108 SCIENCE OF COMMON THINGS. 



Where the most rain falls. How many rainy days in the year. 



633 What countries are the least cloudy f 



Those where the temperature and winds are least 

 variable, as Egypt. 



634 Why are mountainous countries more rainy than flat ones? 



Because the air (striking against the sides of the 

 mountains) is carried up the inclined plane, and brought 

 in contact with the cold air of the higher regions ; in 

 consequence of which its vapor is condensed and depo- 

 sited in rain. 



635 When is the quantity of moisture in the air greatest, and when 

 least? 



It is greatest in the summer months, and least in the 

 winter. 



686 In what part of the world does rainfall most abundantly f 



Near the equator / and the quantity of rain decreases 

 as we approach the poles. 



637* How many inches of rain faU yearly at tlie city of Vera Cruz, 

 Mexico ? 



About two hundred and seventy-eight inches. 



633 How great a depth of rain, measured in inches, falls yearly in 

 London f 



About twenty-Jive inches 



689 How do you account for the great amount of rain falling at Vera 

 Cruz f 



Vera Cruz, situated within the tropics, is backed by 

 lofty mountains, whose summits are covered with per- 

 petual snow j against these the hot, humid air from 

 the sea is driven by the trade-winds, condensed, and its 

 excess of moisture is precipitated as rain. 



690 In what latitudes do the greatest number of rainy days occur f 



There are more rainy days in the temperate zones 

 than in the tropics, although the yearly quantity of 

 rain falling in the latter districts is much greater than 

 in the former. 



691 About how many rainy days are there in a year in the northern 

 parts of the United States ? 



About one hundred and thirty-four ; in the South- 

 ern States the number is somewhat less, being about 

 one hundred and three. 



