The New York herald., 1873-08-16

cling to the old highways, which lead onward |
and upward. Let us avoid the byways and
backways which lead backward and down.
ward In the long run cautious conservatism
must win. The sdeath struggle ought not
to be experienced here unless we court it.
The summer and the Prospective Crops.
The Weather Bureau has recently 80 en-
larged the scope of its monthly review as to
make it new and noticeable as we'll as highly
useful record of the season. From that just
issued for the preceding month much may be
gathered in regard to the past Summer, bear
ing on the general meteorology of the country
and the prospective agricultural yield Of the
various sections. The July weather may be
said to determine, as far as meteorological in ]
fuences go, the crop conditions Of the United
States and hence the current weather review
is of unusual interest. It appears that the
rainfall in the South Atlantic and Gulf States
has been about the normal or average guam
tty, with deficiency in the Lower Mississippi
Valley, but the temperature has been but very
little, if anything, in excess through the cotton
belt. Cotton is decidedly sun plant, requir-
ing high Summer temperature although
not tropicaD, and never seems to be injured
by the most intense midday heat
When other crops ore whitening under
the blazing sun the large succulent
cotton leaves seem unaffected and rather to
court the congenial temperature. The extern
sive leaf surface of the plant from which
evaporation is very rapid, demands, however,
considerable moisture, not in the shape of
heavy rains (Which, especially after the plant
is advanced, rot the bolls and produce the
destructive sboll worm" and other insects and
cause the cotton to hang out in trailing and
draggled fhres), but in the shape of abundant
aqueous vapor suspended in the air. But
as these conditions are hard to realize dry
years are said to be emphatically those OF the
largest and best cotton crops. Combining
the June and July reports we find that in the
cotton belt there has been this Summer, 80 far,
an excess of rain varying from six and half
inches to SO of ON inch-an amount
by no means nconsiderable-while,u unfortu-
nately, we do not discover any compen-
sation by higher temperature; but, oh the
thermometrc range has been rather lower.
These conditions do not augur well for the
cotton crop, and the prospect is not bright
ened by the weather which has prevailed in
the cotton-growing region since the present
month began. Since that time numerous
heavy rains have been reported and several
days Of unusual thermometric depression, un-
der which the crop must have suffered. The
only portion of the cotton-growing districts
which has been exempted from these unfavor-
able conditions is that small portion lying on
its outskirts, in the lower valley Of the Missis-
sippi.
So far as the corn crop is interested in the
weather, taking both June and July, it appears
that the rainfall has been rather in excess in
the West and Northwest (although for July
it was in deficiency in the Northwest), and
this looks as if, at any rate, corn will be
abundant in the great corn-producing States
This is likewise true of the upper and
lower lake regions and New England but
otherwise in the Middle States, where, both in
June and July, there was, at O critical time q
deficiency of rain and disproportionate ther-
mometric excess.
In the valuable publication to which we
have alluded it appears that the mean latitude
of the tracks pursued by American storms this
Summer is forty-seven degrees north--a re-
markably high parallel compared with that
which they had previously pursued. These
interesting data--the chromo-hthographic
maps and the various other features, such as
river and ocean temperatures, river oscilla-
tions, prevailing winds, isobaric and isother-
NAL charts for the month-will prove of the
utmost utility TO all intelligent farmers and
merchants. They will, too, if properly devel-
oped and discussed, afford means for the fu-
ture prognostications-so long desired-of the
crop statistics of the United States.
The Railroad Power Capturins tho
Democratic Politicians.
A family war has commenced among the
democratic politicians of San Francisco. The
railroad power is the Mephistopheles that has
done the mischief. One convention of the
party-the legislative-has, it is charged, been
packed by the railroad monopolists and made
nominations for the Legislature in the interest
OF the railroads. The Municipal Convention
OF the same party is disguised and proposes
to make separate ticket, independent of
railroad influence. Expressions such as
packing the Convention" and "treacher-
ously selling out to the railroads ore freely
used. Democrats Of influence and holding