The Sun.
London, England, 1867-07-24 00:00:00

The Weather and the Harvest.

We observed in our last that St. Swithin had
asserted himself incst unequivocally on the first of
his recognised forty days. The grain crops have
been a good deal knocked about, and here and there
laid to a considerable extent, by the weather of last
week, but we trust that St. Swithin, having so fully
vindicated his sovereignty at the commencement,
will be content to exercise a milder influence during
the remaining period of his legitimate reign. As
yet there is no reason to believe that the wet weather
has done any serious or permanent damage ; in-
deed, should fine and warm weather now ensue,
the late rains may prove to have been even more
beneficial than injurious. Some of the wheats are
already indicating by their altered colour that
the ripening process has begun, and that harvest
is rapidly approaching. So far as regards barley,
oats, peas, and beans, the rain has unques-
tionably whilst, as respects
thetu been
rnipandservriocoetablcer,ops,
they will reap
enormous profit, the long-continued dry weather
during the hay season having
made them feel the
want of moisture rather seriously. For these last
mentioned crops nothing could be more advan-
tageous than the late rains, and if we are only
blessed with bright suns and a warm temperature
there is no reason why our harvest should not fulfil
the ample promise our broad acres hold out. The
reports from the hop districts are by no means satis-
factory and rather conflicting. The showers have
come very opportunely, and are universally wel-
comed, but they have not, upon the whole, proved
so entirely efficacious as might have been wished.
In many places the rain has washed away the fly
and lice, but in others the vermin have held on, and
although the bine
has made progress, and looks of a
better colour, it seems scarcely able to stand against
its enemies. The high winds have proved damaging
in all exposed situations, and the young shoots have
been terribly battered. The burr has come out
kindly among the forward garchns, but the tempe-
rature has not been sufficiently warm either day or
night to force the plant on as one expects at this
period of the season.—Sussex Advertiser.

TUE REFORM LEAGUE AND THE PARKS QUES-
TION.—The Reform League held a soiree in Radley's Hotel
last night, in commemoration of their Hyde-park demon-
stration of last year. Mr. Whalley, 31'P''
and several of
the prominent members of the executive, wero present.
Mr. Beales, who presided, referred in strong terms to the
Royal Parks Bill. He said that unless the bill was altered
in committee the League would declare openly the most
determined hostility to it. They would not, as far as they
wero concerned, allow the right of public meeting to be
placed under the foot of the Government, or be sacri-
ficed to the fastidious judgments and whims of Rotten-
row. If there was to be a war of classes, which they had
anxiously endeavoured to avoid, let it come. To the park
they should go more determinedly than ever. Mr. Whal-
ley, after giving Mr. Beales and the League the credit of
having been the chief instruments in passing the Reform
Bill, denounced the introduction of the Royal Parks Bill
as an audacious attempt to deprive the people of one of
their most constitutional rights.
The election committee of Mr. Bazlcy and Mr.
Jacob Bright met on Monday, and resolved to bring foward
those two gentlemen in combination at the next election
for Manchester.