARY. 33 



mals have marks of having, in a long process of time, undergone changes in 

 some parts of their bodies, which may have been effected to accommodate 

 them to new ways of procuring their food. It is the opinion of Dr. Darwin, 

 tliat all the productions of nature are in their progress to greater perfec- 

 tion — an idea countenanced by the modern discoveries and deductions con- 

 cerning the progressive formation of the solid parts of the terraqueous globe. 



Monthly Dial. — We intend, under this head, to publish in each num- 

 ber of our Magazine a brief account of the weather of the past month, in- 

 cluding the prevailing appearance of the heavens, the temperature of the 

 atmosphere, and the various meteoric phenomena of the month. Such notes, 

 if accurately made, would lead to the gradual discovery of certain laws of 

 nature as connected with the weather, and could not fail to be useful and 

 interesting. 



Since December arrived the heavens have presented a very different as- 

 pect from that of the two or three preceding months. There was less of 

 that form of cloud which has been denominated cuinulus,T esembling globu- 

 lar heaps of vapor, rising out of uniform stratified cloud. The clouds, in- 

 stead of appearing in such forms, moving rapidly in the direction of the 

 wind, as usually seen in October and April, were arranged more generally 

 in horizontal bars, which were comparatively motionless. This sort of 

 cloud, which is the stratus of the aerologist, prevailed extensively during 

 the month of December. It is really a level sheet of vapor spread out at 

 a certain distance above the surface of the earth, and resembles a bar, be- 

 cause it is seen edgewise when low in the horizon. The hair cloud, 

 feather cloud, or cirrus, is not so common in winter as in summer; and when 

 formed in winter it passes into stratus ; while in summer, it more generally 

 passes into cirro-cumulus, forming what the fishermen term a mackerel sky. 

 Hence the clouds are more beautiful and variegated in their forms in sum- 

 mer than in winter, as well as more brilliant in their tintings. The brilliant 

 sunsets of the warm months are seldom witnessed in the season of snow. 

 The days are so short, however, that even at noonday, we often perceive 

 more or less of the ruddy glow of sunset. In fact, the sun in December 

 seldom pours down his rays in undiminished whiteness. We have truly no 

 noonday at this time ; for no sooner have the ruddy tints of morning disap- 

 peared than those of evening commence, as the evening and morning twi- 

 light blend together at midnight in the month of June. 



The weatlier of December was colder than the average, and more than 

 a usual quantity of rain fell. At the same time deep snows fell, in all the 

 country lying north and west of this vicinity. In the year 1853, no severe 

 cold Avas experienced before Christmas. What prognostications for the 

 coming winter may be made by the weatherwise, from all these appearances, 

 we are unable to say. We should judge, however, that there were no indi- 

 cations of an open winter. No very brilliant exhibitions of the aurora 

 borealis were seen in this vicinity during the past month. 



VOL. XXI. NO. I. 5 



