Early Cold Snaps

"We're havin' some pretty wintrisl weather," said old Daddy Wotherspoon to Uncle Sammy Homiiwell, as the two gentlemen met near the city hall yesterday, "ïtight for'ard weather lor the season." "Jist so; jist so," conceded TJncle Sammy. "Reminds me of the fall 01 1831. It [commenced 'long the fore part part of November and froze stif 1 ill Maren. Good, smart weather, too I remember tliat it was so cold in Brooklyn that November that bilin water froze over a hot flre." Daddy Wotherspoon looked at him and braced himself. "Yes, yes," said he, "1 mind it well. ïhat'sthe fall that the milk froze in the eows. But the cold season was in 1827. It commenced in the middle of October and ran through to April. All the oil froze in the lamps aud we didn't have a light untilspiing set in." "Ay, ay," responded Uncle Sammy, growing rigia. "ltsjust hKe yesterday to me. 1 walked a hundred and forty miles due east from Sandy Hook. on the ice, and slid back, owing to the convexity of the earth, you know. It was down hill coming ihis way. But that wasn't as cold as the winter of 1821. That season commenced in September and the mercury didn't rise a degree till May. Don't you remember how we used to breathe hard, let it freeze, cut a hole in it and crawl in for shelter? You haven't forgotten that?" 'Not I, said Daddy Wotherspoon, dfter a short pause. That's the winer we used to give the horses melted ead to diink, and keep a hot flie under 'em soit wouldn't harden till they got it down. But that was nothin' to the spell of 1817. We began to feel it n the latter part of August, and she womed stiddy till the 30th of June. got through the whole speli by livng in an ice house. It was too cold to ;o out doors, and I jist camped in an ce house. You remember that season f 1817 ? That's the winter we wore undershirts ot sand paper to keep up a frictlon. "Well, I should say I did," retorted Uncle Sammy. "What! remember 1817? 'Deed I do. Tbat was the spell that it took a steam grindstone four days to light a matcb. Ay, ay! But do you know I was uncomortably warm tbat winter V" "How so ?" demanded Daddy Wothrspoon, breatliing hard. "itunnin' around your ice house to nd out where you got in. It was an wful spell though. How long did it ast ? From August till the 30th of une. Iguessyou're right. Rut you mind the snap of 1813, don't you? It ommenced on the first of July and vent around and lapped over a week. 'hat year the smoke froze in the liimneys and wehad to blast it out vith dynamite. I think that was the worst we ever had. All the clocks 'roze up so we didn't know the time !or a year, and when men used to set ïre to their buildin's so's to raise the rent. Yes, indeed, I got three thousand dollars a month for four burnin' buildin's. ïhere was a heap of suffering that winter, because we lived on alcohol and phosphorus, till the alcohol froze, and then we eat the brirnstone ends of matches and jumped around till they caught flre, Say you But Daddy Wotherspoon had fled. 'be statistics were to much for him.