Observatory during 1841 to 1844—a period of four consecutive years; and the average annual number of wet days was set down at 185 days, or a little over one-half the year, this last conclusion being drawn from the observations of broken periods as below:—
| During 1820 there were | 229 wet days* |
| During„ 1821 there were„ | 203 wet days„ |
| During„ 1824 there were„ | 136 wet days„ |
| During„ 1825 there were„ | 171 wet days„ |
| 789 wet days„ | |
| 185 average of 4 years. |
but searching for information on this point, I am enabled to fill up the break, and we have:—
| During 1820 there were | 229 wet days[1] |
| During„ 1821 there were„ | 203 wet days„ |
| During„ 1822 there were„ | 218 wet days„ |
| During„ 1823 there were„ | 208 wet days„ |
| During„ 1824 there were„ | 136 wet days„ |
| During„ 1825 there were„ | 171 wet days„ |
| 1,165 wet days„ | |
| giving 194 as the average of 6 years. |
It would appear, that during the early days of the Settlement, which only dates from 1819, from want of a rain guage (due to the difficulties attendant on first occupation, and of getting things from India), all that was attempted, was, to keep a register of the readings of the thermometer and barometer (which every ship carried), and a note only made of the number of fair days and wet days. The earliest record of a register of rainfall that can be traced is that of 1835.
It is, however, interesting to note that the accepted average annual rainfall of 1841 to 1814, has not been affected notwithstanding the extensive clearing of forest that must have taken place during the past forty years, for the average of Mr. KNIGHT's register (Table III.) keeps a little above it, viz., 93.91 inches, while the
- ↑ By wet or rainy days, is understood days on which rain in more or less varying quantities from one hundredth of an inch has been registered.
