( v ) 
34_° daily, and the average excess for the last five days of the year 
was 12J°. 
The most remarkable phenomena in this quarter were, the very 
small atmospheric pressure, the high temperature, and the extra- 
ordinary falls of rain in the month of December. 
The mean temperature of the air in December was 44 0, 1, and 
back to 1771 there have only been nine Decembers in which the 
temperature has been so high. 
The fall of rain in December was exceedingly anomalous. 
About London and its neighbourhood it amounted to nearly 6 
inches, and back to 1815 there has been no instance of so great 
a fall in December; the previous instances of monthly falls 
■equalling this amount nearly, were 7'0 inches in July 1828 ; 
6-0 inches in October 1841 ; 6-0 inches in November 1852 ; 
5-8 inches in June 1860 ; and 5 - 8 inches in July 1867. In the 
same period there was no instance of so large a fall in December 
as in the present year ; the nearest approaches to it were in the 
years 1821 and 1868, when the falls were 5*2 inches and 5*4 inches 
respectively. The total fall in November and December was 8*9 
inches, and back to 1815 there is but one instance of so large a fall 
in these two months, viz., in the year 1821, when it was 9'9 inches. 
The following are the instances back to 1815, when the fall of 
rain in the quarter was as large as that in the present year, viz : — 
1821 it was 12-5 inches; 1822 it was 10-6 inches; 1824 it was 
10*9 inches; 1841 it was 12 - 1 inches; 1852 it was 12 - 0 inches; 
and 1872 it was 11-3 inches. 
At Greenwich the fall of rain in October was 1*6 inch, being 
1*2 inch below its average ; in November it was 3'1 inches, being 
0-8 inch above its average ; and in December was 5 - 8 inches, being 
3*8 inches above its average ; the total fall in the quarter was 
10 - 5 inches, being 3 - 4 inches above its average. 
These heavy and continuous rains produced great floods over 
low-lying land throughout the country, and agricultural operations 
were generally stopped. During December several severe gales took 
place, and caused a great many shipwrecks on our coasts, particu- 
larly at the times of the extreme low readings of the barometer. 
The mean temperature of the air for the quarter was 47°-0, being 
3 0- 3 and 2° - 4 above the averages of the preceding 105 years, and 
35 years respectively. In the preceding 105 years, the following 
are the only instances of so high a mean temperature of the 
quarter, viz. : — 
In 1806 it was 48°-5 In 1831 it was 47°-l In 1852 it was 48°-l 
1818 „ 47°-2 1847 „ 47°-5 1857 „ 4T°-9 
1821 „ 47°-4 
