in: 



236 /. D. Hague on the Chiano Islands of the Pacific Ocean. 



greater part of which was far from being worth the expense of 

 transportation. The repetition of this error was promptly 

 guarded against bj sending a chemist to the island, but it re- 

 quired a longer time for the reputation of the article in the mar- 

 ket to recover from the ill effects of such a mistake. 



Climate.— Hhe climate of these three islands is similar and 

 The trade winds are almost constant, and blo\^ 

 rfrom east by south to southeast, and, in the win- 

 ter, from east by north to northeast. From October to February, 

 inclusive, on Baker's, I did not observe a point of southing in 

 the wind, while during the summer months there are long periods 

 during which the wind is invariably from south of east. Calms 

 are rare, especially those of long duration. Westerly winds have 

 seldom been observed, except, occasionally, as light puff's on quiet, 

 calm days. On one or two occasions only, in the winter, at Ba- 

 ker's, have any westerly winds of much force been recorded. 



The sky is clear and cloudless. The temperature is exceed- 

 ingly even, ranging from 76° at sunrise to 88° Fahrenheit at the 

 hottest part of the day in the shade. In the sun at noon it 

 stands between 95° and 100°. 



Eain falls in light showers not infrequently. Heavy showers 

 are rare and rainy days are unknown in my experience there. 

 During four winter months at Baker's Island, from October 1, 

 1859, to February 15, 1860, rain fell twenty-three times, gener- 

 ally occurring in light showers or squalls, at intervals of a weei^ 

 or thereabouts, and a general coincidence between the times o 

 occurrence of these showers nnd the rhnncrpR of the moon trom 



; of these showers and the changes of the r 

 phase to phase has been observed, but this regularity is not so 

 great, neither at this or other seasons, but that weeks bare 

 passed without a drop of rain. i 



During these four months the least of these showers, measure 

 by conical rain gauge, amounted to y^i',^ of an inch on a leve > 

 and the greatest on December 19, 1859, was yVA of ^°® ? ' 

 From December 14, 1859, to December 20, 1859, inclusive, there 

 fell tVo of one inch. The total amount of the four months ram 

 was 1-840 inches, of which //« fell in December. . 



Although the amount of rain falling in the summer months is 

 much less than that which falls in winter, there are, nevertheless, 

 days in summer on which showers have fallen as heavy as anj 

 in the year. 



Rainfalls most frequently in the night and just before day- 

 break; sometimes by day, especially if the sky has long been 

 overcast, a rain cloud passes over the island, but I have otieu 

 observed the remarkable phenomenon of a rain squall approacQ^ 

 ing the island, and just before reaching it, separating into tw 

 parts, one of which passed by on the north, the other on tn« 

 south side, the cloud having been cleft by the column of heatea 

 air rising from the white coral sands. 



