The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1881-07-16
ESTABLISHED Alb 1866.
Reading Signs in tho Sky.

Avery little practice will enable any:
body to read the language of tho clouds.
About eight years ago Luke Howard,
al English Quaker, whose business re-
qulred him to. take long walks in the
open air, completed classification Of
clouds that has over since been in gen
eral use. One Of the most wonderful
phenomena ever witnessed in the sky
was the great dry fog Of 1883, That over
| spread the whole of Europe and part of
ASA and America, reaching to the sum-
mits OF the Alps, and lasting from one
to three months, according to the local
NY. Tho greatest terror prevailed and
the end OF the world was thought to be
at hand.
Howard noticed that there arc three
principal kinds of clouds, which he call
ed cirrus, cumul,s, and stratus. ANY
body can see the difference between
( these clouds at n glance The cirrus is
tho highest of all clouds. You must
have often seen it in the form of white
filaments sometimes called "marcs' tails"
and "cats' tails" Stretched across the
blue sky like delicate lace work, it is
very beautiful. Travellers say that on
the summit of lofty mountains peaks,
from which they could look down upon
the heavier clouds, they have seen these
wlspy cirri fioating overhead, apparent
~ as far away rs when seen from the
earth. LII calm summer evenings, long
after sundOwn, these clouds may be
seen rejecting the most delicate tints Of,
color from the last rays of sunlight that
illuminate the higher regions of the at
mosphcrc. 49,.
The cirri are composed of little crys-
tails of ice. These clouds and their de-
rivatives cause the halos that are some
times seen about the sun and moon,
Cirrus clouds Indicate both storms and
clear weather, according to their ap-
pearance. If they appear in their most
delicate forms after stormy weather,
they arc sign TINT period of settled
weather is at hand When they show
themselves in parallel streaks after fair
weather has lasted for some time, they
are the first indication of approaching
change. Cirri, when greatly tangled
and knottcd, show stormy weather close
at hand. If their borders grow faint
and indistinct, there is rain coming. :.
| Cnmulus clouds are characteristic of
summer The farmers call them thun-
der heads when they poke their smooth,
white, rounded submits, glittering in
the sun like silver, above tho horizon.
In that form they are the forcrunners
of local thunder storms. These noun
tainous-looking clouds sometimes net
unlly exceed the greatest peaks of the
Andes or Himalayas in size. When
cumuius clouds appear in warm,
pleasant day, not very large, distinct
though soft in outline, and resembling
cotton balls, they Indicate continued
fair, dry weather. On the other hand,
when they grow larger, darker, and
more formidable looking they forctell
storms. Just before q rnin they some
times seem to throw off little fcccy
clouds around their edges. Goethe,
the great German poet, who was fond of
studying tho clouds, said that as long as
cumuli have sharply defined BORDERS md
n white color q continuance of good
weather may be expected. Cumulus
clouds often form soon after sunrise and
temper the heat of the summer day. If
they gradually disappear toward even
ing the weather will remain serene, but
if rs the sun goes down they grow dark
er and more numerous, then look out for
rain.
The stratus is most common ut night
and in winter They always appear in
the form of stripes or broad, low cur
tnins, covering more or less of the sky.
The night stratus is formed of mists
from swamps, rivers and moist ground.
1t generally rises and changes into
small cnmuli clouds on summer morn
mgs. The other kinds of stratus ap-
pcaring at considerable heights in the
fall, winter and early spring, is, rs I
have said, m invnriable forcr,mncr of
stormy weather.
These three kinds of clouds do not al-
ways appear in their simple forms.
They are frequently mingled together,
and four varieties Of these derivativc
clouds have been distinguished. The
cirro-cumulus consists of little roundish
white clouds, floating ut high elcva.
ton, and often resembling q flock OF
sheep resting upon tho blue background
Of tho sky. In winter these clouds fire..
qucntly appear before thaw. Between
summer showers they accompany in.
creased heat. They are common in dry
weather.
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