Page:Haiti- Her History and Her Detractors.djvu/309

 Rh and are dotted here and there by country residences. Here the temperature at night is considerably cooler than in the city, and the absence of mosquitoes constitutes one of its greatest charms. Heavy rains cleanse and cool the atmosphere. The climate of Haiti has long been known for its healthiness. Moreau de St. Méry has said the following about it: "The great diversity of the climate and temperature of the island is owing to its configuration of alternate lofty mountains and deep valleys. This diversity is due chiefly to the situation of the island in the region of the trade-winds; Saint-Domingue is exposed in all its length to the east winds, which, entering into the spaces between the mountain-ranges, form channels of air which serve to cool the temperature of these mountains, an advantage not enjoyed by the plains, where the mountains sometimes deviate the winds. Apart from these causes many local circumstances, such as the altitude of the land, the quantity of water which irrigates it, the scarcity or the abundance of forests, affect the climate greatly.

"If a powerful cause did not counteract the effect of the heat of the sun, which is always intense in the torrid zone, and whose beams during three months of the year fall at right angle on Saint-Domingue, the temperature of this island would be unbearable to man. &hellip; That which causes this counteracting effect is the wind to which allusion has just been made and whose healthful coolness tempers the heat of the sun. To this can be added the influence of the equality in duration between days and nights and also the influence of the abundant rains which water profusely the surface of the island and have a cooling effect on the air through evaporation caused by the heat. &hellip; The difference between the two seasons (summer and winter) is more distinguishable in the mountains than in the cities. In the mountains the temperature is a