CLIMATE. 123 In , the seasons have generally, though erroneously, been reduced to two, summer and winter. The space between winter and summer is, indeed, too short to claim the appellation of spring, in the sense understood in England ; but the duration of autumn is as long as in countries under the same latitude in , and is, over the whole continent of , the most agreeable season of the year. The climate of is colder in winter, and hotter in summer, than under the same parallels of latitude in , and the daily variations of tempe¬ rature, which depend on the winds, are also greater ; but the transitions from dry to wet weather are by no means so sudden as in England ; and we may always tell in the morning whether it will be fair all day or not, except in the case of thunder showers, which come on frequently, during hot weather, in the evening, when not the smallest appearance of a cloud can be seen before mid-day. The trade-winds, which drive the vapours of the into that vortex of suction, the , spread afterwards into currents, and blow in different directions, as diverted by the inequalities of the islands and continent of . These winds are warm ; those blowing from the northern regions, cold and piercing. Rain falls in in heavier storms, and in greater quantities, than in , but not so frequently. The summer season may be said to commence about the middle of April, or as soon as the ice disappears in the bays and rivers. In May, the weather is