A Note on the Weather.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 5032, 13 June 1889, Page 3

A Note on the Weather.

Wellington people have an advantage in being able to drop into tbe office of Captain Edwin, Colonial Clerk of the Weather, if they feel inclined to, and have a chat about meteorological prospects and probabilities. We may suppose the editor of the New Zealand Times availed himself of this advantage before penning the following, as it appears from internal evidence to have been “ inspired ” by a well-posted person, and therefore we may further suppose that there is “something in it.” The Times of Monday says: Exceptional barometric depressions like that of last Saturday must always excite a certain degree of apprehension. For it is physically impossible that they can fail to be attended by some very serious atmospheric disturbance. When the atmospheric equilibrium has been so largely deranged as to send down the mercury to 28.77 inches the symptoms infallibly mean mischief of some sort. The question is What does (ho fall of the barometer portend, end where will the result be experienced ? It does not by any means follow that the most formidable results will be met with where the barometer has been lowest. Some years back the barometer in Wellington fell nearly as low as on Saturday, yet no abnormal weather followed locally, although severe storms occurred in other parts of the colony. About 20 years ago the barometer at the Southland Observatory not only fell to the same low point that it reached in Wellington on Saturday last, but also remained at that depression for nearly five days, a most rare if not unprecedented occurrence. Yet nothing unusual followed in that part of the country. Elsewhere there were violent tempests. A case is on record in which the barometer at the Edinburgh Observatory actually went below 28 inches without any particular sequel in that locality. But the English coasts were a scene of the direst devastation and loss of life. The great depression of the day before yesterday seems to have had its centre in the vicinity of Cook Strait. The vortex must now have passed, because the glass has since risen half an inch, but so far we have had nothing worse than a brief southerly gale of no severity, which blew during Saturday night, and a fall of a little over an inch of rain. Clearly this is not enough to explain the low glass, for we have often had much worse weather when the mercury has not reached within an inch of Saturday’s reading. Kor was the mere lowness of that reading its sole exceptional ' feature. Its is noteworthy us being preceded by one of the longest and most steady downward movements of the mercury ever seen in this country. The mercury bad descended slowly but uninterruptedly for about a fortnight, when the descent ended with the sudden drop of Friday night and Saturday. This steady and protracted descent followed by so _ sharp a fall points to a more than ordinary dist urbance of the atmospheric balance, and one which will not speedily bo readjusted. If any reliance at all can be placed on meteorological indications, we have entered at last upon an unsettled and perhaps stormy period, after an exceptionally long term of fine weather and light southerly wind. But it is an absolute scientific certainty that furious storms must occur cither in some parts of these islands or off our coasts. There may be terrific gales or heavy snowstorms, or both. But storms of some kinds there must bo. Already wo hear of violent gales in the north of this island, with tremendous seas on the coast. More news of a like sort will probably be received in a day or two.