[FromManx Note Book, vol iii,1887]

1886HAS BEEN A RATHER COLD AND DECIDEDLY wet year, but the harvest—though a light one—was well saved, as the autumn was fortunately fine. January was cold, stormy, and wet; February cold, dry, foggy, and unusually calm; the first 18 days of March were exceptionally severe, and the last fortnight wet, squally, and comparatively mild: April, till the10th, was wet and squally; then fine and mild; May, usually the driest month in the year, was cold and very wet; June, dry and cold; July set in with fine and very warm weather, but after the10th it was cool and windy, with a good deal ofrain; August, cool and cloudy; September, fine on the whole; October, very mild, and rather wet; November, dull, wet, and very mild: December, cold, stormy, and wet. The temperature for the months of April, July, August, September, Odlober, and November, has been above the mean; for the remaining six months below it. The average (temperature when reduced to mean sea level) of the stations—at Cronkbourne (240 feet)47°20 + 0°50=47°70; *Ramsey 47°2; Peel (200 feet), 46°96+0°74=47°70; and St. Mark’s (400 feet), 46°42+ 1°3~47°72~are practically identical: while *Douglas, 48°63, is much higher; and the Point of Ayre (110 feet), 46°62+0°40=47°02, lower. The variations of rainfall are very remarkable. The Station at the Dhoon, which, as was anticipated, has proved to be the wettest in the Island, has considerably more than twice the rainfall at the Point of Ayre, not more than 10 miles off. The great divergence between the falls at Douglas and Castletown; and Ramsey and Andreas Rectory, are also worthy of note. The abnormal meteorological occurrencesduring the year have been the snowstorm of the 1st of March, and the exceptional severity (Av. Temp. 33°64) of the first 18 days of that month; the heavy rainfall of the 12th of May; and the great storm of the 8th and 9th of December, accompanied by the fall of the barometer to an unprecedented level.

Barometrical pressure—Average, 29.871 ; highest, 30.716 on the 24th November at 9 am.; lowest, 27.555 on the 8th of December at 3.30 p.m.
Shade temperature—Highest 79.5 on the 2nd July, at Prospect Hill, Douglas; 76.3 on the 3rd at Ramsey, and 74.7 on the 2nd at Cronkbourne; lowest, 22.4 on the 7th January, at Cronkbourne; 23.8 on the 6th, at Ramsey; and 25.0 on the 21st December, at Prospect Hill. The highest temperature in the sun, 131.8 on the 7th June; and the lowest on the grass, 14.3 on the 7th January, were both recorded at Cronkbourne. The greatest rainfall in 24 hours (2.600 in.) was registered at Prospect Hill, on 12th May. The total duration of sunshine, 1425.5 hours, is the smallest annual total as yet recorded, and gives an average ot somewhat less than 4 hours per diem. The observers of temperature and rainfall have been—Mr. E. C. Kerr, at Ramsey; Mr. Thos. Keig. at Douglas ; Mr. J. Russell Holt, at Peel ; Rev. B. J. S. Lupton, at St. Mark’s; and Mr.James Blyth, at Point of Ayre. Of rainfall only, Mr. Storey, at Douglas; Douglas Waterworks Company, at the Clypse reservoir; Mr. Edgar Hughes-Games, King William’s College, Castletown; Rev. S. N. Harrison at the Dhoon; and Rev. F. Lamothe, at Kirk Andreas. I take this opportunity of thanking these gentlemen for their kindness in sending me the results of their observations. The only change for 1887, is that Mr. Hamilton will take rainfall observations at Derbyhaven, instead of Mr. Edgar Hughes-Games, at King Williams College. A rain-gauge has again been placed in the mountains, in the hope, which has been twice disappointed, of getting a complete year’s record.

Cronkbourne, January 12th, 1887. A. W. MOORE.

*The Douglas and Ramsey stations ire practically at sea level, so no allowance has been made.