November 1. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
57 
WEEKLY CALENDAR. 
M 
D 
W 
D 
NOVEMBER I— 7, 1819. 
I 
Weather near London 
in 1848. 
Sun 
Rises. 
Sun 
Sets. 
a m 
§ =8 
Moon’s 
Age. 
Clock 
bef.Sun. 
Day of 
Year. 
1 
Tn 
All Saints. Hazel leafless. 
T. 49—32. 
E. 
Rain. 
55 a. 6 
32 a. 4 
53 a. 37 
16 
lfi 
16 
305 
2 
F 
All Souls. Mich. Term b. Botan. Soc. 
T. 54—33. 
N.W. 
Fine. 
58 
30 
6 
17 
17 
16 
16 
306 
3 
S 
Lilac leafless. 
T. 55—32. 
S.W. 
Fine. 
59 
28 
7 
5 
18 
16 
17 
307 
4 
Sun 
22 S. aft. Tuin. Gooseberry leafless. 
T. 39—23. 
N. 
Rain. 
VII 
26 
8 
2 
19 
lfi 
lfi 
308 
5 
M 
Gunpowd. Plot, 1605. Skylark’ssong 
T. 47—39. 
S.W. 
Fine. 
3 
25 
9 
7 
20 
lfi 
14 
309 
6 
Tu 
Linn. & Hort. Soc. Meet. [ceases. 
T, 50—38. 
w. 
Fine. 
5 
23 
10 
16 
21 
16 
12 
310 
7 
W 
Hooded Crow arrives. 
T. 46—22. 
N.W. 
Fine. 
6 
21 
11 
28 
€ 
lfi 
8 
311 
All Saints is a festival still commemorated by our Church, for 
the purpose of specially asking power from above to enable us to imi¬ 
tate them “in all virtuous and godly living,” but it is more noted on 
account of the superstitious customs still observed on the night pre¬ 
viously. This, or “ All-hallow Even,” is known in every rural dis¬ 
trict, and associated in each with some ghostly legend and love charm. 
This is especially the case in Scotland, and there, in almost each village, 
“ Some merry, friendly, countra folks, 
Together do convene, 
To burn their nits, an’ pou their stocks, 
An’ haud their Hallowe’en.” 
Nuts and apples form a portion of each entertainment at these meet¬ 
ings, and hence it has been surmised that some festival of Pomona, 
now that summer stores are opened for approaching winter, was 
celebrated on this day in the Roman period of our history, and of 
which these eatings of fruit are a reliquc. In many parts of'Scotlaml 
fires on some rising ground were now kindled, and a solemnity kept 
as a thanksgiving for the in-gathering of the crops. 
All Souls is still celebrated by Roman Catholics as a day of sup¬ 
plication for the release of departed spirits out of the purgatory which 
they believe to exist. Many customs are yet observed in secluded 
parts of England, that are now unmeaning fragments of former 
solemnities. Thus, a peculiar cake, always three-cornered, and called 
Somas ( Soul-mass ) cake, was an invariable part of the eatables on 
this festival, and still in rural districts girls go to the farm-houses, 
collecting contributions, and singing verses, among which is this 
doggerel: — 
“Soul! Soul! for a soul cake ; 
Pray you, good mistress, a soul cake.” 
Meteorology of the Week. —The average highest temperature 
of these days for the last twenty-two years is 54.6°, and the average 
lowest temperature 38.1°. The highest point the thermometer reached 
on anyone of the days was on the 6th of November, 1834, when it 
Tose to 63°. The greatest cold during the same period was on the 
4th in 1845, when it was as low as 22°. There were in this period of 
the 22 years, 78 days on which rain fell, and 76 were fine. The great¬ 
est quantity of rain which fell on any one day (we speak of the neigh¬ 
bourhood of London) was 1.02 inch. 
Natural Phenomena Indicative of Weather. —When cats 
wash their faces, are sleepy and dull, the approach of rain is inti¬ 
mated. Yet other observers say that this animal foretels rain when 
irritable, restless, and playful. A cat turning her back to the fire is 
also said to intimate the coming of severe weather, but we rather 
think it tells that such weather has arrived, for in frosty dry air the 
fire scorches more readily, and inconveniences the cat whose face is 
towards it. Cattle looking towards the sky, and expanding their 
nostrils as if inhaling some smell, intimates the approach of muoh 
rain. If they gambol about their pasture, it generally precedes a 
change of weather. 
