PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 13 



Oct. 5th, in S. Wales and Cornwall, which left a luminous 

 track visible for from 2 to 20 minutes. One on Dec. 15, 

 seen at Bristol, and a very large one, accompanied by a 

 violent explosion, over the Chusan Archipelago and from 

 Shanghai, in the forenoon of Feb. 13, 1915. In con- 

 nection with this subject, I may mention that there is 

 or has lately been an interesting exhibit at the London 

 Library of early printed books on Astronomy, including the 

 " Poeticon Astro no micon " of 1488, a copy of which, with 

 its 47 curious and entertaining, but very inaccurate woodcuts 

 of constellations, I exhibited to the Dorset Field Club some 

 years ago. 



METEOROLOGY. 



Though the rainfall during the year 1915 over the whole of 

 the British Isles taken together was little more than the 

 average, the amount in certain parts, such as the S.E. and 

 much of the E. Coast, was considerably above the average, 

 whereas that of the N.W. of England and the W. of Scotland 

 was below. The fall at Montevideo, Chickerell, in 1915, was 

 35'72in. as compared with 29'63in., the average there for the 

 past 18 years, and the fall in December last, 8'74m., was the 

 greatest recorded there for 18 years in that month, being even 

 higher than the 7'31in. recorded for December, 1914. The 

 highest fall in 24 hours in the 18 years was also recorded in 

 1915, on October 23, and amounted to 1.98in. The adoption 

 of the millimetre for rain measurement by the Meteorological 

 office and the British Rainfall Organization marks a step in 

 decimal notation in this country. A thunderstorm took 

 place on May 6, 1915, marked by an unusual fall of rain, 

 which amounted to more than 3in. over an area estimated 

 to be about -mile wide and 1^ mile long, between the City 

 and King's Cross, between 8.30 and 10 p.m. ; the highest fall 

 actually recorded being 3'12in. Contrasted with these 

 figures, the rainfall at a station in Java has amounted in one 

 year to 398' lin. and the greatest fall in 24 hours to 20'lin., 



