CLIMATE. '353 



ments, I will endeavour to convey to the mental eye of my readers 

 a general idea of the most striking atmospheric phenomenon in 

 connection with the rainfall of these regions. I refer to the oncom- 

 ing of the hlack squall. 



A clear and serene sky at first gives no token of the sudden 

 change that is to quickly follow ; but the stillness of the air and its 

 increased dryness, together with the consequent greater searching 

 power of the sun's rays and the apparent nearness of surrounding 

 shores, give sufficient warning of the onset of the rain squall to those 

 acquainted with these seas. In a short time a low black arch 

 appears above the horizon, often in an unexpected quarter, and 

 rising rapidl}'- it sv/eeps majestically with great swiftness until it 

 appears to span the heavens. Onward it rushes, quicker far tlian 

 one imagines ; and now must the navigator beware. Under yonder 

 advancing arch a white line of foam marks its van. There, away 

 towards one of its corners, a waterspout rises in fantastic shape ; sea 

 and cloud meet in mid-air and become intermingled in the whirlinsT: 

 column. Lightning plays about beneath the arch and within its 

 black mass, illuming lor the moment its dark recesses and leavinof 

 it in the next far blacker than before. Peals of thunder herald on 

 the advance of the black squall. 



"Clear lower deck!" "Hands aloft!" "Shorten sail!" 

 Such were the M'ords, of command which v/ere almost daily 

 issued during our cruises in these islands. In a few brief 

 minutes, the ship is prepared to meet the squall. The tempera- 

 ture falls very perceptibly^, and the officer of the watch gives 

 a slight shiver as he dons his oilskins. The wind is freshen! nsf, 

 a few large drops of rain fall, the men crouch under tlie bul- 

 warks, and now the arch is overhead and we are in the thick of the 

 squall. Down comes a deluge of rain which in less than a minute 

 wets all who are unprotected through and through. The ship heels 

 well over, even with her scanty canvas. There is nothing niore to 

 be done. We listen to the whistling of the wind in the liiiging 

 and patiently wait until the weather clears. In half-an-hour the 

 arch has swept over us, and is pursuing its rapid course towards the 

 neighbouring mountain-peaks, perhaps of Bougainville or it may be 

 of Guadalcanar. The blue sky begins to show itself ; and in less 

 than an hour all is as before. With reefs shaken out and more sail 

 made, the ship proceeds, plunging cheerily on under a fresh breeze 

 as though glad to shake herself clear of the squall. The sea losing its 



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