262 Meteorolog-ical Olservations 



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hail during the winter, which is much less than usual in Vermont; 

 and we had no sleighing till the first of February, and it went off 

 about the first of March. The quantity of water which fell in rain, 

 hail, and snow, was 58.5 inches, which was 22.4 inches more than 

 fell during the twelve months preceding. — Vegetation was unusually 

 forward the last spring, and fruit trees were in full blossom about the 

 first of May. But afterw^ards, within that month, we had eleven se- 

 vere frosts, which destroyed all the fruit in the vallies, and on the 

 low grounds throughout this part of the country. But the summer 

 months were favorable for vegetation, and most of the crops were 

 abundant. 



On examiniiig iny meteorological journal, which I have kept for 

 many years, I find that the occurrence of the aurora borealis has 

 varied from ten to twenty eight nights, when I have noticed it in dif- 

 ferent years ; and that for ten years, previous to the last, the aver- 

 age number of evenings when it has been seen, is eighteen, annu- 

 ally. But within the last twelve months the aurora has been visible 

 on fifty six nights, which is twice the number of any former year of 

 which 1 have any record. During the year past, it has exhibited 

 many interesting appearances, two of which I shall briefly notice. 

 The- first occurred on the evening of the 14th of July. — The after- 

 noon of -that day was showery, with lightning and thunder ; but the 

 evening was clear, except a black cloud low down in the nortji. 

 The thermometer stood at 62°, and w^e had light breezes from the 

 west. As soon as the day light closed, the aurora borealis appeared 

 above the dark cloud in the north — and immediately it shot up in 

 streams of diverging rays of hght, towards the zenith. These streams 

 of rays would accumulate and dissolve in rapid succession, and at 

 10 o'clock the onrthern part of the heavens was brilliantly illumina- 

 ted. At half pa&t ten an arch of yellowish white light appeared in 

 the north about 30° above the horizon, which moved towards the 

 south, with a gradual and equal motion, absorbing in its course all 

 those streams of diverging rays before mentioned. At half past 

 eleven the arch passed the zenith exhibiting a broad and luminous 

 band in the heavens, which extended to the horizon on the east and 

 west, and was studded with stars, which were visible through it. After 

 passing the zenith a few degrees, the arch broke up into Columns, 

 which gradually disappeared as they passed off to the south. This 

 arch very much resembled that which occurred on the evening of the 

 28th of August, 1827, except that the light did not present the wa- 

 ving moiion wliich vra? then exlilbited. The dark cloud in the north, 



