The science of meteorology is, even in this inquisi tire and enlightened age, so little advanced, and so bare of facts, that it would be rash to attempt to give particular details, either respecting temperature, or the quantity of rain, which would be accurately correct, and unquestionably well-founded, except such as relate VI some few districts of England and Wales. These, however, it may be proper to give, in order that a clearer insight may be gained into the nature of our climate, and into its difference in different parts, and its variations in the same part.
First, with respect to the quantity of rain which falls in different parts of England. It has been already ob served, that in the western counties much more rain falls in the course of the year than in the eastern counties: and it may be added, that a greater portion of rain falls on the coast, compared with counties that are situated on the south-eastern side of the island. The proportion of rain which fell in the course of a year at Townley, in Lancashire, was measured, upwards of a century ago, and compared with the quantity which fell during the same space of time at Axminster, in Essex ; on an average of six years, from 1700 to 1705, inclusive, it appeared that there fell at Townly 42 inches, while at Axminster there fell only 19 inches. The mean quan tity of rain that has been observed to fall in the county of Rutland, in the course of the year, is 201 inches. At Selbourne, in Hampshire, where the country is rather hilly, the average quantity of rain which fell annually, between 1780 and 1786, was 36,98 inches.
Perhaps no circumstance more evidently and strong ly proves the variableness of our climate, with respect to rain, than the following facts, detailed by Dr Hex ham, concerning the quantity of rain which fell in cer tain years in Devonshire. There can be no doubt, that in this county, the climate is not only much moister, but the actual quantity of rain that falls is much greater, than in the south and south-eastern counties ; and yet he informs us, that in 1731, the rain which fell measured only 17 inches, and 266 10ths ; in 1741, 20 inches and 344 10ths ; and in 1743, 20 inches and 903 10ths.
It appears, from a meteorological journal kept by Major Hooke, that the quantity of rain which fell at the four following places in the year 1798, was as fol lows : London, 26.22 inches; West Bridgford, Not tinghamshire, 27.22; Lancaster, 48.19; Kendal, 60.85. .A farther comparison of the quantities of rain which fall at these places, may be made by the following tables, given by Mr Lowe in his Agricultural Survey of the County of Nottingham : In 1794, there fell at London, 23.32 inches ; at West Bridgford, 26.27; at Lancaster, 50.81 ; and at Kendal, 69.65. In 1795, at London, 18.15 ; at West Bridgford, 24.64; at Lancaster, 48.98; and at Kendal, 57.98. In 1796, at London, 17.86; at West Bridgford, 18.16 ; at Langar, also in Nottinghamshire, 19.212 ; at Lancaster, 37.4; and at Kendal, 45.24. The fall of rain this year at Hull, was 22.98. In the year 1802, there fell at London 15.12 inches, while at Brecon the quantity was 26.25. The average gauge of rain at Sheffield is 33 inches in a year, which is about a medium betwixt what falls in Lancashire and on the eastern coast. At Langrove, in Shropshire, a register was kept of the dry and wet days for the years 1796, 1797, 1798, 1799, 1800, and 1801 ; the result of which is, that in 1796, there were 201 dry days, and 164 wet ; in 1797, 184 dry, and 181 wet; in 1798, the same ; in 1799, 148 dry, and 217 wet ; in 1800, 161 dry, and 204 wet ; and in 1801, 163 dry, and 202 wet. In Staffordshire, the annual
rains generally exceed 36 inches; whereas, in Worces tershire, under the same meridian of longitude, they fall short of 30;—a proof of what was remarked above, that those northern counties which lie as far to the west as the southern counties, in general have a moister cli mate.
In 1806, the fall of rain at Chertsey, in Surrey, was 25 inches ; at London, 27; at Dip, in Norfolk, 25 ; at Chatsworth, in Derbyshire, 30; at Horncastle, in Lin colnshire, 26 ; at Nottingham, 25 ; at Hull, 30; at Lan cashire, 40 ; at Dalton, in Lancaster, 49 ; and at Kendal, 53 inches.
From the observations on the quantity of rain which fell at Liverpool, for a period of 18 years, beginning with the year 1775, made by Mr Hutchinson, dock master at that place, it appears, that the mean annual quantity of rain which falls at that place, is 34.4168 inches; and that the mean falls of rain in each month, and each season of the year, on an average of the same period, were as follows: February, 1.8471 ; March, 1.5227 ; April, 2.1041:—mean fall in the spring, 5.4739. May, 2.5729 ; June, 2.8159 ; July, 3.6628 :—mean fall in summer, 9.056. August, 3.3106 ; September, 3.6544 ; October, 3.7239 :—mean fall in autumn, 10.6889. No vember, 3.4408 ; December, 3.2876; January, 2.1741: —mean fall in winter, 8.9025. At Dover, the mean annual fall is 3752 inches; at Garsdale, which is a nar row valley, 13 miles to the north-east of Kendal, the quantity of rain that fell in the year 1777 was 49.5290 inches, and the number of rainy days 222. In the year 1778, the quantity of rain was 61.3660 inches ; and the number of rainy days 249: and in the year 1779, the quantity of rain was 45.999 inches, and the number of rainy days 197.
The comparative wetness of the climate in the north west of England, will further appear from the follow ing results of an account of the quantity of rain which fen at Manchester during eight years, from 1786 to 1793, both inclusive. In 1786, the number of days on which rain or snow fell, was 207, and the quantity of rain 40.5 ; in 1787, there were 200 rainy or snowy days, and the quantity of rain 47.5 ; in the year 1788, rain or snow fell on 178 clays, and the quantity of rain was 27.15; in 1789, there were 263 days on which rain or snow fell, and the quantity of rain was 51 inches; in 1790, there were 210 of such days, and the rain amount ed to 42.75 inches; in 1791, rain or snow fell, on 233 days, and the quantity of rain was 44 inches; in 1792, there were 248 days of rain or snow, and the quantity of rain was 55 25 inches ; and in the year 1793, rain or snow fell on 233 clays, and the quantity of rain amounted to 36.5 inches.
The midland counties in England receive, as might he expected, nearly the medium quantity of rain that falls on the western and eastern coasts; or rather, per haps, the that falls in them approaches nearer to the quantity that falls on the eastern than the wes tern coast. Even in Derbyshire, though a mountain ous district, much less rain falls than in Lancashire, or even Staffordshire or Shropshire, as will be evident from the following result, from a state of the falls of rain at Chatsworth, in Derbyshire, for the years 1777, 1778, 1779, 1730, 1781, 1782, and 1783. The average for the annual falls of these seven years, is 27,339 inches: the average falls in each month, classed according to the seasons, is as follows : In February, 1.673 inches ; in March, 1.269 ; in April, 2.725—mean fall in spring,