8 A SHARP LOOKOUT. 



whole sky flushes, even the west glowing slightly ; 

 the sign is always to be interpreted as meaning fair 

 weather. 



The approach of great storms is seldom heralded 

 by any striking or unusual phenomenon. The real 

 weather gods are free from brag and bluster ; but the 

 sham gods fill the sky with portentous signs and 

 omens. I recall one 5th of March as a day that 

 would have filled the ancient observers with dreadful 

 forebodings. At ten o'clock the sun was attended by 

 four extraordinary sun-dogs. A large bright halo en- 

 compassed him, on the top of which the segment of 

 a larger circle rested, forming a sort of heavy bril- 

 liant crown. At the bottom of the circle, and de- 

 pending from it, was a mass of soft, glowing, irides- 

 cent vapor. On either side, like fragments of the 

 larger circle, were two brilliant arcs. Altogether, it 

 was the most portentous storm-breeding sun I ever 

 beheld. In a dark hemlock wood in a valley, the 

 owls were hooting ominously, and the crows dismally 

 cawing. Before night the storm set in, a little sleet 

 and rain of a few hours' duration, insignificant enough 

 compared with the signs and wonders that preceded it. 



To what extent the birds or animals can foretell 

 the weather is uncertain. When the swallows are 

 seen hawking very high it is a good indication ; the 

 insects upon which they feed venture up there only in 

 the most auspicious weather. Yet bees will continue 

 to leave the hive when a storm is imminent. I am 

 told that one of the most reliable weather signs they 



