342 PROFESSOR FORBES ON THE CLIMATE OF EDINBURGH. 
46. The average rain-fall at Edinburgh is therefore exactly 25 inches, ranging 
from 36°60 in 1795 to 15:27 in 1826. The order of the seasons from Wet to Dry 
is shown in the following Table for the years which are complete :— 
TABLE VIII.—THE SEASONS ARRANGED FROM WET TO Dry. 

1795 8.| 1823 || 15.) 1822 || 22.| 1843 || 29.| 1800 || 36.| 1842 
1846 || 12.| 1845 || 19.) 1824 || 26.) 1798 || 88.| 1833 || ... ee inclusive. 
1838 || 13.| 1799 || 20.| 1804 |} 27.) 1849 | 34.] 1801 : 
1848 || 14./ 1841 | 21.| 1831 |} 28.| 1825 |, 35.) 1796 
| i 
He 
2. | 1830 9.) 1829 |) 16.) 1840 |} 23.) 1839 || 30.| 1802 || 37.) 1803 The years are from 
3. | 1836 || 10.| 1797 || 17.| 1828 || 24.) 1832 || 31.| 1834 || 38.| 1826 1795-1804, and 
4, | 1827 || 11.| 1837 || 18.| 1835 || 25.| 1847 || 32., 1844 || ... Bee from 1822-1849 
5. 
6. 
7. 

















47. The means of the columns of Table VII. show the following averages of 
rain-fall according to the season :— 
WINTER. | SPRING. SUMMER. AUTUMN. 
Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. 
Dec. v77| are or | Mar. bo 4:58, or | June, zea 7°82, or | Sept. zich 6°99, or 

Jan. 1:77; 21-8per | April, 1:38} 18:4 per | July, 2°89 > 31-6 per | Oct. 2°58> 28:2 per 
Feb. 1°71) cent. May, 1°69) cent. Aug. 2°83) cent. | Nov. 2°15) cent.* 
48. It thus appears that at Edinburgh spring is decidedly the driest, and 
summer decidedly the wettest, quarter of the year. If we project the monthly 
results, we obtain a pretty regular curve, showing a minimum about the middle 
of April, and a maximum about the end of July, but October has a slight maxi- 
mum of its own. Of individual rainfalls, Mr Avie noted, on the 18th November 
1795, 2°89 inches within 24 hours; on the 30th July 1797, 2-63 inches; and on 
the 18th August 1797, 2°56 inches, nearly the whole of which fell within 6 hours 
from 2 to 8 P.M. 
Sect. 5. General Remarks on the Succession of the Seasons for the period 1796-1850 
and their Extremes. 
49. The following Table contains a concise view of the succession of the 
seasons from 1795 to 1850. It is difficult to trace any periodic recurrence of 
good and bad seasons, although it is very plain that they happen for the most part 
in groups of usually from seven to ten or twelve years’ duration.t This is well 
seen by the third column of Table IX., showing the annual deviations of the 
* The sum total at all seasons is 24:79 inches, which is slightly below the average of 38 complete 
years given above. This arises from the partial observations of 1805 and 1850 (which are below 
the average) being included in the monthly means. 
+ There is a slight appearance (from Table IX. column 2) of alternate ten-year periods below 
and above the mean, commencing in 1793 or 1794, and terminating in 1852 or 1853,— 
The maxima would be 1809, 1829, 1849. 
The minima would be 1799, 1819, 1839. 
va a | 
