396 PROFESSOR C. MTCHIE SMITH ON OBSERVATIONS ON 



wind was westerly, and after the day had so far advanced that the ground had 

 begun to grow hot. This westerly wind is a hot land-wind, and on a previous 

 occasion I obtained negative readings during its prevalence (Proc. Roy. Soc. Edin., 

 vol. ix. p. 615), but then there were local showers a few hours afterwards. 

 Thinking at the time that this was probably a similar case, I wrote a note to 

 the local papers on the 6th, asking particulars of the weather within a radius of 

 100 miles of Madras, especially with reference to rain, thunder, and lightning, 

 and wind direction between the 1st and 6th of the month. In reply to this I 

 got information from various stations which was of considerable interest, but 

 apparently no rain fell within 100 miles of Madras up to the 6th, but on that 

 day there were a few showers in and around Madras (0*03 inches at Madras 

 Observatory). On the same day there was a storm at Tindivanum, about 

 75 miles south of Madras, which is thus described by a correspondent: — "At 

 about 3 p.m. on the 6th a severe storm passed over this place, direction west by 

 a little south to east by a little north. Wind preceded rain by a quarter of an 

 hour, and blew steadily (not in gusts) for an hour ; velocity not known, but must 



have been very great Rain fell in torrents from 3.15 to 3.45, and from 



this time till 6 p.m. it continued to drizzle. There was only one clap of thunder, 

 which lasted some two or three minutes, and seemed to roll on eastward ; it 



took place about 3.30. This seemed to break the violence of the storm " 



Of this storm, which seems to have been very violent and local, I received 

 another account from a gentleman who passed through it in the train, and who 

 stated that the storm was such as he had seldom, if ever, experienced before. 



From Canajore in Mysore I received the following : — " Here, 6 miles 



from the Western Ghauts, altitude 3100 feet, the weather during the first week 

 of this month was abnormally wet. The average rainfall for September is 

 about 12 inches, but between the 1st and the 9th I gauged 18 04 inches, the 

 aggregate on the 6th, 7th, and 8th being 1085 inches. No thunder." From 

 the Koondahs, near Coonoor on the Nilgiris, another correspondent reports 

 that he was awakened about 4 a.m. on the 9th by a terrific gale, which lasted 

 for only about half an hour, and passed off' as suddenly as it began. The 

 reports show an abnormal state of the atmosphere, which tended to give rise to 

 local disturbances. This abnormal condition is also shown in a report from 

 Kodaikanal, on the Pulney Hills, kindly sent me by Mr Levinge, who has kept 

 a rainfall register since 1873. He writes — "There was the same peculiar 

 colour of the sun at rising and setting here which was noticed in other places, 

 and on the same dates as recorded in the newspapers. The atmosphere here 

 all the time was very hazy. The only other remarkable events were that avc 

 had frosts in the beginning of September, which I never observed before at 

 that time of the year. The rainfall for September was also the lowest I have 

 any record of; it was as follows :— 1st to 13th, none; 14th, 040; 15th, 1 35. 



