NoiK 8, 1888J 



NA TURE 



^15 



country. A wet fog disappears under cover, showing its 



causation by the radiation of its particles towards colder 



surfaces or space, as well as by mixture of differing air- 



urrents. A dry fog persists to some degree in a warm 



00m, showing it to be largely composed of carbonaceous 



j)articles of visible magnitude. There is nothing in the 



geographical position of London to make it more foggy 



ban many other parts of the country, and, owing to the 



onditions just mentioned, it would probably rejoice in a 



learer air, on the whole, than that of the surrounding 



districts if ordinary coal were superseded by anthracite 



uid gaseous and liquid fuel. 



From the daily tables of weather of the Meteorological 

 Office for 1872, '1873, 1875, 1876, 1877, and 1882, which 

 happened to be in my possession, I have obtained the 

 following results, showing the prevalence of fog at different 

 stations at 8 a m. 



The first column [b) shows the number of days percent, 

 of blue sky or free from cloud at 8 a.m., and the second 

 column (/) the number of days per cent, when fog more 

 or less prevailed at that hour. 



b. f. 



Aberdeen 22 ... 2 



Valencia ... loi ... 2*4 



Hurst Castle 13 7 ... 32 



Leith II ... 5-3 



Dover 27 9 ... 6 



Holyhead 13-2 ... 6-2 



Liverpool ..: . . 124 ... 6 '6 



Pembroke 12 ... 8-5 



Scilly 2 ... 10 



Oxford 10-4 ... 10-5 



Yarmouth ... ... I4'5 ... 12 "2 



London 8 ... 13-5 



.Aberdeen and Dover have by far the largest number of 

 tine mornings, Aberdeen, Valencia, and Hurst Castle the 

 smallest number of fogs. 



The following list, from data of the second order 

 stations of the Royal Meteorological Society, shows the 

 percentage of fogs — that is, the number of days with fog 

 — for eleven stations, during the years October 1879 to 

 September 1882. 



Days of fog. Notes. 



Carmarthen ... .. 4-5 ... No observations in 1880. 



Southbourne 4'8 



Ramsgate 5 



Cheltenham 7 



Eastbourne 7'Q ... Only two years' observations. 



Llandudno 8 8 



Babbacombe 14 "6 



Hereford 191 ... Only one year's observations. 



Croydon 259 



Strathfield Turgis ... 26 



Norwood 34'5 



The following table gives the results of the registration 

 ■of bright sunshine by glass recorders at seven places in 

 the South of England. The figures give the number of 

 hours of bright sunshine recorded in the four years, 1883, 

 1884, 1885, and 1886. In the cases of St. Lawrence, Isle 

 of Wight, and St. Leonard's, where data for only two 

 years existed, the result is arrived at by multiplying the 

 value in each case by two. Eastbourne only recorded in 

 1886, and the result for this year has been multiplied by 

 four. The second column gives the number of hours 

 of bright sunshine in November and December 1885, and 

 January and February 1886. 



City of London 3925 62 



Kew 5713 222 



Greenw ch 4845 157 



Eastbourne 6660 300 



St. Lawrence, I.W 6774 316 



Southbourne 61 15 



St. Leonard's 6880 



This absence of light must tell decidedly on the vital 

 force of the community, taken as a whole, and even if 



we had no dense fogs it would be worth cleansing our 

 atmosphere to get the proper amount of sunshine. 



In the great fogs of 1880, the death-rate of London rose 

 from 27- 1 for the week ending January 24 to 48T for the 

 week ending February 7, which was the period of thickest 

 fog. The death-rate for nineteen provincial towns in this 

 last week was 26 3. At Croydon the rate only rose from 

 35 to 36. In this period of three weeks from January 24 to 

 February 14, the excess of deaths over the average in 

 London was 2994. Probably ten times as many were ill 

 from the combined effects of smoke and cold. In the 

 week ending February 7, the deaths from whooping-cough 

 were unprecedentedly numerous, 248, and from bronchitis, 

 1223. Clearly, persons liable to bronchial attacks should 

 if possible keep out of London during winter anticyclones. 



The moral reaction of this atmosphere is well worthy 

 of consideration. If smoke were got rid of, there would 

 be a great revival of plant vigour and human gaiety, the 

 housewives who now give up in despair the attempt to 

 keep their houses bright and clean would no longer lose 

 heart, the dull brick walls would begin to deck themselves 

 with colour and ornament, the grime which seems to per- 

 vade everything would disappear, and sky and earth would 

 appear in their natural brilliancy. 



As the result of a computation taking into account the 

 damage tobuildings, furniture, ceilings, wall-papers, works 

 of art of all kinds, the extra washing, and consequent 

 wear and tear, for 4,000,000 people, window-cleaning, 

 waste of coal, extra lighting required, chimney-sweeping, 

 loss of time by artists, &c., impairment of health, and 

 many other items, it appears that the loss by our waste- 

 ful method of burning coal must be about ^5,000,000 a 

 year. 



There are many ways by which householders may 

 economize in the use of fuel. Among them may be men- 

 tioned, the use of hot-water pipes and coils at low pressure 

 heated by a coke stove, improved kitcheners, anthracite, 

 patent fuel, mineral oil, and gas. With a reduced price 

 of gas, gas cooking-ranges ought to come into general 

 use. Gas fires throughout a house, except perhaps in one 

 room where an open fire might be kept up, save the fol- 

 lowing expenses : burning fuel at times when not re- 

 quired, labour and wear and tear in carrying coals, dirt 

 and blackening of ceilings, &c., wood for lighting, sweeping 

 of chimneys, coal-scuttles, fire-irons, emery, and the very 

 considerable amount of domestic labour now taken up by 

 cleaning, laying, and attention generally. Wherever an 

 open coal fire is insisted on, the various improved grates 

 may be employed with great advantage both for economy 

 and smokelessness. Rows of houses could probably be 

 heated economically by hot-water or steam pipes from 

 a boiler in a central position ; but the uncertainties of 

 our climate make independent arrangements on the whole 

 preferable. Wasteful ranges might be subject to a tax, 

 which the wasteful householder might be presumed to be 

 capable of paying without inconvenience, and smoky 

 chimneys should not be allowed to pollute the atmosphere 

 with impunity. This would have an effect opposite to 

 that of the tax on light, the window-tax, which vexed 

 the last generation, for it would tend to increase the 

 brightness of London dwellings by the admission of 

 sunlight. 



The method of heating water by the arrangement known 

 as the " Geyser ■' or " Therma " has the merit of utilizing 

 nearly the whole of the heat given off by the gas in burn- 

 ing. This could be employed at the top of the house, the 

 hot water running into pipes in the rooms or on landings, 

 and finally into a cistern in the kitchen, and here, if neces- 

 sary, an ordinary boiler for heating coils in the upper 

 part of the house or in the hall would utilize the water not 

 yet cooled to the temperature of the air. 



The abolition of smoke would certainly effect a very 

 large saving to the community, and would add greatly' to 

 the amenity of the climate, not only of London, but of all 



