426 
The Winter of 1885-86. 
three to four inches over tlie greater part of England, and rather more in 
"Wales, the North of England, and in Scotland. During the early momiog 
of the 18th, the vrind, which was easterly, rapidly increased in force and blew 
a strong easterly gale nearly all day, the wind falling again in the south at 
night, but in other parts of the country it lasted till about midday on the 
19th. The gale was particularly severe on the east coast, but the number of 
wi'ecks and casualties all round our shores was very great ; reports from 
many seaports stating that it was the most severe gale that had been ex- 
perienced for tliirty years .... The gale was accompanied by a heavy and 
steady fall of snow over all the North of England, which lasted through the 
whole of the 18th, and continued, although rather lighter, tiU about noon on 
the 19th. The amount of snow deposited over the whole of the southern 
portion of the country was very great, and was so drifted by the fierce winds, 
that communication both bj^ road and rail was entirely disorganised .... 
To find anything like a parallel we must go back to 1836 or to 1814 ; and it 
would appear that in most parts of the country the depth in those years was 
greater, but that the drifts were not so great .... The loss of life in England 
and Wales, entirely due to the snow, was very great, and probably an estimate 
of 100 persons would be very near the truth." 
The loss of sheep in this snowstorm was enormous, and 
especially on the unsheltered hills and moors. Probably the 
numbers lost will never be known. It was under these circum- 
stances that the question referring to this disastrous snow-blast 
was included in mj queries. The replies to this question do 
not need to be given in detail. In only two cases — those of 
Mr. W. A. Darbishire, in Montgomeryshire, and Lord Arthur 
Cecil, in Peeblesshire — did this storm result in fresh shelter 
being provided, and to both of these cases reference is made 
elsewhere. As a rule, these replies run that no loss was sus- 
tained, and that no additional shelter was required. But in 
most of these cases, it is also stated — and I would refer the 
reader to the answers to Question No. 7 — that there is plenty of 
shelter already provided, either by stone fences, hedges, or 
plantations. The snowstorm was generally described as excep- 
tional, and so not to be expected in ordinary farming. Prof. 
Sheldon states that in his district, the storm was not so severe 
as were storms on the 28th of April and on the 12th and>13th of 
May in the present year, when not only sheep, but not a few 
cattle also, were lost. He, however, does not think any additional 
shelter is needed, or possible, beyond the stone fences common 
in the bleak Peak district in which he resides. There are one 
or two thoughtful correspondents who allude to the great need 
of more shelter, while Sir J. H. Thorold states that he has a 
snow-plough, which is sometimes used on the grass lands to enable 
the sheep to get at the grass. Mr. Henry Woods says that the 
storm referred to strengthened bis experience as to "the great 
advantage of protecting sheepfolds from cold winds, and giving 
in-Iamb ewes and other sheep as much shelter as possible." 
Mr. John Webb writes, that " shelter was absolutely necessary, 
