1915.] BAILIWICK RAINFALL. 227 



perature. Very sudden and big changes from warm to cold 

 and vice versa all through the period." The biggest change 

 of all occurred in the last week when after rising to a mean of 

 62*6 deg. on the 26th, temperature dropped to 48*3 deg. 

 on the 28th. In the two days the mean thus fell no less than 

 14*3 deg., and from being 9*7 deg. above the normal on the 

 26th was 5*9 deg. below on the 28th. The fluctuations in 

 June were not nearly so pronounced as in May and in the 

 latter half temperature steadied considerably. 



In rainfall May was in no way deficient up to the 21st, 

 after which date none fell at any of the three stations, and we 

 began the driest spell of the year. Taking the islands collect 

 ively this dry interval may be considered as having begun on 

 May 21st and ended on June 19th. It was broken into in the 

 first week of June by the inappreciable amounts of 0*13 in. at 

 Guernsey (Les Blanches;, 0*07 in. at Sark and 0*04 in. at 

 Alderney and it included the only absolute drought recorded 

 in 1915, particulars of which are given at the end of this 

 paper. In this latter, however, Sark was not privileged to 

 participate ! 



At the end of April and the beginning of May some very 

 foggy weather was experienced. In the Evening Press of 

 May 1 st the following paragraph appeared : — 



" The Platte Fougere fog signal [first used in 1909] ceased 

 sounding at 7.35 this morning, having run continuously for 37 

 hours. This is the longest non-stop run on record." 



The same issue of the Evening Press also contained the 

 following : — 



" The South- Western steamer which left here on Thursday 

 morning [April 29th] for Jersey had a most unenviable experience. 

 She did not reach Jersey until j ust before 6 o'clock last evening 

 [Friday] having been all night and all yesterday in the thick fog 

 which enveloped the islands." 



It was on Friday, April 30th, also, that the Russian 

 steamer Trio struck a reef near the Hanois Lighthouse in the 

 dense fog. Fortunately the boat sustained no serious damage 

 and the following afternoon was safely towed from her perilous 

 position by local pilots with pilot launches, and brought into 

 St. Peter-Port harbour. 



The longest day of the year was sunless. In the thirty- 

 two years, 1884-1915, one other sunless June 21st only is noted 

 in the Les Blanches records. This was in 1906. The longest 

 day of 1915 was also very wet ; for twenty-two years at least 

 nothing like so much rain had fallen on this day at Les 

 Blanches, where the amount totalled 0*53 in. 



