Q. What are cum’ulus clouds?
A. Cum’ulus clouds are lumps like great sugar-loaves,—volumes of smoke,—or mountain towering over mountain.
Q. Why are these monster masses called cum’ulus clouds?
A. From the Latin word, cum’ulus (a mass or pile).
Q. What do cum’ulus clouds foreshow?
A. When these piles of cloud are fleecy, and sail against the wind, they indicate rain; but when their outline is very hard, and they come up with the wind, they foretell fine weather.
Cumulus clouds should be smaller towards evening than they are at noon. If they increase in size at sun-set, a thunder-storm may be expected in the night.
Q. What are stra’tus clouds?
A. Creeping mists, especially prevalent in a summer’s evening: these clouds rise at sun-set in low damp places, and are always nearer the earth, than any other sort of cloud.