Meteorological Observations. 431 



gone, and in about a minute the skin was drawn off the lips — the 

 toad had eaten its own skin, and there it stood with its new covering 

 as bright as if it had been fresh varnished. I endeavoured to touch 

 it, to feel if it was clammy, but the creature gave a vigorous jump, 

 and the soil adhered to its legs. I looked at it in an hour afterwards ; 

 it had then begun to resume its dingy brown colour. The time it 

 took to get off its head-dress was only a few minutes. It appeared to 

 me that each time its jaw opened it drew the skin forward, while it 

 distended the body on the side to be uncovered. "W. Turner. — 

 Gardeners' Chronicle, Mar. 1850. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS FOR MARCH 1850. 



Chiswick. — March 1. Hazy: very fine: overcast. 2. Densely overcast. 3. 

 Cloudy. 4. Cloudy: clear and frosty at night. 5. Frosty: fine: cloudy. 

 6,7. Foggy : fine : clear. 8. Hazy. 9. Slight fog : fine : clear. 10. Very fine. 

 11. Clear and fine: frosty. 12. Frosty: very fine : clear. 13. Frosty, with 

 slightfog: very fine. 14. Overcast. 15. Overcast: clear, with sharp frost at night. 



16. Frosty : overcast : clear. 17. Frosty: cloudy: sunshine occasionally : clear and 

 frosty. 18. Frosty and fine. 19,20. Cloudy. 21. Cloudy and cold : clear and 

 frosty. 22. Hoar-frost : cloudy. 23. Heavy clouds : sleet-showers. 24. Slight 

 fall of snow-flakes : severe frost at night. 25. Clear and frosty : cloudy : clear : 

 frosty. 26. Overcast. 27. Foggy : slight haze : frosty. 28. Slight haze : bright 

 sun with dry cold air: clear and frosty. 29. Foggy: cloudy: clear. 30, 31. 

 Overcast. 



Mean temperature of the month 37 0, 71 



Mean temperature of March 1849 41 '56 



Mean temperature of March for the last twenty-three years 42 *81 



Average amount of rain in March 1*36 inch. 



Boston. — March 1,2. Cloudy. 3. Fine : rain p.m. 4. Cloudy. 5 — 7. Fine. 



8,9. Cloudy. 10. Fine. 11. Cloudy. 12,13. Fine. 14,15. Cloudy. 16. 



Cloudy : rain a.m. 17,18. Fine. 19. Cloudy: rain a.m. 20. Cloudy. 21. 



Fine. 22. Cloudy. 23. Fine: rain early a.m. 24. Cloudy : snow a.m. and p.m. 



25. Cloudy. 26,27. Fine. 28. Fine : rain a.m. 29,30. Fine. 31. Cloudy: 



rain a.m. 



Applegarth Manse, Dumfries- shire. — March 1. Fine: a shower early a.m. 2. 



Slight shower during night: thick p.m. 3. Rain heavy a.m. : cleared. 4. Frost: 



clear and fine. 5. Moist all day. 6. Mild and growing : moist. 7. Fine spring 



day. 8. Still finer: clear and warm. 9. Dull and moist: slight shower. 10. 



Clear and fine : slight shower. 1 1. Frost: clear and bright. 12. Frost : cloudy. 



13. Frost, not so severe. 14,15. Mild : cloudy : no frost. 16. East wind : dull. 



17. Dull : raw : cold : shower. 18. Dull and cloudy, but mild. 19. Dull a.m. : 

 cleared: rain p.m. 20. Very fine : slight drizzle. 21. Fine, though raw a.m. 

 22. Dry, but cloudy : stormy p.m. 23. Frost: snow: wind. 24. Hard frost : 

 snow : calm p.m. 25. Frost very hard : thermometer 21£°. 26. Frost slight : 

 heavy snow a.m. 27. Frost severe : snow again. 28. Frost still harder : clear. 

 29. Frost still. 30. Frost moderate : hail : rain p.m. 31. Rain: cloudy and 

 foggy p.m. 



Mean temperature of the month « 40°*3 



Mean temperature of March 1849 41 '8 



Mean temperature of March for the last twenty-eight years. 39 '6 



Average rain in March for twenty -three years 2'35 inches. 



Sandxvick Manse, Orkney. — March 1. Showers: drops. 2. Drizzle. 3. Cloudy: 

 showers. 4. Snow : cloudy. 5. Damp : rain. 6. Drizzle : cloudy. 7. Damp. 

 8. Fine: drizzle. 9. Cloudy: showers. 10. Sleet: aurora. 11. Bright: clear: 

 aurora. 12. Drizzle. 13. Damp: drizzle. 14. Drizzle: damp. 15. Bright: 

 damp. 16. Cloudy. 17. Drops : showers. 18. Hazy : cloudy. 19. Cloudy. 

 20. Bright : drops. 21. Cloudy: drops. 22. Showers: snow-showers. 23. 

 Hail-showers : snow-showers. 24. Snow-drift : snow-showers. 25. Snow- 

 showers : large halo. 26. Snow-showers. 27,28. Bright: snow-showers. 29. 

 Bright : clear, 30. Cloudy. 31. Drops : cloudy. 



