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The Barometer

Rules for judging of and predicting the State of the Weather by the Barometer.

The rising of the mercury presages, in general, fair weather, and its falling, foul weather, as rain, snow, high winds, and storms.

When the surface of the mercury is convex, or stands higher in the middle than at the sides, it is a sign the mercury is then in a rising state; but if the surface be concave, or hollow in the middle, it is then sinking.

In very hot weather, the falling of the mercury indicates thunder.

In winter, the rising presages frost; and in frosty weather, if the mercury falls three or four divisions, there will be a thaw. But in a continued frost, if the mercury rises, it will certainly snow.

When wet weather happens soon after the depression of the mercury, expect but little of it; on the contrary, expect but little fair weather, when it proves fair shortly after the mercury has risen.

In wet weather, when the mercury rises mucn and high, and so continues for two or three days before the bad weather is entirely over, then a continuance of fair weather may be expected.

In fair weather, when the mercury falls much and low, and thus continues for two or three days before the rain comes, then a deal of wet may be expected, and probably high winds. The unsettled motion of the mercury denotes unsettled weather.

The words engraved on the scale are not so much to be attended to, as the rising and falling of the mercury; for if it stands at much rain, and then rises to changeable, it denotes fair weather, though not to continue so long as if the mercury had risen higher.

If the mercury stands at fair, and falls to changeable, bad weather may be expected.

In winter, spring, and autumn, the sudden falling of the mercury, and that for a large space, denotes high winds and storms; but in summer it presages heavy showers, and often thunder. It always sinks very low for great winds, though not accompanied with rain; but it falls more for wind and rain together, than for either of them alone.

If, after rain, the wind change into any part of the north, with a clear and dry sky, and the mercury rise, it is a certain sign of fair weather.

After very great storms of wind, when the mercury has been low, it commonly rises again very fast.

In settled fair weather, except the mercury sink much, expect but little rain.

In a wet season, the smallest depression must be attended to; for when the air is much inclined to showers, a little sinking in the barometer denotes more rain. And in such a season, if it rise suddenly fast and high, fair weather cannot be expected to last more than a day or two.

The greatest heights of the mercury are found upon easterly and north-easterly winds; and it may often rain or snow, the wind being in these points, while the barometer is in a rising state, the effects of the wind counteracting its influence. But the mercury sinks for wind as well as rain in all other points of the compass.

New Method of Preserving Birds. (From the Annual Register.) When I receive a bird fresh taken, (says the author,) I open the venter, from the lower part of the breast-bone down to the anus, with a pair of scissars, and extract all the contents This cavity I immediately fill up with the following mixture, and then bring the wound together by a suture, so as to prevent the stuffing from coming out. The gullet or passage I fill, from the beak down to where the stomach .ies, with the mixture finer ground, which must be forced down a little at a time, by the help of a quill or wire: the head I open near the root of the tongue, with the scissars, and, after having turned out the brains, I fill the cavity with the same mixture. 5 R The bird being thus filled, must now be hung up by the legs to dry for two days, to let the spice settle; after which it may dry for two days, to let the spice settle; after which it may be placed in a frame to dry, in the same attitude as we usually see it when alive. In this frame it must be held up by two threads , the one passing from the anus to the lower part of the back, and the other through the eyes: the ends of these threads are to brace the bird up to its proper attitude, fasten them to the side of the frame, and place it on a chip pill-box.

It will now require no other support than a pin through each foot, fastened into the box: it must remain a month or two to dry. The eyes must be supplied by proportional glass beads, fixed in with strong gum-water.

The mixture is: common salt, one pound; alum, powdered, four ther. ounces; ground pepper, two ounces; all blended togeounces; ground pepper, two ounces; all blended together.