Insects. —Even this gloomy month 
has its peculiar insect—the November 
Dagger moth. It is the Dilimea No- 
vemhris of some entomologists, and the 
Tinea Novemtiris of others. The male, 
we believe, has not been described, but 
RANGE OF BAROMETER—RAIN IN INCHES. 
the female, magnified, is represented in 
our annexed woodcut. Her natural 
size, both ot body and expanded wings, 
is shewn by the cross lines beneath. 
The fore-wings are pale brown, with 
white patches and undulating lines, and 
their surface. The edges of the wings 
found on the trunks of lime-trees near 
Nov. 
1841. 
1842. 
1843. 
1844. 
1845. 
1846. 
1847. 
1848. 
1 
B. 
(■30.063 
30.216 
29.800 
29.513 
30.177 
30.043 
30.286 
29.602 
129.901 
30.1141 
29.670 
29-248 
30.132 
29.959 
30.024 
29.505 
R. 
0,01 
— 
— 
0.38 
— 
— 
0.01 
0.03 
B. 
(• 30.226 
30.126 
29.820 
29.245 
30.273 
29.934 
30.343 
29-765 
130.187 
30.084 
29.790 
29.119 
30.186 
29.911 
30.305 
29.697 
R. 
— 
— 
0.09 
0.49 
— 
— 
0.02 
— 
B. 
(30.369 
29.983 
29.660 
29.384 
30.317 
30.050 
30.325 
29.614 
\ 30.309 
29.934 
29.652 
29.318 
30.288 
29.991 
30.270 
29.446 
R. 
— 
0.03 
-■ 
— 
— 
— 
0.01 
— 
B. 
/ 30.372 
30.169 
29-783 
29.371 
30.268 
30.096 
30.216 
29.737 
130.340 
30.073 
29.691 
29.215 
29.965 
30.053 
30.138 
29.496 
R. 
— 
0.01 
— 
— 
— 
0.02 
— 
— 
B. 
(30.379 
30.177 
29.992 
29.215 
29.835 
30.157 
30.010 
29.808 
130.341 
30.104 
29.931 
29.175 
29722 
30.131 
29.941 
29.589 
R. 
— 
0.01 
0.02 
0.03 
— 
0.01 
— 
0.01 
6 
B. 
r 30.391 
30.148 
29.965 
29.276 
29.634 
30.149 
30.021 
29.645 
t 30.366 
30.122 
29.927 
29.252 
29.313 
30.146 
29.904 
29.538 
R. 
— 
0.01 
0.10 
— 
0.05 
— 
0.24 
— 
B. 
(30.391 
30.131 
29749 
29.377 
29.916 
30.269 
29-988 
29.879 
/ 
130.351 
30.099 
29.662 
29.364 
29.46S 
30.222 
29.796 
29.518 
R. 
0.01 
0.17 
O.Ofi 
0.06 
with scales scattered over 
are black. This insect is 
London, in the cathedral 
Close at Winchester, and elsewhere. The caterpillar feeds upon the 
leaves of the lime, but we never heard of its appearing in numbers 
sufficiently numerous to be markedly injurious. 
Within the last few weeks we have seen it recom¬ 
mended, in a gardening periodical of the first autho¬ 
rity, to take up dahlia tubers as soon as the stems 
have been overtaken by the frost; and the reason 
assigned for doing so is, that if the tubers are left 
after the tops have been cut down, the buds for the 
next season’s growth are apt to push out into shoots! 
Practice, however, sustained by science .also, demon¬ 
strates that this is a great error, as it is well known, 
to those who begin early in the winter to force the 
roots of any new or very scarce varieties, how reluc¬ 
tantly they will “break,” or produce buds. More¬ 
over, many cottagers and amateurs leave their dahlias 
in the ground all the winter without ever experiencing 
this “break” after the topis are removed. We know 
that Mr. Turner, the celebrated florist at Slough, who 
generally runs away with the first prizes wherever he 
competes, recommends, like Mr. Beaton, that the 
tubers should remain in the ground a considerable 
time after the tops are cut off, alleging as his reason 
that the longer they are in the ground the shorter their 
winter is—so to speak. Our own opinion coincides 
with that expressed by Mr. Beaton ; and the rule 
holds good as in all autumnal pruning. The buds 
for next season get more charged witli the juices or 
sap collected by the roots, and are, therefore, more 
able to make a vigorous start in the spring ; and, in 
the case of the dahlia buds, w r e make no doubt but, 
No. LVII, Vol. HI. 
