
KIDD’S OWN JOURNAL. 
been classified or arranged in several classes, 
according to the different shapes they ap- 
pear to us to take. All the varied forms 
which they assume are reduced to six or 
seven different kinds: which, with a little 
attention, we may readily learn to distinguish. 
‘These various kinds have received different 
names. 
The first kind is called a cirrus, or feathery 
cloud. Clouds of this description usually 
appear like a number of fine white threads, 
painted upon a clear blue sky, or like the 
feathers of a quill. They exhibit the utmost 
variety, yet always appear of a feathery, or 
thread-like form. They are the lightest of 
all the clouds, and are therefore generally 
seen very high inthesky. They are usually 
regarded as a sign of wind, and are frequently 
followed bya storm. No douvt most persons 
have noticed the long streamers which often 
stretch out from this kind of cloud; and have 
learned that when they point upwards, they 
are a sign of rain, and when downwards, a 
sign of fair weather. 
The second kind is called the cumulus, or 
cloud which appears in heaps, accumulated 
one upon another. These, in consequence 
of their dense character, are generally near 
the earth. Clouds of this kind often in- 
dicate fair weather. In this case they begin 
to form soon after sunrise, and continue to 
increase till the hottest part of the day. 
They then gradually diminish, and disappear 
entirely about sunset. Such clouds are 
sometimes exceedingly beautiful. As the 
mass gradually increases, and heap is added 
to heap, the edges become tipped with the 
most brilliant white. They grow up into 
mountains, whose tops seem clothed with 
the snows of ages, or hang down in festoons 
of rich drapery. No wonder the poet speaks 
of the surpassing beauty of “those hanging 
snow-white palaces,’ for certainly they 
almost seem to be creations of some fairy 
hand. 
Those who have often been in the country 
and-walked abroad, as the shades of even- 
ing were coming on, cannot fail to have 
noticed, on a calm evening, the rising of the 
gentle mist from the lower ground, and from 
the surface of the river or the lake. They 
have watched it as it seemed to rise out of 
the earth. They have seen it as the sun was 
setting, slowly stealing along, till it has 
spread over the entire country; and covered 
the fair landscape with its sober veil. It 
gradually becomes thicker, and more pro- 
perly a cloud, as midnight comes on. Fre- 
quently it lasts through the whole night ; 
rising, towards morning, higher in the air, 
when it is dispersed by the rising sun. This 
is the third kind of cloud. It is called the 
stratus, or cloud that is spread out into a 
widely-extended sheet. It is the lowest of 

261 
all the clouds, sinceit rests upon the surface 
of the earth or water. At sunrise it is fre- 
quently turned into the cumulus. It then 
may be seen gradually rismg in those heaps 
which are so well known to us, and which 
have so long been regarded as a sign of fair 
weather. In November, as the winter’s frosts 
are coming on, this kind of cloud is not 
changed into the cumulus. It hangs over 
the earth for some time after sunrise, and is 
well known as the mornmg fog, which passes 
away as the sun’s rays become more powerful. 
These are the three principal varieties of 
cloud.’ But, besides these, there are four 
other forms, which consist of different modi- 
fications of those already described. ‘There 
is, for instance, the cloud which gives a 
mottled or dappled appearance to the sky ; 
the kind of cloud we so often see in summer, 
during fine weather. ‘This is the cirro-cumu- 
lus. It partakes partly of the character of 
the cirrus, and partly of the cumulus. It is 
generally seen in small roundish patches, 
arranged in regular order. Frequently, too, 
it appears in distinct layers, at different 
heights in the sky; “the beauteous sem- 
blance of a flock at rest.” It is one of the 
most elegant forms of cloud. It is not only 
pleasing to the eye; it is pleasing also as 
a sure sign of fair and warm weather. It 
is usually formed from the cirrus, by the 
feathery threads of the latter becoming 
collected in small round masses, and taking 
a lower position in the sky. 
There is also the crro-stratus, which con 
sists of thin streaks of cloud lying regularly 
side by side, sometimes in a horizontal 
direction, sometimes slanting across the sky. 
They often call to mind the appearance of a 
vast shoal of fish, pursuing their course in 
the deep. Often, too, it exhibits a thick 
mass in the middle, passing off at the edges 
into horizontal streaks along the sky. This 
cloud is almost always followed by wind and 
rain. It forms a very beautiful sky, especially 
when mixed with the cirro-cumulus ; but itis 
one which we often regard with distrust, on 
account of the signs it bears. Very often 
the cirro-stratus and the cumulus become 
united ito one. They then form a large 
dense cloud, called cwmulo-stratus. This 
cloud seems to swell up into an enormous 
overhanging top or crown. It often puts on 
the appearance of mountain scenery, varied 
only by darker patches here and there. 
This is the thunder-cloud, and hence is of 
course the forerunner of a storm. 
None of the forms of cloud we have yet 
mentioned discharge rain upon the earth. 
Before they can do this, they must be changed 
into the nimbus, or rain-cloud. This is a 
cloud whose upper part presents the light 
feathery appearance of the cirrus, while the 
lower part is in the act of being condensed 

