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About The Weather

About The Weather image
Parent Issue
Day
22
Month
April
Year
1885
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

BBJUmgMTOM OOHTIKI D. In 1849, the State Jouniul of Aun Aibor, of November 23d said : l Tlio weather lor a lew days nanf li.is be90 pxtremely cold for the soaso n. Wlnterwemi to have come npon us In good earnest. The prophecy of a New llnmpshire editor has thus far been fully verliled." Edwin Lawreuce, one of our respectcd citizens was editor of the Journal at that date. The samo papar says, J&nuiiry 4th, 1843: "Monday - New Year- was spont by raany of our ctltzens In mi lnlerchange of good feellng, by inaking the merry New Year cali. We uodertook the buuineNs about noon on foot (the times belug so hard that we could uot procure a conveyancej, but the weuther wa8 8oextremely boUterous and cold, that we 8oon concluded that any furtlnr cHoris on our part to discharge ho axreo ble a duiy would cost more than lt watt reiiHonably worth, and we haveonly tosuy, that lf auy ono leils h the least naglected. we herewlth tender hlra or her our most prolouud regrets.'1 Same paper of Febiuaiy 15, '43, says: "ItlBsnid by our oldeBt nhabllants that ther has not been for intiiiy years a winter in wliich so moota and ho nood slelghti.g was epeiienced In Michigan, lt will oom pare very well wlth a dowu-eat winter pxeepting two thlngs - we cau't k('I ''"I ahout (tne foot of snow and the theremometer won't eo riiu.ii below zero. If the snow were seven feet deep, and the thermometer down to forty degrees below zero, a8 they sometlmes have them In New EngUnd, we mlght complaln a Hule. But as tiilngs are here. we don'tsee why we inay not cali thls an excellent, winter - adapted allke to business and pleasure." The same paper Jamiaiy 31, 1844, says: " Wheat is now wonh 70 cents Last yoar at thls time it was worth U to :.O cents. "Hochesier, New York market, February 3. Klour,; beef, $1.50 tj $2.00 per 100 pounds. Pork.SI to84. "New York-Flour, $4.75 per bbl.; pork, 17.75 per bbl." The same paper, February 21, says: " We presume flner apples were never raised than were produced In thls county last siasou, 1S48, after the long and severu winter." Same paper of Murcli 13 : "Steamboals are ruuulng betweeu Detroit and Clevelauil." Th same paper of Mnrch 27, s:iv.-: " Lake Erle is free from ice, and tlieUhio and Pennsylvaniiicanals are already in operation." Tlie spriDg and fora part of the snmmcr of 1844 was exoeedlngly wet. The excitement in politics In 1844 overshadowetl all other intercsts, and the papers ilmost entirelj ueglected local mntters. The sanie paper of November 13, suys, that the " Wheat erop of 1813, followine the hard winter, was greater by ome mllllotis of bushels than was ever before ralsed in the Uolted States." Polk elected president 1844. Large crops every where that year. The winter of 1842-43, was reuiaikable for ts lengtli, and n almost uninterrupted snow storm from the 17th duy of Xovernber, 1842, until April, 1843. The winter was one of comparative uiildness, the mercurj', except a very few dayt, never falliiif; below zero, and, but for the suirering and loss of stock, would have been regarded as rather a pleasant winter. Thls loss was caused by the inadequate provisión made for them In the fall. Farmers not having had comparatively any expeiience with such win ten, provided only such supplies as had been iimnlv sufQcient for oreviuus winters, did not save thi'ir straw and coarse fodder, and tlie result was tbat before Maicli, nearly all fooi) for stock was exliausted, and starvation In many of the newly settled counties was the sud experiment. I tliink it safe to suy tliat the suffering and loss tliat spring was greater than from all otlier causes combined for the whole time the country has been settled. In tliia county, though there was considerable difficulty in carrying tl. o stock through, the loss was not so great as ia many other partí of the state. Some of our oldest and best farmers, however, wero put to great nconvenU'Dce to save their stock. Col. Örrin 'White, one among tbc lirst settlers in Ann Arhor, purchased sotne timbered land in Intfham cuuniy. He was obliired to drive all his young eattle to tliat county and cut timber to browse them, and thus save their lives. Gen. Edward Clark, inforni8 me, tliat soine time In February or March, he went with big team to St. Joseph county, to procure food to keep his horses from penthing. In many Instances struw beds were emptird to furnih food for stook. Straw trom stacks, two and three years old, was devouied with a relish. Mr. John Oowan, a rieh farmer of Sharon, told me a few days since, that he went with a team to St. Joseph county for rain, and was only able to procure a part of a load, and 011 his way home l)ourht at Marshall 40 bushels ot wheat screeninïs for which he paid a high price, and with that kept his stock through. The 9H0W furnislied good sleigliing for town meetinji. But the spring carne, and better crops were never ralwd in the state than In 1843. I think I may trutlifully say tliat tliat was the longMt winter, and 1884-85 the coldest oneever experieneed n Michigan by white people. I do not sny tliat the mercury has never been so low before, for tliat would not be true, for a record of the weather before me shows that the mercury has often recorded as low a eonilition of the weather, and even lower than on any day of 1885, hut unly for a day or two in succession, whereas in 1885, the severe cold continued for many days with se ircely a change. I will continue this subject in future numbcis of the Couiuer

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Subjects
Ann Arbor Courier
Old News