London to start on their visit to Australia and the Colonies (15th). Mr. Ritchie speaks in London on the housing of the working classes (19th). Verdict for the plaintiff, with 200 damages, in the libel action "Chamberlain v. Morning Leader and Star newspapers" (26th).

April.-Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York, on board the Ophir, reached Aden (5th). Lord Salisbury went to the South of France (6th). Fête at Kandy in honour of Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York (12th). The Duke and Duchess left Ceylon (16th). The Congress of International Association of Learned Societies opened in Paris (16th). Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York reached Singapore (21st). Mr. McHugh, M.P., proprietor of the Sligo Champion, sentenced to six months' imprisonment (22nd).

May.-The Duke of Cornwall landed at Melbourne (6th). The Duchess of Cleveland died; the Alexandra Palace reopened as a recreation ground (18th). The King was on board the Shamrock II. when she was dismasted in a squall in the Solent (22nd). Naval and Military Exhibition at the Crystal Palace opened by Earl Roberts (23rd). Sir Alfred Milner entertained at lunch by Mr. Chamberlain (25th).

June. The King and Queen received members of the New York Chamber of Commerce at Windsor (1st). Sale of the Barrois MSS. of the Ashburnham Library (£33,217 6s. 6d.) (roth to 14th). Duke of Cornwall reaches Auckland (11th). Mr. Balfour presided at a banquet given to Sir John Tenniel in commemoration of his long association with Punch 12th). Arrest of Earl Russell on a charge of bigamy (17th). Duke and Duchess of Cornwall enthusiastically received at Wellington, N.Z. (18th). Earl Russell committed for trial on the charge of bigamy at the Central Criminal Court; Duke of Cornwall reached Christchurch (22nd).

July.-The Duke of Cornwall landed at Hobart; the Queen received 770 members of the Nurses' Institute at Marlborough House (3rd). Luncheon at the Mansion House to Mme. Sarah Bernhardt; the Duke of Cornwall reached Adelaide (8th). The King left London to visit the Grand Duke Michael of Russia at Keele Hall, N. Staffs. (12th). Ceremonial progress of the Duke of Cornwall through Perth; the Congress on Tuberculosis opened in London by the Duke of Cambridge on behalf of the King; the King received the American ladies who equipped the Maine hospital ship, and accepted a commemorative medal (22nd). The Duke of Cornwall left Australia for the Mauritius (26th).

August.-Death of Lady Hilda Brodrick (1st). Duke of Cornwall reached Mauritius (5th); Durban (13th). The King reached Homburg (14th). Duke of Cornwall reached Cape Town (18th). The Queen arrived at Copenhagen (20th). The Archbishop of Canterbury and Mrs. Temple celebrated their silver wedding (24th). Mr. R. W. Hanbury presented with the freedom of the City of Glasgow in recognition of his services in promoting municipal telephones (29th).

September.-Duke of Cornwall reached St. Vincent; the German Emperor received at Potsdam Palace a deputation of the Dover Harbour Board (3rd). Marriage of Captain Oswald Ames and Miss Violet Dorothea Cecil (5th). The King left Homburg 6th); arrived in Denmark (8th). Lord Balfour of Burleigh and Mr. Andrew Carnegie presented with the freedom of the City of Glasgow (10th). Duke of Cornwall reached Quebec (16th). Lord Rosebery unveiled a statue of King Alfred at Winchester (20th).

WEATHER AND NATURAL HISTORY.

October, 1900.--Wheat sowing was in full progress in England, the land working splendidly, and the main crop of potatoes was secured. The yield of hops was greater than was expected, and the weather was entirely favourable to the ingathering, but the crop was not heavy. Heavy rains occurred towards the close of the month, and floods were experienced in the north of England. The weather was generally mild, and some high temperatures occurred, the 8th and 9th being warmer than any day so late in October during the last sixty years.

November.-There was a marked absence of bright sunshine during the month, and the weather was as dreary as an English November well could be. Rain was very frequent, but it was not heavy, in the eastern districts, and the wheats and other growing crops presented a particularly flourishing appearance. The first frost of the winter occurred at Greenwich on the 11th, when the thermometer fell to 27° in the shade and to 20° on the grass.

66

December.-Mild weather characterised the whole month, the mean temperature being 6 in excess of the average at Greenwich, and throughout the whole period there were only two frosts. Much wheat was threatening to become winterproud." The number of days with rain during the year ranged from 255 in the north of Scotland to about 180 in the midland counties and in the south of England. The rainfall for the year at Greenwich was 22°3 in., which is 2 in. less than the average. The mean temperature for the year was 51, or 1° below the average for the last sixty years.

January.-Stormy and unsettled weather prevailed over a large part of the country, and fairly heavy falls of snow were experienced. A cold snap occurred at the beginning of the month in many parts of England. At Greenwich the total rainfall was o'76 in., which is 1'17 in. below the average. Frost occurred in the shade on eleven nights, and on the grass on twenty-one nights. The weather was fairly favourable for earlylambing flocks.

