116 
THE WEATHER, NATURAL HISTORY, AND COUNTRY OPERATIONS, 
very sultry, owing to heat radiated from 
black roofs composed of uneven tiles. Un- 
even surfaces radiate more fiercely than even 
ones, as experiment shows. 26th. Air so cool 
at 4 a.m., that covering on the bed was sought 
for; the column at 82 degrees. 27th. On my 
return from a walk at sunset, found thermo- 
meter at 83 degrees, which is unusual. 
Barometer. — 1st, 29.55, ascending gradu- 
ally till 9th, 29.76, descending till 12th, 29.73, 
stationary till 18th, 29.65, stationary till 28th, 
29.49. Stationary. 
Hygrometric state. — Excessively dry. 
This dryness is not affected by a shower. 
Towels soddened in water are dried stiff in an 
hour or two. 
Wind. — South-east. Often calm till near 
mid-day, when a brisk and refreshing breeze 
springs up, rendered fitful at our residence by 
the heat of buildings, which seems to stop its 
course. It is a common remark here that 
along the river Min, from the sea to Foo-chow, 
the wind comes up and goes down with the 
tide. The channel inclines to east and west. 
The water of the sea is colder than the water 
that descends from the heated country. 
Sky, clouds, mists. — Sky in fine weather 
occasionally invested with a haze of a some- 
what sombre hue, or sprinkled over with a few 
fleecy clouds, or " teih ne," of the Chinese. 
22d. Haze moderated the sensible temperature 
and made it feel cool, though the thermometer 
stood at 96 degrees. 
Rain and Electric Phenomena. — 17th. 
In the evening a thunder shower travelled 
from west to east over Foo-chow, that is from 
one high point of the hills to another. Eained 
hard for a short time. 20th. After mid-day 
the thunder was heard pealing in the distance, 
the lightning glared, the wind rose, and the 
rain began to descend, but not in copious effu- 
sion. One of the loudest and smartest claps, 
within my recollection, took place, apparently 
just over our head ; it resembled a large piece 
of ordnance. A cool breeze followed, and the 
evening was pleasant. 21st. In the evening, 
towards the N. W., the clouds, broad and 
massy, seemed like a battery emitting sparks 
and flashes, which from time to time exploded 
in serpentine lines and coruscations, while a 
continuous blaze was spread over the face of the 
vapour, forming a splendid aurelia, in which 
these phenomena continued to play for more 
than half an hour. 24th. A shower and 
thunder at day-fall. 27th. At 2 p.m. clouds 
rising from the west promise a shower. A 
squall follows, but of short duration, as the 
clouds shift rapidly. 28th. About 3 p.m. sky 
overcast, thunder rumbling in the distance. 
29th. Sky clouded ; a few drops of rain patter 
upon the tiles. 
Observations on Husp.andry. — In the 
early part of the month the unreaped crops of 
rice are shorn down. The sickle is short, of 
small curvature, and compared with that of 
the English, very ineffectual. It is wielded 
by females as well as males. The setting out 
of the second crop of rice continues till nearly 
the close of the month. The blades and pre- 
cocious ears are cut off and thrown down by 
the roots. 27th. Saw a peasant turning in the 
stubble with the " Louk touk," or " kah loo," 
a roller armed with rows of wooden teeth or 
pins, like the barrel of a hand organ. Men 
employed in sowing " Yay Moy," or oily grain 
among tobacco and other spots, in a trench 
opened by a hoe or mattock. Boatmen hard 
by employed in storing and loading salt for the 
interior. 
Fruits, Flowers, and Vegetables in 
Season. — The assortment of fruit small. The 
plums of a rich purple and of a most grateful 
taste, are now in season, and cover the stalls 
and benches in profusion. Pines are brought 
hither chiefly it is said from Formosa. Pome- 
granates serve now to deck the table, but are 
of small size and little flavour. The Jasmi- 
num grandiflorum, or "Mole wah," is now in 
its prime, cultivated in ridges for a garniture 
of tables. The vegetable most abundant now 
is the Convolvulus reptans, or " Oungtsy" of 
the natives. It is grown, not in water as at 
Canton, but on beds, where it yields many a 
snow- white blossom. It is very wholesome, 
and relished by all. The large " Tung-kwa," 
or vegetable marrow, is abundant and very 
large, sometimes a foot and a half in length and 
about a third in diameter. The Luffa acutan- 
gula is now in prime. These are grown 
over leeks on a kind of roofing. Leeks 
shaded by the gourds are plentiful, being cut 
three or four times a year. 
Animal Kingdom. — The voice of the 
" Hwang pong chow," or red-winged pie, is 
heard among the fir-trees, and is so pecu- 
liar, that it is difficult to find a similitude. It 
is something compounded of a sob, a howl, and 
the dying beats of a bell. When displeased 
it utters a peculiar clucking mixed with the 
scolding of a cat. A large forked-tailed fly- 
catcher, with his mate, perches on the topmost 
shoots of a tall tree, and from time to time 
soars aloft in quest of insects, and then with a 
sweep returns back to his mate. A hawk, 
which seems to be identical with the kestrel, 
utters a note which resembles that of the wry- 
neck, while it darts from the tall-trees to tease 
the fishing hawk, whose cry may always be 
heard, but mostly in the morning. Dragon- 
flies of red, green, and blue tints, skim over 
pools of water, or flutter along the fences. A 
member of the day-fly, or Hemerobius family, 
with long antennae, is seen among the dragon- 
flies, which it much resembles in external 
