"In the winter months, as well as in other parts of the year, there are falls of rain, and heavy gales from N.N.W., and west,
which last frequently for the whole moon, with scarcely a cessation, and the wind, at times, is so furious, that the houses are not secure, and the largest trees are torn up by the roots. The weather, when it is fine, cannot be depended upon for any length of time; not even in summer; for in the month of January I have frequently experienced gales, and rain, as severe and copious as in the winter. During the summer months southerly winds are more prevalent, and, while they last, the weather is fine, and clear, and the air particularly dry.
"Although the winter months, and a considerable part of the other seasons, are very disagreeable, owing to the severity of the winds, and exceeding quantity of rain, it cannot be denied that the climate is healthy. In Chilóe no epidemic diseases are experienced. The small-pox and measles are not known;[[160]] nor have tertian fevers, so common in the north, ever been experienced on the island. Spotted fever (tabardillo), and acute pains in the stomach, are the only disorders to which the inhabitants of this archipelago are subject. Thunder and lightning are rarely experienced; but earthquakes have occurred at intervals. In the year 1633 the church and houses were destroyed, and in the year 1737 much damage to the village of Isla grande was caused by earthquakes."
So far Agüeros. On the whole, the climate is not so unfavourable as we had been led to expect from all that we had heard.
Captain Fitz Roy arrived there in July, during the latter part of which, and the month of August, the weather was very wet, with some heavy gales from the N.W.; but in his Meteorological Journal for those months there is no record of the thermometer falling below 38°, and it is recorded to have fallen to that degree only on one occasion, the general height being from 45° to 50°. The first part and the middle of September were boisterous and wet; but towards the end of the month the wind was chiefly from the southward, and the weather dry and
extremely fine. In October it was rather changeable; but for the last ten days, with the exception of one, on which there was a fresh gale with a heavy fall of rain, it was fine and dry, and the winds were moderate.
The month of November was generally fine, but the first half of December continued tempestuous and wet. The mean temperature of the months, and other meteorological remarks, are as follows:
| 1829 | Temperature | Pressure reduced to 32°. | Hygrometer (Daniells') | No. of Days | Rain | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Months | Mean at 9 A.M. | Ex. of Temp. | Dew Point. | Dew Point less than Air. | Expansion. | Dryness by Thermo. Scales. | Weight of a cubic foot of air. | Fine. | Rain. | Quantity fallen. | Quantity evaporated. | Remaining in the gage at end of month. | ||||
| Air | 3 P.M. water at anch. | Max. | Min. | |||||||||||||
| July | 22 days | 46.9 | 47.9 | — | — | 29.927 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Aug. | 31 ... | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Sept. | 30 ... | 47 | — | 64.5 | 35.2 | 30.061 | 40.9 | 6.18 | 296.9 | 806.2 | 3.3854 | 7 | 7 | 1.68 | 0.48 | 1.2 |
| Oct. | 31 ... | 50.9 | — | 73 | 37 | 29.979 | 45.8 | 5.14 | 349.8 | 845.0 | 3.9575 | 21 | 10 | 4.22 | 2.25 | 1.97 |
| Nov. | 30 ... | 53.5 | — | 68.5 | 42 | 29.898 | 48.4 | 4.79 | 416.2 | 844.5 | 4.3361 | 14 | 16 | 4.89 | 2.28 | 2.61 |
This table partly shows the state of the weather during three spring months. The greatest quantity of rain in the gage at the end of the month of November did not exceed 2.6 inches. At St. Martin's Cove, near Cape Horn, after thirty days' observation, the rain-gage contained eight inches; so that although Chilóe bears the character of being a very wet place, it is not one-third so bad as Cape Horn. The time of our visit to San Carlos was certainly the finest part of the year; and I believe that the weather we experienced was unusually dry even for the season; therefore, the above table does not present a fair criterion of the climate: I do not, however, think it is by any means so bad as has been represented.