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should fall. It fell suddenly and decidedly, and the month closed with
thunderstorms and heavy rains. On the 19th, it was reported that the
weather at Limerick underwent a sudden change from tropical heat to
copious rain, with thunder, and lightning, followed by intense
cold--there were hail showers on the 24th. St. Swithin, true to his
traditional love of moisture, ushered in his feast, the 15th of July,
with a downpour of rain, and next day a fearful thunderstorm broke over
Dublin, followed by a deluge of rain. The same sort of weather prevailed
in almost every part of the country throughout July and August.

On the evening of the 3rd of the latter month, Mr. Cooper, of Markree
Castle, observed a most singular cloud, which extended itself over the
east of the range called the Ox Mountains, in the County Sligo,
accurately imitating, in shape, a higher range of mountains somewhat
more distant; afterwards an extremely white vapour, resembling a
snow-storm, appeared along the southern declivity of the range. Mr.
Cooper remarked to a friend at the time, that he thought this vapour
might be charged with the fluid causing the disease in the potato. The
friend to whom this observation was made, being a resident near those
mountains, Mr. Cooper requested him to make enquiries on the subject. He
afterwards informed him that on the same evening, or night, the blight
fell upon the whole of that side of the mountain, where they had
witnessed the strange appearance. It was noticed in various districts,
that some days before the disease appeared on the potatoes, a dense
cloud, resembling a thick fog, overspread the entire country, but
differing from a common fog in being dry instead of moist, and in
having, in almost every instance, a disagreeable odour. It is worthy of
remark that from observations made by Mr. Cooper for a series of years,
the average number of fogs for each year was a fraction under four,--the
night fogs for each year not being quite two. In the year 1846, the
night fogs were ten, the day two, being a striking increase of night
fogs, in the year of greatest potato blight in Ireland.[114]

On the last day of July, Lord Monteagle brought forward, in the House
of Lords, a motion for the employment of the people of Ireland, of which
he had given notice whilst the Peel Government were yet in office. He
gave credit to that Government for good intentions in passing several
Acts for the employment of the people,