WEATHER. 



feries of years, -whence, it is pofTiblc, we might be enabled 

 to afcertain and determine the direftions, breadths, and 

 bounds of the winds, as well as other matters, and the 

 nature of the weather they bring along with them ; with the 

 corrcfpondence there may be between the weather of differ- 

 ent places, in divers parts of the earth, and the difference 

 between one fort and another at the fame place ; and thus, 

 in time, learn to judge of, and foretell many great changes 

 and emergencies ; fuch as extraordinary heats, droughts, 

 rains, fro lis, fnows, and fome others. But hitherto very 

 few, and only partial accounts in relation to the weather, 

 have been, for the moft part, kept. The general conclufions 

 that have been drawn from the experiments that have been 

 made, and the experience had upon this fubjeA, are, that 

 barometers generally rife and fall together, even at very 

 diftant places, and a confequent conformity and fimilarity of 

 weather ; and that this is the more uniformly fo, as might be 

 expeAed, as the places are the nearer together. That the 

 variations of thefe inftruments, too, are the greater, as the 

 places are nearer to the pole ; thu% for inftance, the quick- 

 filver in them at London, has a greater range by two or 

 three lines than at Paris, and at that place a greater than 

 at Zurich ; and that at fome places near the equator, there 

 is fcarcely any variation at all ; that the rain in Switzerland 

 and Italy is much greater in quantity, taking it for the 

 whole year, than in the county of Effex, though the rains 

 are yet more frequent, or there are more rainy days in that 

 county, than in either of the other places ; that cold con- 

 tributes greatly to rain, and this apparently by condenfing 

 the fufpended vapours, and thereby making them defcend ; 

 thus, very cold months, or feafons, are very commonly 

 followed immediately by very rainy ones, and cold fum- 

 mers are always wet ones ; that high ridges of country, 

 or mountains, fuch as the Alps and others, and tlie 

 fnows with which they are covered, not only affeft the 

 neighbouring places, but even diftant countries, as thefe 

 often partake of their effefts ; and the weather is moftly 

 rainy in the vicinities of them, both in this and other 

 countries. 



The prognoftics of the weather that are formed from 

 other circumftances and obfervations arc, that a thick dark 

 Iky failing for fome time, without either fun or rain, always 

 becomes fair firft and then foul ; that is, it changes to a fair 

 clear flcy before it turns to rain. The reafon is thought to 

 be obvioufly this : the atmofphere is replete with vapours, 

 which though fuflicient to refteft and intercept t!ie fun's rays 

 from us, yet want denfity to defcend, and while thefe vapours 

 continue in the fame ftatc, the weather will do lo too : ac- 

 cordingly fuch weather is commonly attended with moderate 

 warmth, and with little or no wind to difturb tlie vapours, 

 but having a heavy atmofphere to fuftain them ; the baro- 

 meter being commonly high : but when the cold approaches, 

 and by condenfing the vapours, drives tliem into clouds, or 

 drops, the way is made for the fun-beams to difplay them- 

 felves ; until the fame vapour, by farther condenfation, be 

 formed into rain, and fall down in drops. And that a 

 change in the warmth of the weather is often followed by a 

 change in the wind. Thus, the northerly and foutherly 

 winds, though commonly accounted the caufes of cold and 

 warm weather, are in reality the effeSs of the cold or warmth 

 of the atmofphere ; of which Dr. Derham aflures us he has 

 had fo many confirmations, that he makes no doubt of the 

 faft. Thus, it is common to obferve a warm foutherly 

 wind, fuddenly changed to the north, by the fall of fnow or 

 hail ; or to fee the wind in a cold frolty morning north, 

 when the fun has well warmed the air, wheel towards the 



6 



fouth, and again turn northerly or eallerly in the cold of the 

 evening. 



From the rules laid down by the fhepherd of Banbury, 

 many interefting and ufeful deduftions may be made in re- 

 gard to the weather : it may be concluded, that when the 

 fun rifes red and fiery, there will be wind and rain ; but that 

 when it rifes cloudy, and the clouds foon difappear or leffeii, 

 there will certainly be fair weather ; and that when the even- 

 ing is red and the morning grey, a fine day may moftly be 

 predidled. 



That when there are fmaU and round clouds, of a dapple 

 grey colour, with a north wind, it may be determined, tliat 

 there will be fair weather for two or three days ; but that 

 large clouds hke rocks are a fign of great ftiowers. And 

 that when fmall clouds increafe, it is an indication that there 

 will be much rain ; but that if the large clouds are feen to 

 lelfen, there will be fair weather. In fummer or harveft, 

 it may alfo be confidered, when the wind has been fouth two 

 or three days and it grows very hot, and clouds are feen to 

 rife with great white tops hke towers, as if one were on the 

 top of another, being joined together with black on the 

 lower fide, a fign that there will be thunder and rain 

 fuddenly. And that when two fuch clouds rife, one on 

 each hand, it is high time to make hafte to (helter. 



Tliat when a cloud is feen to rife againft the wind, or the 

 fide wind, it is a fure fign that when the cloud comes up near 

 you, the wind will blow the way in which the cloud came. 

 It is the fame, too, with the motion of a clear place in the 

 flcy, when all the parts of it are thick except one edge. 

 That, at all times, when the clouds look black in the weft, 

 it is fure to rain ; or if raining, it is fure to continue, what- 

 ever quarter the wind may be in : and that, on the contrary, 

 if it (hould break in the weft, it is fure to be fair. That 

 fair weather for a week, with a fouth wind, is likely to pro- 

 duce a great drought. 



That the wind ufually turns from north to fouth quietly, 

 but comes back to north llrong and with rain. That fudden 

 rains never laft long ; but that when the air grows thick by 

 degrees, and the fun, or moon and ftars, fhine dimmer and 

 dimmer, it is likely to rain for lome time. 



That when it begins to rain from the fouth with a high 

 wind for two or three hours, and then the wind falls but the 

 rain continues, it is likely to rain twelve hours or more; 

 and that it generally rains until a flrong north wind clears 

 the air. But that when it begins to rain an hour or two 

 before fun rifing, it is likely to be fair before noon, and to 

 continue fo that day ; but that if the rain begin an hour or 

 two after fun rifing, it is hkely to rain all that day, unlefs 

 the rainbow be feen before it rains. 



That when mifts rife in low ground and foon difappear, it 

 is a fign that there will be fair weather ; but that when they 

 rife to the hill tops, there will be rain in a day or two. 

 That a general mi ft before the fun rifes, when near the time 

 of full moon, is a fign of fair weather. That when there 

 are mifts in the new moon, there will be rain in the old ; and 

 if there are mifts in the old moon, there will be rain in the 

 new. That in regard to the feafons, as fpring and fummer, 

 when the lail eighteen days of the month of February and 

 the firft ten days of the following month are for the moft 

 part rainy, the fpring and fummer may be concluded likely 

 to be fo too. It is faid alfo, that a great drought has 

 never been known by the writer, but wliich began at that 

 time. In refpeft to the winter, when tfie end of Oftober 

 and the beginning of the following month are, for the moft 

 part, warm and rainy, the two beginning months of the new 

 year are likely to be frofty and cold, except after a very 



dry 



