September 1, 1899.] 



KNOWLEDGE. 



199 



what is the use of such observations ? Let us regard our 

 atmosphere as an ocean, only, instead of being an ocean of 

 water, four or five miles deep, let us remember that it is 

 an ocean of air manifold deeper — that it is, in fact, an 

 " atmosphere," instead of a " hydrosphere.' Like star- 

 fish, sea-spiders, and other deep sea denizens, we creep 

 about at the bottom of this ocean of air and know little or 

 nothing about the conditions which exist in the upper 



Pig. 1.— Orda-ince Cairu aud Observatory on the Summit of Ben Nevis showing the Great Cliff: Summer 



atmosphere. And it is our true scientific instinct that 

 leads U3 to sound, as it were, upwards, and to explore into 

 the upper reaches of the atmosphere just as we sound 

 downwards and explore at the bottom of the sea. There 

 are various ways of doing this : we can study, for instance, 

 the height of clouds, their speed, direction and constitu- 

 tion, and learn a good deal regarding temperature, winds, 

 and so forth. This can be done by careful eye observation 

 from below, but how much more satisfactorily can it be 

 done if we actually ascend into those upper strata of 

 the air by a balloon, or by climbing to the top of moun- 

 tains, which rise up like 

 islands from the lower into 

 the upper atmosphere ! 



In 1875, Mr. Thomas 

 Stevenson proposed to es- 

 tabhsh from the top to the 

 bottom of some mountain a 

 series of stations, in order to 

 find out what was occurring 

 in the atmosphere at different 

 levels. It was pointed out 

 that Ben Nevis, of all places, 

 was most suitable. 



First. — Because it was 

 the highest mountain in the 

 British Isles, rising to four 

 thousand four hundred and 

 six feet. 



Secondly. — Because its 

 summit was in close horizon- 

 tal proximity to a sea-level 

 station at Fort WiUiam. 



Thirdly. — Because it was 



across their continent by means of their meteorological 

 stations, we are unable to do so on account of the wide 

 extent of the Atlantic Ocean, where we can have no per- 

 manent stations with telegraphic communication. Indeed, 

 it is hardly possible to foretell that a storm leaving the 

 American coast will reach our shores. 



To Mr. Clement Wragge, now Government Meteo- 

 rologist to Queensland, we owe the first actual series of 



observations. From .June 

 till October, 1881, without 

 the break of a single day, 

 he climbed the Ben, and 

 took observations on the 

 .summit, while Mrs. Wragge 

 took synchronous observa- 

 tions at Fort WiUiam. He 

 made similar observations 

 on an extended scale with 

 two assistants during 1882 ; 

 and during 1883 similar 

 observations were carried 

 on by Messrs. Whyte and 

 Kankin, who had previously 

 assisted Mr. Wragge. On 

 account of the high im- 

 portance of these observa- 

 tions, which were so ably 

 discussed by Dr. Buchan, 

 an appeal was made to the 

 pubhc for funds, and under 

 the auspices of the Scottish Meteorological Society, four 

 thousand pounds were soon collected in amounts varying 

 from two hundred pounds to a penny ; every class was 

 represented, from Her Majesty downwards. 



On the 17th October, 1883, Mrs. Cameron Campbell, 

 who granted the site, opened the Observatory on an ordinary 

 Ben Nevis winter day, amidst wind and driving snow. At 

 the same time Mr. C. Livingstone started observations at 

 the public school at Fort William. 



It was intended to take twenty-four hourly observations 

 during the day, reading the barometer and thermometers, 



Fio. 2. — Observatory from South: Summer. 



situated in the track of the 

 south-west storms, which influence so greatly the weather 

 of Europe, especially in autumn and winter. 



It was urged that these observations would have im- 

 portant bearing in forecasting storms ; for, unlike the 

 Americans, who can track the course a storm is taking 



and making notes of wind, cloud, rainfall, and so on. But 

 before two or three feet of snow were covering the summit, 

 great drifts were piled up round the building, and as no 

 arrangement for keeping the doorway clear had been made, 

 constant digging was required. As long as the weather was 

 fine this was easily accomplished, but when the wind rose 



