Book V. CLIMATE OF FARMING LANDS. 707 



violence with which they act, more especially during harvest, ought likewise to be con- 

 sidered. If they are very violent, they are apt to affect the crops, and of course it be- 

 comes an object to suit the produce to them ; and to form fences, enclosures, and plan- 

 tations accordingly. 



4368. A maritime position occasions a more equal temperature in a climate. Where 

 a great body of land is exposed to the heating rays of the sun, the air becomes much 

 warmer than it would if resting upon a small body of land, contiguous to, or surrounded 

 by the ocean. On the otlier hand, as the sea always preserves nearly the same tempera- 

 ture, and, except in the most northern regions, is never frozen, it communicates warmth, 

 in the cold seasons of the year, to the air passing over it, which had been cooled in its 

 passage over continents covered with ice and snow. Hence islands are more temperate 

 than continents. It appears indeed, that the thermometer has not so great a range on 

 the sea coast, as in the more inland parts of Great Britain, even at an elevation of 400 

 feet above the level of the sea. Of the influence of proximity to the sea, many proofs 

 might be brought forward. It is in consequence of this circumstance, that the city, of 

 Moscow, which is situated somewhat farther south than Edinburgh, experiences winters 

 much more severe. Another effect of a maritime position is, that strong winds which 

 blow from the sea, are sometimes accompanied by salt spray, or vapor, which is inju- 

 rious to crops of grain, and the leaves of trees. But when it comes in moderation, those 

 saline particles, with which the westerly winds are loaded, contribute to the verdure of the 

 fields in pasture. 



4369. The nature of the inland position is also of much importance. The relative po- 

 sition of the neighboring hills, occasioning a material difference of climate, exposing 

 some districts to great severity of weather, and by protecting others from that disadvantage, 

 greatly promoting their fertility. 



4370. In many countries the seasons are regular. In others, as in Great Britain, they 

 are extremely variable, and often change, in the space of a few hours, from dry to moist, 

 from hot to cold, from clear to cloudy, and from a pleasant serenity to all the violence of 

 a tempest. But such irregularities of climate, however uncomfortable, are often favo- 

 rable to vegetation, and compensated by the advantages they produce. It is not in 

 countries where the seasons of heat and cold, wind and rain, are periodical, or where 

 the greatest regularity of clinlate takes place, that mankind are the most healthy or vigo- 

 rous, or the useful productions of the soil most perfect. Perhaps a sameness of climate, 

 as well as of other things, is prejudicial rather than useful. Where a climate is incon- 

 stant, the air is refined and purified by the frequent changes it undergoes ; and the dis- 

 advantages vvhich originate from that source, are often counteracted, or at least essentially 

 mitigated, by judicious management, and persevering exertions. 



437 1 . The climate of a country is likewise affected by atmospherical and natural phe- 

 nomena ; by earthquakes ; volcanos ; violent thunder storms ; lightning ; hail storms in 

 summer; early frosts ; whirlwinds and hurricanes; water-spouts; and by that atmos- 

 pheric appearance, known under the name of the aurora borealis, so frequently to be 

 seen in northern, and sqmetiines, even in southern regions ; but these phenomena, for 

 the most part only occasional, sometimes prevent greater calamities, and in this country 

 are rarely attended with permanent evils. 



4372. Early frosts are highly injurious to the blossoms of fruit trees ; and autumnal 

 frosts creep along the banks of rivers, destroying the corn in the flowering season, and 

 blasting the stems of potatoes in low situations. Winter frosts are ultimately ratlier 

 favorable to vegetation ; and snow, particularly when it covers the ground for some time, 

 and gradually melts away. 



4373. The size, and, in many cases, the value of the productions of a country, depend 

 upon its climate, by whose influence their growth may either be advanced or retarded. 

 The same species of tree, which, in a temperate climate, will rise to a great height, and 

 swell to an immense size, in an exposed situation will remain small and stunted. By a 

 favorable climate also, the most barren spots, which in a cold country must remain com- 

 pletely waste, in a warm one may be rendered productive. Thus, where the climate is 

 adapted to the culture of the vine; rocks, which in Great Britain, and in colder 

 countries, would in general be of little or no worth, in the southern provinces of France 

 may yield as much in valuable produce, as the cultivated land in their neighborhood. 

 The real excellence of a climate, however, depends on its yielding, in perfection and 

 abundance, the necessaries of life, or those which constitute the principal articles of food 

 for man, and for the domestic animals kept for his use. In this point of view, a meadow 

 is much more productive, and in some respects more valuable than either a vineyard or a 

 grove of oranges ; though the one may be situated in a cold and variable climate, and 

 the other in a country celebrated both for its regularity and warmth of temperature. 



4374. Even the nature of the articles raised, depends upon the climate. Thus, in 

 many elevated parts, both of England and Scotland, wheat cannot be grown to advantage, 



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