February. The weather was generally very cold, and frost occurred in the shade at Greenwich on seventeen nights, but the wheats over the country looked very little the worse for their prolonged trial by frost, although greatly without the protection of snow. It was for the most part dry, although at times snow occurred. mean temperature at Greenwich was 36°, which is 4 below the average. The days were relatively colder than the nights, and there was very little sunshine.

The

March. Scarcely any opportunity for the spring sowing offered itself. From a farmer's point of view the weather was as bad as it well could be, and extremely unfavourable for field work. The month opened with characteristic roughness, and bitterly cold and searching northeast winds were experienced during a great part of the month, while snow and sleet occurred frequently. There was an excess of rain at Greenwich, the total fall being 1'98 in.; and the mean temperature was slightly below 40°, or about 3 below the average. Frosts were of

frequent occurrence.

April.-The month opened with mild weather, but rain was frequent until the middle of the month, and the farmers' prospects seemed houe

less. Improvement set in during the latter part of the month, and this enabled the sowing of corn and planting of potatoes to be pushed forward most vigorously. On the 8th a terrific hailstorm, accompanied by torrents of rain, occurred in Lincolnshire. Several days were abnormally warm towards the close of the month, the thermometer on 21st to 23rd being above 70° in the shade at Greenwich, and in the sun's rays exceeding 130°. The rainfall was slightly in excess of the average.

May. The warm rains at the commencement helped the germination of seeds materially, and gave promise of a fair hay crop. The sunny days and the cold north-east winds gave great range of temperature, a trying feature to most all vegetation. The latter part of the month was dry. In the week ending May 18 there were 100 outbreaks of swine fever in Great Britain. The temperature at Greenwich was in good agreement with the average, and the rainfall was slightly deficient; the amount of bright sunshine was, however, much larger than usual.

June. The dry weather, which was so persistent, promised a very short harvest, although the rains at the commencement of the month did a large amount of good in many parts of the country. There was much more sunshine than usual, but the mean temperature at Greenwich was rather below the average. The days were cold in the middle of the month, but this was compensated for by the warm days at the commencement and end of the month. The rainfall at Greenwich was 1'53 in., which is about o'5 in. less than the average.

July. The wheat was brought on rapidly towards the harvesting stage by the continuance of dry weather, and the abnormal heat which set in. The corn harvest was nearly finished in the south of France. Towards the close of the month ample rains were experienced. The temperature was above the average, the mean being 65 5. The rainfall was again deficient; the total at Greenwich was 1'69 in., which is o'7 in. less than usual.

August.-Splendid harvest weather occurred at the commencement, and a good start was made in the early districts, while before the middle of the month it had also been commenced in parts of Scotland and Ireland. In spite of the harvest, farmers were anxious for rain, especially in the south, where feed for the present and root crops for the winter are paramount. The ponds were quite dry in places, but heavy rain occurred generally before the end of the month. temperature at Greenwich was in good agreement with the average, but the rainfall was somewhat deficient.

The

September.-The rains during the early part of the month interfered somewhat with hop picking, but the rainfall was not generally heavy, and before the month had ended drought was again a factor of importance. It was not only the farmer who required rain, but in several of the centres of industry in the north of England a water famine was threatened, and in the northwestern districts the deficiency of rain since the commencement of the year exceeds 6 in. The mean temperature at Greenwich was slightly above the average, but the rainfall was greatly deficient.

1801.-Union with Ireland. First Census takenEngland, Wales and Scotland, 10,500,956. 1802.-Peace of Amiens signed Mar. 27. 1803.-Tasmania became a British Colony. War renewed with France.

1805.-Battle of Trafalgar and death of Nelson, Oct 21. Lord Beaconsfield born. 1806.--Cape of Good Hope taken, Jan. 6. Funeral of Nelson, Jan. 9. Pitt and Fox died. 1807.-Slave trade abolished, Mar. 25. War with Russia, Mar. 8.

1808.-Commencement of Peninsular War. 1809.-Jubilee of George III., Oct. 25. Battle Corunna, Jan. 16; Talavera, July 27. 1811.-George III. became insane; Prince of Wales Regent. Second Census of Great

Britain, May 27-11,970,120. 1812.-War with America began, June 18; ended Dec. 24, 1814.

1813.-Printing machines invented.

1814. First steam locomotive made. Treaty of Paris, May 30. Thames frozen over. 1815.-Battle of Quatre Bras, June 16; Waterloo, June 18.

