1 87 1.] Meteorology, 283 



majority of the storms are north-easterly. From this relation Herr von Freeden 

 concludes that the storms have their origin not far from the Banks of New- 

 foundland, where the cold Arctic current meets the warm waters of the Gulf 

 Stream, and that they are not West India hurricanes crossing the Atlantic 

 from shore to shore. • 



The general winds of the North Atlantic for the ships' tracks are also 

 discussed, and the results given in the form of a chart. 



The author concludes by expressing a conviction, in which we thoroughly 

 agree with him, that the cause of meteorology will be more benefitted by the 

 careful investigation of observations taken over limited areas of the earth's 

 surface than by all the theoretical disquisitions on general atmospherical 

 circulation which are constantly emanating from the " depths of the self- 

 consciousness " of German Professors, and are invariably so attractive to the 

 non-scientific public. 



We have received a number of Annual Reports from the Continental Meteor- 

 ological Observatories. That from Saxony is for the year 1868. It contains 

 complete monthly means, &c, from 25 stations, with five-day means of 

 pressure and temperature. In addition there are a series of tables of earth 

 temperature at various depths, and also of the depth of water in wells at 

 Dresden, Leipzig, and Zwickau, and of the levels of the Elbe and Moldau, and 

 the other rivers of Saxony. Professor Bruhses has also brought out the 

 Report of his own Observatory at Leipzig for the year 1869. In Wurtemburg 

 Dr. Schoder has printed a brief paper on the meteorological conditions of that 

 kingdom, as determined by several years' observations, taken at 22 stations 

 in connection with the Statistical Bureau. His Report for 1869 contains full 

 tables for all the stations for the year, and a general notice of the special 

 phenomena of the several months. 



The fifth volume of the " Jahrbuch of the Central Austalt in Vienna," 

 contains the usual tables of mean results, but instead of the daily deviations of 

 the instrumental readings from their mean values, Dr. Jelinck has reprinted 

 the daily telegraphic reports from 15 stations. 



We are glad to learn that a New Meteorological Institute has been established 

 in Hungary. Its head-quarters are at Pesth, under the directorship of Dr. G. 

 Schenzl. It commenced work at the beginning of the present year. 



Dr. A. von Dettingen has brought out the Third Report of the Observatory 

 of Dorpat. It does not contain much that is new, excepting a method of 

 traversing ordinary observations of wind as to direction and force. A dial is 

 fitted to the indicator of the vane ; and the different quadrants of the circle are 

 divided so as to show the north (or south) and the east (or west) components at a 

 glance. It is announced that the form of the Report will be altered in future, 

 as Dorpat is to be the central observatory of one of the Departmental Meteor- 

 ological Organisations of the empire, on the plan sketched out by Dr. Wild, 

 (Quart. Journ. Science, vol. vii., p. 415). 



' Dr. Jelinck has published a short paper in the " Proceedings of the Vienna 

 Academy," " On the Annual Distribution of Thunderstorms in the Austrian 

 Empire." He only deals with the days on which electrical phenomena were 

 recorded, and not with the individual storms. He finds that the storms are almost 

 exclusively summer storms, excepting at the Adriatic stations, such as Trieste 

 and Lesina, where, however, the winter storms form only a small percentage 

 of the whole. This result shows the marked contrast which exists, as regards 

 thunderstorms, between the conditions of Central and Southern Europe, and 

 those of North Scotland, as stated by Mr. Buchan in his paper ("Journal of 

 the Scottish Meteorological Society," vol. ii., p. 344). 



Another paper, by Dr. Jelinck, in the same journal is on " The Annual Range 

 of Temperature at Trieste, Klagenfurt, and Arvavakalja. 



We have nine numbers of the " Journal of the Austrian Meteorological 

 Society" to notice, but they do not contain many papers of much importance. 



Dr. Hann gives us two more papers on the climate of South America, in 

 continuation of that noticed in No. 29. The first is on the " Southern Stations 



