Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1857-07-22

From Fulton to New York (Paciac '"''es
RR Report, vol. I, page los ,l......I .a35 miles
Total from New York 10 San
FRANCISCO ..-.--...-.........3,a ,ap7 miles
Thus, we see that, in point of distance either
TO Memphis or New York, there is but little
difference between these routes
| BY an inspection Of the general profile sheets
accompanying the Pacific Railroad Reports i,
! will be seen that the mean elevation Of the
| plateau of the Sierra Madre and Rocky Noun.
tains is about 1000 feet above the level Of the
sea near the 35th parallel, Albuquerque route. }
and near the 32d parallel (El Paso route) il is
about 1000 or 1900 feet, (Lieut Parkel giving
difference Of $500 or 5000 feet This differ
ence in elevation, ina climatologcal point Uf
| view is very important, as will be shown by
comparison of extremes OF climate On these
routes.
Next with regard ~ the climate of winter
| particularly along these routes. We present the
| following chilling facts:
| Albuquerque ROBte.-At Albuquerque accord
! ing TO the meteorological report Of the medical
| department Of the United States Arrny the max-
| inIum and minimum temperatures were for the
winter months OF lSi9-50: In December, 53o So;
January, i90-Iso;; February, 90 10 For 1891
! IN December, 5Zo-J~i January. 81 8; February
5So %. Jan and Feb. omitted. For 1923: In De-
Der, $50 pc; January, 65o l9'; February, co.
! l3'. For 1884 In December, So a0c; Janua-
Ty, 63o -; February, Go IJ0 And in Decem-
At Fort Defiance about 10 miles north Of Camp
oeiis Pass In latitude. and from 80 TO $40 feet
higher, the maximum and minimum tempera-
iure respectively were: For the month of Derem-
Der, 1851, 62o 40; Is inches snow. For 1928
In December. 50o 20; January. $50 e; Februa-
! ry, so 6o. For le53-i: In December, so e.;
Oh
December. 65o-lUO; January, 59o-l7o; February
| 6l0 ID. For 1856: December, 56c-25o; Janu.
ary 5iI,eoi February, 5lo-3o.
At Albuquerque, December, lSJ6, the max ,vas
CSC, min -; Rio Grande frozen over so as 10 be
passdble fIom 9TH to 18th. January 1857, max
650, min.-i0; on 9th, 10Th, and lth. The thermom-
eter stood espectively-3o-2o-4o February
1857, max 72o-min. 100
AT Fort Defiance, December, $50, the maximum
was ~; minilnum-l1o. On I'd, the thermometer
stood at p. ms; on the ID, at I. m. and .
p m-2'; on the ith at a. m.-l07; on the 5th.
at a. m.-6'; on the 9th, at a. NIL; on the
7th, at d. m.-7O on the Sth, at d. m.-lc; OF
the 10Th, at a. IN: 90; on the 18th. at a m.-9o
and at p. M.
For January. maximum 5io: minimum-II On
the OH, 10th and 11th, Thermometer stood al 7
4. m, ectvely-1o-lio-llo on the 10Th. al .
p. MP.
For February maximum was 60r: min-i2y
On December 18th, 1855, the thermometer at
the hospital al Fort Defiance gave a reading of
thirty-two degrees (32o) below zero at 9 \ a. IN.
portion Of the garrison. Two hundred yards dis
tdnt the mercury In January, 1cJ6. ranged from
four TO eight degrees below that at the hospital,
and there Is not the slightest doubt of the freez
ing of the mercury had the instrument been
placed in the more exposed situation OH the morn
ing OF December 18th, lo05. auUl5er Of uacn
on detached SeTrict had taetT haHdS ard f.st
frozen and some Jadly The mercury was below
zero four mornings in December. 1855; six NOM
ings in January, 1856; three mornings in February
and on the mornings of the lst and I'd Of March
Ii was below zero.
The table above will give fair idea of tine
climate OF tue country. Tue winter of loj5 and
1856 was more severe than any one known for
many years The UIHtry srCdther commenced on
fhs LIST Of NOreDlbsT, 1855, and EaS continued up
10 the present time (-M0Tci Ii, 1861 The X 20
Grande at Albuquerque was frozen over, and with
ice sufficiently strong to bear horse and carreta
Those Indians who live habitualy TO the north
OF Fort Defiance were obliged TO abandon that
portion OF the country and more south with their
hooks and herds In quest of grazing, on account
OF the depth Of SHor, which in the mountains al
whose base the Fort Is situated has orer ttco
teet an depth in March, 1856.
j. LetheTmar, Assistant Surg, u. 5. , S1lith-
Soatdn Report, lo55, p0gs 2S7.
On the 2ith of December, 1855, Capt Whip
pie experienced snow storms and weather suf-
fciently cold to contract the mercury ,!
deg. below zero near the San Francisco noun
tains, and still further west in the Aztec Pass
to p deg. below zero, when he experienced an.
other severe snow storm. So much for the eli
mate of winter on the Albuquerque route.
At Fort Fillmore, On the Ell Paso route, the
meteorological report above referred 10 shows
the minimum temperature at this place up 20
1854 to be but 10 degrees
AT Tucson, February, 1854, Lieut.. Parke re-
ports the minimum temperature 32 degrees
and ON one occasion Oh the San Pedro 10 be IL
degrees at Sunrises. We have searched in vain
every source of information, aud have yet to
learn that snow ever lies upon the plains near
the III PaSO route, or that the thermometer
ever descended below zero. The mean temper
ature Of winter at Fort Fillmore is about 10
deg. g. The mean temperature of winter at
Fort Webster, Copper Mines,) north of Ojo
de iG VOca, and $3.50 feet above the sea level.
is but Al deg. .; while at Fort Defiance, a csr-
responding position with reference to the Albu-
querque route, it is 2S deg. Z, and at Abuquer-
que il is 81 deg. AT Fort Yuma (mOuth Gila,)
on the FL Paso route, the mean temperature Of
winter is 80 deg. :.
We have thus clearly demonstrated by the
simple statement Of facts that in point Of dis
tance and climate the FL PaSo route has the
advantage; and We will now proceed to present
~N~A-S VI
this route possesses over all others.
In the first place, it passes through greater
range of cultivable country, well tmbered and
watered, east Of the Rocky mountains We
have alluded to the testimony Of Lieut.. Warren
and Col Emory, with reference to the limits of
arabic lands on the more northern routes We
will now call attention to the evidence of Capt.
John Pope, Top. Eng, who has been stationed
a long time in New Mexico. and has seen a
great portion of the plains between the 32d and
S9th parallels. In chap IL, Pacific Railroad
Reports, vol. ., speaking of the general char
acter Of the country along the sd parallel
route, he says
II" In glancing at the Typographical featuIes OF
the immense plains which extend westward from
the frontiers of Arkansas and Missouri the irst
great pecuiidrity which strikes the attention i
the remarkable interruption TO their vast nIonoto-
ny, presented by the belt of country between the
SD and 3ith parallels of latitude. The great de-