1816.-London first lit by coal gas. 1817.-Princess Charlotte died, Nov. 6. 1818.-Polar Expedition under Ross and Parry sailed, May 3. 1819.-Queen Victoria born, May 24. Prince Albert born, Aug: 26. 1820.-George III, died. Accession of George IV. Cato Street conspiracy, Feb. 23. 1821. Napoleon died at St. Helena May 5. Third Census of Great Britain, May 2820,893,584.

Cotton

1822. The Caledonian Canal completed. 1823. British Museum commenced. introduced into England. 1824.-War with Burmah; Rangoon taken, May 11. Peace, Feb. 24, 1826.

1825.-First Railway opened, Sept. 27 (Stockton and Darlington). Thames tunnel Legun. 1827.-New London Bridge begun. Battle of Navarino, Oct. 20.

1828. Police substituted for night watchmen. 1829.-Rom. Cath. Eman. Bill, April 13. First London omnibus run. 1830.-Accession of William IV. Man. and Liv. Rail. cpened, Sept. 15.

1831. New London Bridge opened.

Fourth

Census of Great Britain-24,029,584. 1832.-Reform of Parliament, June 7. Cholera in England. Sir Walter Scott died. 1833.-Publication commenced of "Tracts for the Times." 1884.-Slavery abolished. Duty on Almanacs

repealed.

1835. Morse invented Electric Telegraph. 1837.-Queen Victoria acceded to Throne, Jan. 20. 1838.-Coron, of Queen Victoria, June 28. Roy. Ex. burned, Jan. 10. First Afghan War. 1839.-War with China. Hong Kong taken,

1846.-Corn Laws Repealed. Railway mania. Famine in Ireland. 1847.-Commercial panic. Californian Gold Fields discovered. House of Lords completed. 1848.-Chartist Riots. Second Sikh War. Stephenson died, Aug. 12. Jenny Lind. 1849.-Cholera in London-over 14,000 deaths. Punjaub annexed.

1850.-Sir Robert Peel died, July 2. 1851.--Great Exhibition in Hyde Park. Gold discovered in Australia. Sixth Census of Great Britain, Mar. 31-27,368,736. 1852.-Duke of Wellington died, Sept. 14. New House of Com. opened, Nov. 4. Second Burmese War.

1853.-Vaccination made compulsory. 1854. Crimean War, Mar. 28; Alma, Sept. 20; Balaclava,Oct.25. Crys. Pal.opened, June 10. 1855.-Newspaper Stamp Duty abolished. Fall of Sebastopol, Sept. 8. 1856.-Peace with Russia, April 19. War with China. Roy. British Bank stopped, Sep. 4. 1857.-Indian Mutiny, May 10; Cawnpore,

June 28; Delhi, Sept. 20; Lucknow, Sept. 25. 1858.-Atlantic Cable first used. Donati's Comet seen. Princess Royal married, Jan. 25. 1859.-Volunteer movement. Breech - loading rifled guns invented. 1860.-Peace with China, Oct. 24. First ironclad (Warrior) launched. New bronze coinage. Seventh 1861.-Prince Albert died, Dec. 14. Census of Great Britain, April 8-28,927,485. Duty on paper abolished. 1862.-Second Great Exhibition. Great Cotton Turret warships introduced into

Famine. the Navy. 1863. King Edward VII. manied to Princess Alexandra of Denmark, Mar. 10. 1864.-Rioting in Ireland. Thames Embankment begun.

1365.-Dublin Exhibition. Cattle plague. Duke of York born, June 3. Lord Palmerston died, Oct. 18.

1866.-Commercial panic-Overend and Gurney failed. Atlantic cable re-laid. Great shower of meteors. 1867.--Paris Exhibition. Abyssinian War. Canadian Confederation. Fenian outrages. 1868. First armour clad (Monarch) launched, May 23. Magdala stormed, April 13. 1869.-Irish Church Bill, Mar. 23. Suez Canal

opened. Telegraphs taken over by G.P.O. 1870.-School Boards established. France

German War. Thames Embankment opened. 1871.-Illness of Prince of Wales, Nov. Bank

Holiday Act. Eighth Census of Great Britain -31,484,661. Purchase in Army abolished. 1872.-Irish cbstruction in H. of Com. Gold Coast ceded. Ballot Act passed. 1873.-Shah of Persia visits England, June 18, Great coal strike. Home Rule agitation. 1874.-Pub. Wor. Reg. Act passed. Gen. Elec. 1875.-Postal Union formed. Brit. Gov. pur

chased Suez Canal shares.

1876.-Queen Victoria prcclaimed Empress of India, April 28. Cycling the rage. 1877.-Russia-Turkey War. Phonograph and

Telephone invented.

1878.-Cyprus acquired. Transvaal annexed by England. Anglo-Turkish Convention. F'rincess Alice died Dec. 14. Berlin treaty. 1879.-Zulu War-Isandhlana, Jan. 22; Ulundi, July 4 Prince Napoleon killed, June 1; Cetewayo taken, Aug. 28.