i6 



first fortnight, but from the 15th onward a succession of morning frosts 

 kept the men off the fields, often until dinner time. The winter oats 

 were looking exceptionally well, but it was not possible to complete the 

 wheat-sowing this month. 



December was extraordinarily wet, no less than 7.5 inches of rain 

 falling as compared with the average of 2.5 inches. But so dry was the 

 ground at the beginning that ploughing met with less interruption 

 than might have been feared, and the corn continued to thrive, looking 

 better than was anticipated. The first three weeks of January were 

 more or less rainy, but the last was fine ; the total rainfall was again 

 above the average (3.7 as compared with 2.3 inches). There were light 

 frosts at intervals, but the mean temperature was not unusual. Through- 

 out the season ploughing had not been hindered for more than a day 

 or so at a time, and the corn still looked quite well, although some was 

 not strong. February was a very broken month. It was unusually 

 wet, rain, hail and snow amounting to 4.2 inches as compared with 

 an average of 1.8, and there was frost almost every night. In con- 

 sequence the work on the barley land was much delayed. The winter 

 had been the wettest and muddiest on record, and spring opened badly. 

 March was, generally speaking, unfavourable for farm work. The land 

 was too wet for barley sowing until the 22nd, a full week later than we 

 like. A week of frost at the end, however, improved the conditions 

 of the soil, though it delayed the commencement of drilling till 10 or 

 II a.m each day. The winter corn only made slow progress. April 

 was better ; work proceeded with little interruption, and the weather 

 was dry but cold. The winter corn still made little headway, though 

 keeping healthy ; the barley, however, was suffering from the dry 

 cold. Potato setting was completed on the 21st, and mangolds drilled 

 on the 22nd. May began with fine weather and drying winds, but 

 there was bitterly cold rain in the middle of the month, 1.4 inches 

 falling on the 13th. The last fortnight was dry, though the wind was 

 north and the nights were cold ; for the whole month the hours of 

 sunshine were 236.9, against an average of 199.6, but the mean tempera- 

 ture was no higher than the average. The winter corn and the barley 

 looked fairly well, but the grass after a good start was checked by the 

 dry, cold winds, as also were the roots. The drought continued almost 

 throughout June ; the total rainfall for the whole month excluding the 

 last day was only J inch ; on the 30th, however, heavy rain came, and 

 over 1.2 inches fell. There was an unusual amount of sunshine, 

 242 hours as compared with an average of 198, but the wind being 

 often north and east the nights were cold, and the mean temperature 

 was no higher than usual. All crops except wheat suffered from the 

 drought badly ; barley turned yellow at the bottom, winter oats made 

 very little straw, grass was short, and the mangolds grew very slowly 

 and irregularly, especially on the plots where no farmyard manure had 

 been applied ; indeed, one of the most striking demonstrations of the 

 season was the enormous difference between the mangolds grown on 

 land receiving farmyard manure, and those that had had artificials 

 only. The weather in July was broken ; commonly, the mornings 

 were fair and the afternoons dull or wet. The corn became beaten 

 down and although much of it picked up again the grain did not 

 become plump, in the persistent absence of sunshine. The total 

 rainfall was 4.4 inches, and the hours of sunshine 188.7 ; the average 

 values being 2.5 and 217.9 respectively. Potatoes developed a good 



