468 Rainfall in England. [Oct., 



3200 feet. Westmoreland had five gauges more than 1000 feet 

 High ; and though Carnarvon had none exceeding 850 feet in height, 

 the returns from every gauge in the county were in every respect 

 complete, as they contained full information as to height above the 

 sea and the ground, the total annual rainfall, the number of wet 

 days, and therefore of the average wet-day rate of rain. 



The stations varied in height from the sea-level, at Hull, to 

 3200 feet above it, at Scafell Pike in Cumberland. The least 

 county average height was 53 feet, in Cambridgeshire ; the greatest 

 was 715 feet, in Eadnorshire ; whilst that for the entire kingdom 

 was 297 feet. This general average was surpassed in twenty-five 

 counties, but not reached in the remaining twenty-seven. 



The tops of the gauges were by no means at one uniform height 

 above the ground on which they stood. In several cases they were 

 level with the surface, whilst one at Cockermouth was 100 feet 

 above it. Taking the counties as separate wholes, the least average 

 height was 13 inches in Leicestershire, and the greatest 8 feet 

 7 inches in Cambridgeshire ; while the mean height for the entire 

 country was 2 feet 9 inches. This general average was exceeded in 

 twenty-four counties, but not reached in twenty-six. 



During the four years ending with December 31st, 1869, the 

 least annual rainfall at any station was 7 ' 84 inches — the receipts in 

 1869 of a gauge at Sheerness, the top of which was 70 feet above 

 the ground and 79 feet above the sea; whilst the greatest was 

 207 ' 49 inches, received in the same year, in a gauge 6 inches 

 above the ground, and 1077 feet above the sea, at the Stye in 

 Cumberland. During the four-year period just named the average 

 annual rainfall in the different counties as separate wholes varied 

 from 68*91 inches in Cumberland to 22*55 inches in Bedford- 

 shire; the average for the entire kingdom being 35*37 inches. 

 The three numbers were as 195 : 63 : 100. The general average 

 was exceeded in eighteen counties but not reached in thirty-four ; 

 the former, or " wet " counties, being to the latter, or " dry " ones, 

 as 1 : 2 nearly. 



According to the Eegistrar-Greneral, England and Wales con- 

 tain 37,324,915 statute acres; hence, with an average rainfall of 

 35*37 inches, they every year receive 4,792,261,544,086 cubic feet 

 of rain; that is, a quantity sufficient to fill a canal having an 

 uniform breadth and depth equal to those of the Thames at low 

 water at London Bridge (700 x 12*5 feet), and a length of 

 103,721 miles, or more than four times the circumference of the 

 earth. Taking the weight of a cubic foot of water at 1000 oz. av., 

 England and Wales annually receive 133,712,677,011 tons of rain. 

 Were the entire rainfall of the year converted into a hailstorm it 

 would be a globe having a diameter of 4730 feet = * 9 miles. 



The eighteen " wet " counties are, in descending order, Cumber- 



