RUSTIC WEATHER WISDOM

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 5, 1 October 1919, Page 2

RUSTIC WEATHER WISDOM

■ 4— Rit going to.rain? • , . , ' ■The ehcpliei'd among his sheep or the labourer on the farm .will "not" hesitate in his renly to tho often-asked question. For tlie.se men of the fields are almost uncannily weathenvise. Their. barometer is not only tho moon, tho clouds, the stars, but also beasts, birds, insects, and weeds. .-.. , : ■' '■ : The following signs, among others, warn the countryman of .tho coming rain or storms:—

Tho shrill cry of th 6 peacock screaming from the farmyard j*ate. : A herd of cows lying in the meadow, instead of grazing in the pasture. Lambs, leaping and frolicking 1 ' •with extra vigour in the fold. Ducks balanced oil their,.heads in a pool witih only their .tails and a portion of their backs; appearing above the water-line.

Smoke ascending in a straight line from the cliimnoy.

The continued sound of croaking frogs from the ditches. / . The ahtajionistic condition of- bees round the liivc. " I The silence of singing birds ill the w : oods. .

The pimpernel on the banks with its scarlet blossoms- closed against, tibe onslaught of the storm.

Tho extra brilliance of the stni's (on tho evo of-rain). The haze around the moon. Spiders seeking refuge wiilllin the cottage or tho barn.

The ■ unusually distinct roar of '' the train heard from 'afar.' •'. . ' ,

The labourer in his home foretells if rain is near at hand by the clamminess of _ tho stair rail, the "limpness of This child's hair. Or, again, he seeks for information from the strand of seaweed hanging on the cottage wall' or from tho home-made Imromfcter on tho windows-sill whoso easy construction' is. n glass jar filled with water supporting the neck of an inverted bottle in its niouth. •'

.By • those- simple obsdrvations and methods the wise weather prophets of the countryside can answer our question; "Is it. going to rain?" witli almost unerring accuracy.—Sl.P.M., in the "Daily Mail,"