Ob KEPOKTS ON THE Sl'ATE 01'' SCIKXCE. 



climiitological station thus established was under the trusteeship of the 

 Hertfordshire (Jounty Council, he hoped that it would be permanent. 



Dr. J. R. Ashworth (Eochdale Literary and Scientific Society), after 

 remarking on his attempts to get a sunshine-recorder established in 

 Rochdale, suggest(;d that meteorological worlc might be promoted by 

 carrying out a meteorological sui'vey of the British Isles. A tirst step 

 would be to ask each local Society to diaw up a schedule stating what 

 observations were being taken in its own area, the kind of instruments 

 in use, when and how tliey were verified, the duration of the record, and 

 where the results were published. Such an account might be rendered to 

 Dr. Mill or to the headquarters of the British Association. The next 

 step would be for the central authority to draw attention to those 

 districts where I'ecords were nonexistent or seanty, and to urge local 

 Societies to use their influence to make good the deficiencies. It would at 

 least be useful to have a comprehensive summary of the meteorological 

 work carried out in each locality throughout the country. 



Mr. N. H. Martin (Northumberland, Durham, and Newcastle-upon- 

 Tyne NatuiJil History Society) agreed with Dr. Mill tliat it would be well 

 if meteorological observations were seriously undertaken, Avith properly 

 equipped stations, by local scientific societies, as in this way there would 

 be a greater probability that the records would be continuous over a 

 period of years long enough to make them valuable. The speaker did 

 not think it was the expense of fitting i^p a station of the second order 

 which deterred private individuals from the work, so much as the tie it 

 was to read tlie instruments and take the records witli that punctuality 

 which alone would give them value. 



Mr. Walter Rosenhain (Birmingham and Midland Institute Scientific 

 Society) asked how frequently it was required to read rain-gauges for the 

 purpose of Dv. Mill's rainfall survey. Would one reading in twenty-four 

 hours be sufficient ? 



Mr. E. Kitto (Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society), referring to a 

 former speaker's remarks as to the difficulty sometimes of procuring the 

 services of competent observers, said that he attaciied first importance to 

 reliable observers ; next to trustworthy instruments authoritatively veri- 

 fied, and then the selection of suitable sites for the various instruments, 

 so that the observations might be taken under satisfactory conditions ; 

 and last, but not least, to punctuality in making the observations ; this was 

 extremely important if the records taken by a great number of observers 

 were to be comparable with one another or of service for scientific 

 purposes. 



Dr. Mill briefly replied to tlie discussion. In answer to Mr. Ferguson 

 he said that while at least thirty years was necessary in this country to 

 obtain a trustworthy average of annual rainfall, a much shorter 

 period sufficed for the 1p.ss variable climate of the tropics. As regards 

 Dr. Ashworth's suggestion, he thought that the lists of general meteoro- 

 logical stations published annually by the INleteorological Office, the two 

 Meteorological Societies, and in ' British Rainfall,' fairly covered the 

 ground ; but it would certainly be an advantage to have these reduced to 

 a single list, indicating the nature of the work done at each station. In 

 reply to Mi\ Rosenhain, one reading in twenty-four hours, at 9 a.m., was 

 all that was asked for in rainfall observations, and in certain circumstances 

 gauges read even once a week or once a month were not without value. 



