OF THE LAST TWENTY-NINE WINTERS. 35 



SO far as low temperature is concerned^ is the pivotal 

 month of the winter,, and March has a mean temperature 

 slightly below that of November. The difference is so 

 smallj only about o°"j Fahr., that in comparing the mean 

 temperature of winters, the mean temperature of these two 

 months may be practically neglected. The mean tempe- 

 ratures deduced from my own observations extend over 

 only 17 or i8 years; but the late G. V. Vernon^ Esq., 

 F.R.A.S., was kind enough to furnish me with the weekly 

 temperatures he had deduced from the year 1850 onwards 

 till 1 861, when I began to make my own observations and 

 deductions. That the mean temperatures here presented 

 may have a common basis, I have calculated them upon 

 the weekly mean temperatures of the last 29 years, which, 

 of course, include those of the late Mr. Vernon. 



The results are as follows for the winters extending 

 from the first week of December in one year to the last 

 completed week in February of the year following : — 



Winter of Mean temperature. Winter of Mean temperature. 



o o 



1850-1 40'3. 1865-6 41-9 



1851-2 39'8 1866-7 39-9 



1852-3 39*9 1867-8 40-0 



1853-4 37'3 1868-9 43-6 



1854-5 35-1 1869-70 37-1 



1855-6 37-3 1870-1 35-6 



1856-7 37-9 1871-2 40-3 



1857-8 39*4 1872-3 39-2 



1858-9 4i'o 1873-4 40-6 



1859-60 35-4 1874-5 38-6 



1860-1 36-4 1875-6 38-8 



1861-2 39-3 1876-7 42-3 



1862-3 4i"9 1877-8 396 



1863-4 37-9 1878-9 31-4 



1864-5 36-6 



From the above table of winter mean temperatures it 



d3 



