There was another earthquake at Kar Nicobar in November 1899, when strong, but not alarming, shocks, lasting ten minutes, were experienced. The last occurred on September 18, 1900, when two heavy and severe shocks, each lasting five minutes, were felt throughout the island, but caused no damage. The climate of the Nicobars is more uniform than that of the Andamans, for it is less diversified by wet and dry seasons, heat and cold, and in this respect resembles that of the Malay Peninsula at the same latitude. The prevalence of malaria renders the group unhealthy alike for foreigners and, in certain localities, for the natives, and all the attempts at settlement have resulted in great mortality from this cause, although where jungle exists an improvement is said to have taken place when the land has been cleared. The average mean annual temperature is about 82.5°, the maximum in the shade between 93° and 94° and the minimum 73°. March and April are the hottest months, with means of 82° and 83° and a maximum of 89°, while August to December--when the mean temperature is 79°--is the coolest part of the year. The mean annual temperature at Nankauri is 80°, and while the highest reading recorded is 99°, the lowest is 70°. The mean diurnal range there varies between 9° and 11° only. Although the seasons of the monsoons are the same, they are not so well defined among the Nicobars as on the coast of the Bay of Bengal generally; but heavy rains occur in May, June and July--when the south-west monsoon is at its height--and rains rarely cease until December. March is the driest month, and while from May to December there is an average monthly rainfall of 12 inches, with twenty wet days per month, for the rest of the year the monthly average is only 2.9 inches, with showers on twenty-six days only. At Nankauri the mean humidity is 79 per cent, and the annual rainfall 110 inches; while, as regards the southern group of islands, there is good ground for the belief that much more rain falls, probably not less than an average of 150 inches annually; this is doubtless attributable to the forest-clad mountains of Great and Little Nicobar. The prevailing winds are the monsoons--the south-west from the beginning of May till mid-October, followed by variable winds to the end of the year; the north-east monsoon from January until April, with an interval of more variable winds before the other sets in. Hurricanes seldom visit the islands, but in March 1892 the central group was subjected to a cyclone which caused much destruction in the forest. During the south-west monsoon frequent thunderstorms and gales of wind occur, especially in the vicinity of Great Nicobar. The north-east monsoon brings fine weather, but sometimes blows with considerable strength.