BARREL. 



cease, for a while at least. When, during a 

 wet spell 01 weather, the wind has veered to 

 the south-easterly points, with a cessation of 

 rain, the wind rising to east and north-east is 

 generally preceded or attended by a rise of the 

 barometer and a renewal of the rain. When 

 the wind has been from the south and south- 

 west, with a moist condition of the atmosphere, 

 or high dew-point, a rise of the barometer in- 

 dicates that the wind is coming from a point 

 north of west, and a clearing up shower about 

 to ensue. 



The following tabular view is intended to 

 show the manner in which the mercurial 

 column of the barometer fluctuates at Phila- 

 delphia, a position in the United States, which 



, BARROWS. 



may be regarded rather central and removed 

 from the extremes of more northerly and 

 southerly situations. The higher north, the 

 greater the fluctuations of the barometer. The 

 observations were carefully made during the 

 year 1842, by Mr. Owen Evans, a member of 

 the Committee on Meteorology, of the Franklin 

 Institute of Pennsylvania. The graduation of 

 his barometer agrees with that of the standard 

 constructed for the Committee on Meteorology, 

 by which the instruments distributed to the va- 

 rious counties of Pennsylvania are regulated. 

 The elevation of the place of observation is 

 about 30 feet above high-water mark of the 

 Delaware. The means are corrected for tem- 

 perature to 42 Fahr. 



Many are the natural indications of vegetables 

 which portend changes in the weather ; thus, 

 the Pimpernel, or Red Chickweed (Ana^ullin. 

 arvtnsit}, is styled the poor man's weather- 

 glass. This little plant blooms in June, in 

 stubble fields and gardens, and continues in 

 lluv.cr all the summer. When this plant is 

 seen in the morning with its little red flowers 

 widely extended, we may generally expect a 

 fine day ; on the contrary, it is a sign of rain 

 when its petals are closed. (The Farmer's Al- 



The following table has been constructed 

 from a long series of observations made in 

 London ; they will apply, however, to a consi- 

 derable distance around the metropolis : 



BARREL. A cask or vessel for holding 

 liquids, particularly ale and beer. Formerly 

 the barrel of beer in London, contained only 

 32 ale gallons = 32$ Imperial gallons. By a 

 statute of 1 W. & M., the ale and beer barrels 

 were equalized for every part of England, ex- 

 cept London, and ordered to contain 34 gallons ; 

 but it was enacted by 43 Geo. 3, c. 69, that 36 

 gallons of beer should be taken to be a barrel ; 

 and by the 6 Geo. 3, c. 58, it is enacted, that 

 whenever any gallon measure is mentioned in 

 any excise law, it shall always be deemed and 

 taken to be a standard Imperial gallon. At 

 present, therefore, the barrel contains 36 Impe- 

 rial gallons. It may be worth while observing, 

 that the barrel or cask is exclusively the pro- 



duce of European ingenuity, and that no such 

 article is known to any nation of Asia, Africa, 

 or America, who have not derived it from Eu- 

 ropeans. The term barrel was formerly used 

 to denote, in a rough way, other sorts of goods. 

 Thus, a barrel of salmon 'was 42 gallons; a 

 barrel of soap, 256 pounds. In common lan- 

 guage, any hollow cylinder is called a barrel. 

 Air and water-tight iron barrels coated with 

 waterproof composition are now used in the 

 navy, and might be made useful to the farmer. 

 (M'Culloch's Com. Diet.,- Branch's Diet.' of 

 Science.) 



A measure for Indian corn, in Maryland, Vir- 

 ginia, and other Southern States, containing 

 10 bushels in the ear = to 3 flour barrels. 



BARREN FLOWERS are those which 

 either have stamens and no pistil, or which 

 have neither stamens nor pistil. The latter 

 are the production of art. 



BARREN SOILS, in general, owe their 

 sterility to the presence of too great a propor- 

 tion of particular earths saline, or organic mat- 

 ters. No soil can be productive in which 19 

 parts out of 20 are composed of any one earth or 

 other substance. The improvement of such 

 soils constitutes the great art of all manuring 

 and tillage. Lands containing an excess of 

 calcareous, matter may be improved by tne ad- 

 dition of clay or sand. Sands may be dressed 

 with clay or marl, or vegetable matter. Where 

 organic matters are in excess, the earths may 

 be applied. Water must be removed by drain 

 ing. (Davy's Lectures, p. 203.) See SOILS. 



BARROWS. The common term for tumuli, 

 or huge mounds of earth which were raised in 

 former times over the bodies of heroes and 

 warriors : many of which exist to the present 

 day on the plains of Wilts and the downs of 

 Dorset, Surrey, Sussex, and other counties. 

 Barrow is also the name for a hog, and for any 

 kind of carriage moved or borne by the hand. 

 The most common barrows in use at present 

 are the wheel-barrow, which is employed 1 

 the carriage of light loads, as of earth to short 

 distances, lime for building, manure from the 



147 



