171 
1840-45 in the Arabian and China Seas and Indian Ocean, 
all of which occurred near to the Equator, and the increase 
in the recorded number of which is due to the exertions of 
Mr. Piddington and Dr. Thom, all the great storms and 
stormy periods occurred in years immediately adjoining those 
in which the maxima of the solar spots occurred. 
It was also shown that there is a tendency to excessive dis- 
play of the Aurora Borealis about the times of the maxima 
of the spots, especially about 1837. This had been pre- 
viously noticed by Mairan, and is borne out by the observa- 
tions contained in his work on the Aurora. 
Tables from Mairan’s Work and from the Essay of Pro- 
fessor Olmstead on the same subject contained in the Smyth- 
sonian contributions, were given to illustrate this point. 
Mr. Baxendell mentioned that for some days previously 
to the late gales, the direction in which the storm approached 
was indicated by the direction in which meteors fell. 
Mr. Dancer exhibited a photograph of the Moon on 
glass, taken by him from a small negative obtained by Mr. 
Hartnup. 
Mr. Mosley and Mr. Baxendell reported the maximum 
altitude of the barometer on this day (being the time of 
transit of the great November wave of pressure) as having 
been at eleven a.m., according to the barometer on the 
Exchange, 30*62, thermometer 49°; and by the barometer 
at the Town Hall, 30*63, thermometer 50°. About one 
o’clock the barometer began to fall. 
