A SOUTHERLY BLOW.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 907, 29 August 1910, Page 4

A SOUTHERLY BLOW.

LADY ISLINGTON IN THE WIND. At the Ministerial reception accordcoV to Lady Islington at the Town. Hall on Saturday 'afternoon, her Excellency, in the course of a charmingly-expressed speech, said that one of two things she had been told of in connection witli New Zealand was that the sun was always shining. There had been some dull hours since she arrived, and she had that morning been blown over twice in trying to gain the top of a hill. Those who favour walking as an exercise and a tonicthere better—know with what force a. go'od southerly blows on the top of the range, of hills which extend from Mount Victoria to Lyall Bay—at ■ times so hard that it becomes impossible to breathe without turning one's back upon the gale.- At the same time* observershave noted that the prevalance of such galos in tho winter time is not nearly so pronounced tas it was a quarter of a century, ago. Indeed, there are among th» older residents of this city who declare that the general meteorological conditions of .Wellington have undergone a distinct change for the-.better during the period mentioned. If the past two winters—and summers for that mattercan be taken as a criterion, Wellington has been extremely fortunate. Saturday's and yesterday's blow was plainly foretold by a rapidly-falling barometer on Friday last. The gale reached its height yesterday morning (when anyone would have been excused from being blown over on the top of the hills), and much rain fell between a late hour on Saturday and mid-day yesterday, when a courageous sun shone out for an hour or so to givo warmth.and promise of better things to the | busy buds of early' spring.