The Sun.
London, England, 1863-09-11 00:00:00

Destructive Hail Storm.

One of the most violent and destructive hail storms
known for a long series ofyears occurred a little before mid-
night on Wednesday last in the district of Reading. The
storm appears to have broke out in the neighbourhood of
East Ilsley, in Berkshire, and then to have taken a north-
easterly direction, doing in its progress an almost incalcul-
able amount of mischief. The lighting was forked, and the
flashes so vivid that the whole country around was lighted
up, presenting a scene of awful grandeur, and the crack-
ling thunder which followed was quite terrific, arousing
many from their slumbers, and producing quite an electri-
cal effect upon them. At Compton there were eleven sheep
killed by lightning in a flock belonging to Mr. John Brown.
The storm was heavy at Aldworth, beating down the grow-
ing crops of barley, bruising and breaking off the ears, and
thrashing the corn cut and lying in swathes in the field.
Messrs. Hammond, Godfrey, and others, are sufferers to a
considerable extent from injury to corn, but fortunately
some of them were insured in the Royal Farmers' Office.
At Basildon the storm was equally violent, but great pro-
gress has been made in the harvest, so that there were only
barley and oats in the field unearned. Of the uncut barley
and oat crop there is scarcely a vestige left that will pay
for the trouble of mowing and carrying, so much has it
been knocked about. The storm, or rather tempest—for
such it really was—passed on over the Oxfordshire hills,
and continued to rage with fearful violence, being awful in
the extreme. In its course crops were damaged, windows
broken, and houses completely deluged. On Thursday
morning hail was found in many localities to have drifted
along, and cart-loads were thus heaped together. At
Mapledurham, Oxon, the hailstones were found to be of
enormous size, and the sheaves of beans and oats standing
in the fields, were completely thrashed, besides doing
immense damage to unmown barley. On the farm
of Mr. J. Allaway, in that parish, the hail fell so thickly
that at sunrise next morning the ground was still covered
with it, presenting all the appearance of a winter's morn-
ing. The storm passed over Kidmere-end, near Peppard,
part of Shiplake, then it proceeded across Wargrave and
Ituscombe, going in an easterly course, at each of these
places the chief sufferers being farmers. In vat ious parts
there were rabbits, partridges, sparrows, and other small
birds discovered to have been killed by the hail. On the
whole, a large breadth of barley, oats, and beans appears to
have been destroyed, but scarcely any wheat, farmers
having, fortunately, carried this portion of their crop, or
their loss would have been very great. In nearly every in-
stance, it is gratifying to learn, the farmers have secured
themselves by insurance in the London office—the Royal
Farmers' Hail Storm Insurance.

VIPERS IN FRANCE.—The large increase of thess
reptiles in France, observed of late years, having
become serious enough to induce the Government to sug-
gest to the Councils-General of Departments the propriety
of voting a sum of money for their destruction, the follow-
ing report presented to the Society of Acclimatisation on
the subject by M. Leon Soubeiran acquires peculiar interest.
The vipers known in France are of three kinds—the vipers
pelias, the head of wnich is covered with smooth laming.
instead of scales; the vipera aspis, with scales all over,
and a truncated head; and vipera ammodytes, also
with a scaly head, but ending in a soft point.
Vipers are extremely irascible, and although they
usually take to flight at the approach of man, they will
sometimes attack and pursue him. They sometimes pene-
trate into h-uses, and especially dairies, whither they are
attracted by the milk. They will visit the sheds where
sheep and other cattle are kept, and also baking-ovens'on
account of the warmth ; but most frequently they Ire,fires.
intro-
duced into houses in the faggots used for
lighting fires.
and
They remain in a state of torpor duringetsil
the winter,
are most
make their appearance again in spring, when
creep
out of their
dangerous. In the morning they Sottapeptred ; hence the come-
h grass for their cattle at
nests until after the dew has disappeared,
try people take good care to cut
an early hour ; the broomm of the Lot taking the same
e they want. But
those most exposed to danger itrs brushwood
precaution in collecting
the
are reapers, since vipers love
to get into the sheaves
by eeflorder to lie in wait for rats. When
a person has been bit
be
a viper, a ligature should immedi-
wade above the wound to prevent the absorption of
ately
the virus. The wound should then be sucked either by the
patient himself, or by another person whose mouth is free
from any solution of continuity. Then, if the two minute
wounds inflicted by the fangs be perceptible, they should be
cauterised with a redhot iron; and if not, the place should
be rubbed with ammonia, or else butter of antimony may be
applied. Internally a glass of brandy may be taken, and even
repeated, with good effect. All further treatment must be
loft to the physician. The viper has many enemies, chiefly
crows, storks, hedgehogs, and pigs. The park of Chateau-
Vilain (Haute-Marne) being infested with vipers, the pro-
prietor put some wild boars into it, and in a very short
time there was scarcely a viper to be seen. But atter the
destruction of the reptiles the boars turned their gastrono-
mic talents to the investigation of the rich truffle-beds for
which the park was celebrated, and committed such havoc
therein that the proprietor had all the boars hunted down.
Immediately afterwards vipers re-appeared in such fearful
numbers that wild boars had again to be introduced. In
some departments sums have been granted for their destruc-
tion. In the Haute-Marne the council of the arrondissement
of Chaumont in 1856 voted 1,500 f for the purpose, every head
of a viper being paid 50c; the sum, however, proved quite
insufficient, the number of vipers killed being 17,415. In
1858 the number was 11,582, and the total amount in six
years was 57,045 vipers in that single department. The
destruction of this reptile, however, is best effected by
favouring the multiplication of crows and pigs.—aaleputee.
The Seine and the Marne are rising, to the great
satisfaction of local bargemen. The Seine, which had sunk
lower than the "oldest inhabitant" could possibly remem-
ber, is now SO centimetres above low water mark at the
scales of the Pent-Royal,