The weather of last year was, in some respects, like a well-constructed story.

Beginning in a tame and uneventful fashion, the interest gradually increased as time wore on, until at the close of the period we were introduced to incidents of a most exciting description. The com- mencement of the year brought us a long and dreary winter, followed by a cold, cheerless spring. During the early part of the summer matters showed little ten- dency to improve, but as the season pro- gressed, short bursts of intense heat were experienced from time to time, and in this desultory manner the summer lin- gered on till the commencement of Octo- ber. The antumn months were as mild as the spring was cold, and about the middle of October a violent gale swept over the western and southern parts of the kingdom. The chief events of the year were, however, reserved for the closing month, when storm, frost and flood did their utmost to show that old- fashioned winters are not altogether things of the past. On the 8th a baro- metrical depression of exceptional severity passed over the United Kingdom, pro- ducing severe gales in almost all parts of Western Europe. The disappearance of the system was followed by an interval of fairly quiet weather; but on the 26th another and much smaller disturbance advanced eastwards along the English Channel, occasioning over the south of England a snowstorm of more general and destructive severity than any ex- perienced since the memorable 18th of January, 1881.

* * * * Strong south-westerly to westerly gales were experienced over the greater part of the kingdom on the 30th of March, and hard southerly gales in the northern parts of Ireland and Scotland on the 2nd April.

* * * * The gales which occurred during the autumn were, with one notable exception, of no great violence. On October 15 and 16, however, a very deep cyclonic dis- turbance advanced over our islands, moving at first in an easterly direction across Ireland, and then in a south- easterly direction to the south of Eng- land, whence it travelled away to the north-eastwards and dispersed. The gales which resulted were exceptionally severe on our south-west and south j coasts, and during the progress of the storm a large number of vessels are re- ] ported to have either stranded or foun- | dered on our coasts with a loss of about j 120 lives. Over Wales, the south of Ireland, and the south-west of England, the storm was accompanied by an ex- cessively heavy rainfall, and serious floods were occasioned in the low-lying districts.

The winter season through which we are now passing has brought us very tempestuous weather and some touches of severe frost. So far as it has at present gone the most important events of the season have been the disastrous gale of the 8th to 9th December, and the still more destructive snowstorm ex- perienced on the 26th December. The former occurrence was due to the advance over our islands of an abnormally deep depression, in the centre of which the barometer fell below 27-4 inches. In London the minimum, reading of 28 • 30 inches recorded at about 4 A.M. on the 9th was decidedly lower than any ob- served since the year 1843.

The passage of so deep a depression could scarcely fail to bring about great disturbances in the atmosphere, and, as a matter of fact, very violent gales were experienced over nearly the whole of Western Europe—from south-east or east over the northern parts of our islands, and from south-west veering to north- west over our southern and the French coasts. In this case, as in October, a tremendous sea raged in the west and south, and between the 8th and 10th of the month at least 100 vessels are known to have stranded or foundered on the British coasts.

It is satisfactory to know that the gallant efforts of the Life-boat crews were successful during this one storm alone in the rescue of as many as ninety- six souls.

The heavy snowstorm of the 26th De- cember was due to the passage eastwards along the English Channel of a small but somewhat deep cyclonic disturbance. In the front of this system strong south- westerly or southerly gales and rain were experienced, while in the immediate neighbourhood and in the rear of the system the wind backed to the north- eastward or northward, with ezcessirely heavy falls of snow. The damage done by this storm, especially to the telegraphic system, was greater than that experienced on any previous occasion.