1884.] of the Bay of Bengal in 1883. 55 



of very limited extent, and hence did not affect the weather in the north- 

 west angle of the Bay. 



10. Storm of the 2nd to the 4th of December, which gave heavy 

 rain at a very unusual time of the year to Bengal. 



Two of these were remarkable for the length of time that elapsed 

 before they broke up after they had crossed the Bengal or Orissa coast, 

 and also for the very heavy rainfall and floods which accompanied their 

 existence on land. The first of these was the storm of June 13th to 

 20th which was formed in the immediate neighbourhood of the Balasore 

 coast. It drifted through Chutia Nagpur and South Beliar into North 

 Behar and gave excessively heavy rain to a narrow area in Behar 

 stretching from Gya to Motihari and Durbhunga. This storm was 

 of little importance at sea. 



The second storm of the series was similar in its general character. 

 It was generated near the Head of the Bay, crossed the N"orth Orissa 

 coast, and advanced over the Orissa Hills into the Central Provinces. 

 Instead of breaking up as do three out of four storms or cyclonic 

 circulations which pass from the Bay into the Central Provinces, it 

 acquired fresh energy and drew large supplies of vapour from the Bom- 

 bay monsoon current. It advanced across the head of the Peninsula 

 almost parallel to the valleys of the Nerbudda and Tapti. The heavy 

 rain accompanying it caused excessive floods in these two rivers which in- 

 flicted much damage on the town of Surat, and others in the lower 

 portion of the valleys of these two rivers. This cyclonic circulation 

 apparently broke up in the Arabian Sea in the immediate neighbourhood 

 of the Guzerat and Sind coasts. 



The meteorology of India for the year 1883 was remarkable in 

 several respects. One or two of the more important features had a direct 

 bearing on the number and character of the cyclones. 



During the cold weather months several storms of unusual character 

 and magnitude passed over Northern India and the Himalayas from west to 

 east. They gave excessive snowfall over the higher Himalayas and affec- 

 ted the weather certainly for many weeks and probably more or less per- 

 manently for the year. The accumulation of snow reduced temperature 

 for some time and gave a strong northerly element to the air motion 

 or wind circulation over Northern India. The south-west monsoon 

 set in about the normal period on the Burmah and Bengal coasts, but it 

 never obtained its usual hold in Northern India. The rains were irregular 

 in occurrence and distribution, and much below the average over the 

 whole of Northern India. The deficiency was quite as marked in North 

 Bengal as in North Behar or Rohilkhand or in the Western districts 

 of the Punjab. The monsoon was in ordinary language very weak, and 



