TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION A. 



653 



The monthly and annual means for each county and for the whole area at the 

 ninety-four stations are as follows : — 



The annual means at the 184 stations are — Northumberland (19 stations), 

 30-78 ins.; Durham (11 stations), 27-22 ins.; Cumberland (15 stations), 70-02 ins. • 

 Westmoreland, with Furness (10 stations), 57'90 ins. ; Lancashire, without Furness 

 (16 stations), 38-84 ins. ; Yorkshire (58 stations), 33-73 ins.; Cheshire (11 stations), 

 32-37 ins. ; Derby (10 stations), .36-79 ins. ; Nottingham (8 stations), 25-25 ins. ; 

 and Lincoln (26 stations), 24-46 ins.; the mean for the whole area bein<r 

 36-16 ins. " 



During the ten years 1881 to 1890 the rainfall in the North of England was 

 rather less than that for the twenty-five yeai-s ending 1890 and that for the thirty 

 years ending 1895. Forty stations (not less than two in any of the ten coimties 

 and nine in Yorkshire) give a mean for the ten years 1881-90 of 38-54 ins. • 

 for the twenty-five years 1866-90 of 39-80 ins. ; and for the thirty years 

 1866-95 of 39-56 ins., the excess in this latter period thus heino- 1-02 in. or 

 about 2f per cent, over the mean fall at the same stations for the ten years 

 1881-90. The true mean for the 184 stations for the thirty years would probably 

 be about 37 ins. 



The mean fall for the thirty years at the forty stations in five-yearly periods 

 was as follows : — For the first lustrum, 1866-70, 39-96 ins. ; for the second 

 1871-75, 40' 12 ins. ; for the third, 1876-80, 41-85 ins. ; for the fourth, 1881-85,' 

 41-19 ins. ; for the fifth, 1886-90, 35-89 ins. ; and for the sixth, 1891-95* 

 38-37 ins. ' 



The rainfall in these counties follows the general rule of increase from east to 

 west, except in the case of Cheshire, which has a smaller fall than either 

 Lancashire, Derbyshire, or Yorkshire. This is probably due to the higher land in 

 these counties. The rule is well exemplified in the Yorkshire Ridings, the mean 

 annual fall in the East Riding (13 stations) being 26-48 ins. ; in the North Riding 

 (19 stations), 34-98 ins. ; and in the West Riding (26 stations), 36'44 ins. There 

 is also a marked decrease in the rainfall from north to south. Dividing the 

 counties into three groups — North, Midland, and South — 55 stations for the northern 

 group, Northumberland, Durham, Cumberland, and Westmoreland, give an annual 

 mean of 45-70 ins. ; 74 stations for the middle group, Yorkshire and Lancashire 



