February 26, 1903J 



NA TURE 



595 



Under the able editorship of the present Meteor- 

 ological Reporter and Director-General of Indian 

 Observatories, Sir John Eliot, this new volume con- 

 tains all the available data up to, and including, the 

 year 1900, and it is to this volume that inquirers of 

 Indian rainfall statistics will now turn. Several 

 minor changes will be found to have been made in the 

 tables, such as zero (o) instead of (...) when no 

 rain had fallen during a month, the authorised ortho- 

 graphy, &c, but the most valuable addition is 

 undoubtedly the insertion of two extra columns for 

 each station giving the total rainfall for each mon- 

 soon. 



India, as most people know, receives its rain mainly 

 at two periods of the year, namely, during the 

 summer months when the south-west monsoon is 

 blowing, and during the winter months when the 

 north-east monsoon is blowing. In any investigations 

 on the variation of rainfall due to extra-terrestrial 

 origins or involving atmospheric circulation, it is of 

 the greatest importance to be able to treat the mon- 

 soon rainfalls separately. Again, some stations are 

 more favourably placed, geographically, to depend 

 chiefly for their yearly rainfall on one or other of the 

 monsoons, or both ; thus Bombay's rainfall is en- 

 tirely due to the south-west monsoon, while the wind 

 which gives Madras its rain is the north-east ; further 

 south, in southern India, several of the places are 

 more fortunate, and secure their rains from each 

 monsoon in turn, so that if one monsoon fails them, 

 they still have a chance of obtaining their rain from 

 the other. 



In dealing with such a large area of country as is 

 covered by the Indian Meteorological Department, it 

 was found desirable to adopt a grouping of the 

 months for each monsoon that would be general to 

 the whole of India, with the least detriment to some 

 individual areas. 



Thus the months finally settled upon were as 

 follows: — N.E. monsoon, December to April; S.W. 

 monsoon, May to November. The two columns, 

 therefore, that are inserted for the first time in this 

 volume show the total rainfall at stations during 

 the five months ending April 30 of the year in 

 question, and the total rainfall of the seven months 

 ending November 30 of that year. 



The fact that this volume contains no less than 

 709 pages and weighs 51b. 14J0Z. in its paper 

 cover, will give the reader some idea of the mass 

 of rainfall statistics it contains and of the labour 

 involved in bringing the information together. The 

 volume should serve as an admirable model for other 

 countries to adopt, and it would be to the advantage, 

 not only of Great Britain and her Colonies, but also 

 of many foreign countries in various parts of the 

 world, to coordinate their rainfall observations in a 

 similar manner, so that such records, which are well 

 worth making, are ready at the hand of any investiga- 

 tor who at the time may be working up the subject. 



William J. S. Lockyer. 



THE AFFORESTATION OF THE BLACK 

 COUNTRY. 



T N the spring of 1892, when marking trees for cutting 

 ■*■ in the Belgian Ardennes (Chateau de Mirwart), 

 I noticed that a portion of the wood, alongside a 

 meadow and a watercourse, had the irregular shape of 

 spoil heaps. On inquiry, I found that some 200 years 

 before iron-smelting had been carried on at the spot, 

 and that the heaps consisted of old slag and other 



NO. 1739, VOL. 67] 



debris, such as may be expected under a rudimentary 

 process of iron-smelting. The heaps were stocked with 

 oak and ash trees, some of them of considerable size 

 and vaiue, others of smaller dimensions. I marked 

 the large trees for sale, leaving all middle-sized and 

 smaller trees. The latter girthed up to 4 feet at 5 

 feet from the ground, while the trees marked for cut- 

 ting girthed 6 feet, and even more. I considered 

 this a very interesting case, but as I did, at that time, 

 not know the Black Country, it did not strike me 

 to utilise my experience for the benefit of the English 

 mining districts. 



Towards the end of the same year, Mr. VV. R. Fisher 

 visited me at Mirwart, and when he saw the above 

 mentioned case, it struck him to apply it to the Black 

 Country. He subsequently visited that locality and 

 urged its afforestation on more than one occasion. The 

 honour of having brought the subject prominently 

 before the public belongs to Mr. Fisher. 



I have just read an account of a meeting at Bir- 

 mingham, presided over by Sir Oliver Lodge, to in- 

 j augurate a society for promoting the afforestation of 

 the Black Country. As the result of the meeting, a 

 resolution was carried, a committee was formed, and 

 Mr. Herbert Stone was elected hon. secretary of " The 

 Black Country Tree-planting Society." 



The area in question is believed to be 14,000 acres, 

 covered with spoil and ash heaps, on which now some 

 grass grows ; it is grazed over by sheep. Sir Oliver 

 Lodge, quite correctly, brought the probable finan- 

 cial results of afforestation into the foreground, 

 while so'me of the other speakers referred to the im- 

 portance of a sylvan environment for moral, hygienic, 

 and aesthetic considerations, leaving the financial as- 

 pect to take care of itself. This I consider a mistake, 

 because, with the best intentions, humanitarian con- 

 siderations alone are not likely to achieve the object 

 in view; besides, they can very well be realised, along- 

 side of good financial results. 



The area in question belongs, I understand, to a 

 number of different proprietors, and this alone would 

 probably be a great hindrance to bringing the under- 

 taking to a successful issue. In my opinion, the ad- 

 joining municipalities, such as Birmingham, Dudley, 

 Bilston, Wolverhampton, Darlaston, Wednesbury, Old- 

 bury, &c, should put their heads together, devise a plan 

 of acquiring the land in question, which cannot be of 

 much value, and create a joint municipal forest 

 estate, to be managed by one man. This manager 

 might be made responsible to a joint committee, and 

 under its orders carry out the afforestation of the area 

 on a well-considered plan. In that case, aesthetic con- 

 siderations can receive full attention, while the woods 

 should be so laid out, as to species, &c, that a reason- 

 able return on the outlay may be expected. 



If the plan here sketched should prove to be im- 

 practicable, it would be quite worth while for the State 

 to acquire the land and plant it up. In any case, a 

 well-considered plan of action as regards the manner 

 of afforestation, the species to be planted, &c, is a 

 sine qua non of ultimate success, and the drawing up 

 of such a plan should be entrusted to an expert, who 

 is fully conversant with the management, and more 

 especially the financial management, of forest estates. 

 I lay stress on this, because I see it stated that syca- 

 more, ash, lime, beech and poplar should be planted. 

 There will, no doubt, be many places where these trees 

 can be introduced, but the bulk of the area should be 

 stocked with fast-growing conifers, the thinnings of 

 which will, at an early age, give large quantities of 

 pit timber, and thus secure favourable financial results. 



W. Schlich. 



