its flowers on the approach of a storm. 
—— 
WEATHER. 
ticularly that of the common convolvulus and 
some of the clovers and trefoils, becomes more 
than usually swollen and upright on the approach 
ofrain. The purple sandwort, Arenaria rubra, 
expands its beautiful pink flowers only during 
sunshine, and closes them either before rain or 
at the approach of evening. The dark and beauti- 
ful gentianella opens its blue eyes to the mid-day 
sun, but shuts them on the approach of ashower. 
The common nipplewort, Lapsana communis, 
the white water-lily, Vymphea alba, and several 
_ diadelphous plants expand their leaves during 
the day in calm mild weather, and contract them 
during the night. The germander speedwell, 
Veronica chamedrys, closes its handsome blue 
flowers at the approach of rain, and reopens them 
when it ceases. The common wood-sorrel, Oxa- 
lis acetosella, folds up its beautiful trifoliate 
leaves, and hangs its flowers toward the ground, 
on the approach of night or of a storm, and re- 
expands and redisplays them under the rays of 
the morning sun. The red campion, Lychnis 
diurna, opens its flowers in the morning; and 
the white campion, Lychnis vespertina, opens its 
flowers in the evening. The corn-field pimper- 
| nel, Anagallis arvensis, widely expands its bril- 
liant, small, red flowers on the morning of a fine 
day, and closes them on the approach of rain. 
The meadow goat’s beard, T’ragopogon pratensis, 
will not open its flowers in cloudy weather, and 
has so regular a habit of closing them at noon 
that many of the common people call it ‘go-to- 
bed-at-noon,’ and the farm-boys of some districts 
regulate their dinner-time by the closing of its 
flowers. The winter-green, 7’rientalis europea, 
and the alpine whitlow grass, Draba alpina, hang 
down their flowers during the night, particular- 
lyin moist states of the atmosphere. The com- 
mon chickweed, Stellaria media, always closes 
its small, white, upright flowers on the approach 
of rain, and expands them freely from nine in 
the morning till noon during dry weather, and 
holds them pendent during a day or two after 
rain ceases, or till dry weather has decidedly set 
in. The Siberian sow-thistle, Sonchus alpinus, 
shuts its flowers in a night preceding a fine day, 
and keeps them open in anight preceding a rainy 
or cloudy day. The African marigold, Zagetes 
erecta, keeps its flowers closed after seven o’clock 
on the approach of rain. Most of the hawkweeds 
or hieraciums open their flowers early in the 
morning, and close them in the afternoon. The 
succory, Cichorium iniybus, opens its flowers to- 
wards the commencement of day-light. The 
common daisy, Bellis perennis, opens its flowers 
at sunrise, and closes them at sunset. The great 
white ox-eye, Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, closes 
The 
common convolvulus and the broad-leaved red 
clover contract their leaves on the approach of 
thunder or of heavy rain. 
Prognostics by Animals—Many animals are 
strongly affected by electric changes in the at- 
639 
mosphere, and afford, by their sensations or 
movements, decided indications of the approach, 
not only of thunderstorms, but of all the more 
violent forms of weather which powerful electric 
action causes or controls. Many human beings 
experience uneasiness, languor, or sense o* op- 
pression, and a peculiar kind of headach en the 
approach of a thunderstorm, even before or long 
before any symptom of it is discernible in the 
sky; and many also experience toothach, rheu- 
matism, and peculiar pains in corns, in weak 
limbs, and in old bruises and fractures, on the ap- 
proach of heavy rains or high winds, particularly 
such as are largely controlled by the electric 
fluid. All animals who are covered with hair or 
feathers, in consequence of these organised sub- 
stances being susceptible of very high electrical 
excitement, must experience strong sensations 
from great electrical changes,—especially when 
their bodies happen to be in an opposite electri- 
cal condition to that of the inanimate objects 
around them; and they at the same time possess 
all or most of the susceptibilities to electrical 
influence which are possessed by man; and as 
they are creatures of impulse, and very readily 
fling their sensations and emotions into action, 
they may be expected to indicate by many exter- 
nal signs, according to their several organizations 
and habits, the influence of every considerable 
atmospheric electrical change upon them, and 
consequently the approach of a corresponding 
change of weather. Many of the larger animals, 
too, must feel uneasiness, and express it, under 
transitions from dryness to humidity in the at- 
mosphere, or from humidity to dryness; and 
multitudes of the smaller ones, comprising birds, 
fresh-water fishes, insects, arachnidze, molluscs, 
and annelide, are not only affected but guided 
or impelled in the principal habits of their na- 
ture, such as those of feeding, reposing, locomo- 
tion, and migration, by the very same vicissi- 
tudes in air, heat, electricity, humidity, and 
aggregate meteorological agency which cause the 
phenomena of weather,—so that every consi- 
derable change or move in their behaviour indi- 
cates a contemporary change in the condition of 
the atmosphere. The recorded prognostics of 
weather by animals are both numerous and va- 
luable; and multitudes more might no doubt 
be added by careful, extensive, and minute ob- 
servation. 
When rain is approaching, horses and cattle 
snuff the air and congregate in corners of fields 
with their heads to leeward, or seek shelter in 
sheds,—oxen lick their forefeet,—sheep reluc- 
tantly leave their pastures,—goats seek sheltered 
spots,—asses frequently bray and shake their 
ears,—dogs are apt to become very sleepy and 
dull, and to lie all day before the fire, showing a 
reluctance to all kinds of food except grass,— | 
cats turn their backs to the fire, and wash their 
faces,—pigs cover themselves more than usually 
in litter,—rats and mice are more than usual- 
