National Republican., 1883-08-13
SUMMER WEATHER.
Is There Fixed Law OF Thermal FluO-
tuntions.
Nan York Hernld.

Ia There Fixed Law OF Thermal FluO-
tuations.
Ne,p York Herald.
The late extraordinary period of cool
weather is good illustration Of tho fact
that, despite the suns position, the weather
asserts its disposition TO run in certain
grooves at particular periods of the year.
From the second to tho eighth instant steady
movement Of cold air with high pressure was
maintained from the northwest to the At
lantic seaboard, and May temperatures pre-
vailed.
This apparently arbitrary turn of the sea-
son Isl confirmation Of the conclusion reached
by the Scottish meteorologist Buchan, after
analyzing a large mass Of meteorological
ecords, that from year to year, with very
rare exceptions" there occurs 'cold period"
from the sixth to the eleventh of August.
This interruption in the annual march of
temperature is of no little moment to agricul-
turists when their crops are ripening, es-
pecially as 1t Is ushered in by heavy rain
storms. Although Buchans deduction rests
OH British statistics it is probable that it holds
good for other parts of the northern hemi-
sphere besides his own.
Mr.. r. A. Proctor, in examining the Green.
witch thermal observations for the long period
of forty three years, found that the tempera-
ture curve rises in the last half of July, but
then begins to fall rather sharply, the fall
being less rapid after the tenth of August, in
stead of more rapid, as we might fairly ex-
pect."
In the United States, though the data for
testing the existence of this "cold period'
arc not SO full as those of Greenwich, there
appears to be distinctly marked repression
of temperature in the first week of August
followed by a decidedly warm period' in
the second week. On tho 9th of August,
this country, which the signal bureau re-
ported "was accompanied by cold weather
that lasted through the first week Of August
over the country east of the Mississippi.
At the same period of the following August
hail fell in from ten to fifteen States, and
on the Sth minimum temperatures Of
81 and 20 degrees were reported from
Santa Fe and Pixies Peak respectively.
In the first week of August, 1879, frost
occurred in the northwest and ice formed on
Mount Washington, while in Canada the ther-
! mometer fell rs low as 43. Between the Sec
| ond and seventh of August 1880, the govern
ment reports show "the minimum tempera-
| lures of the month" occurred over Lake
Michigan, the Ohio valley, and "from the
Mississippi to the Rocky mountains" On
the sixth of the succeeding August (1o51 the
| first frost of the season was reported from
Minnesota, the mercury falling to 36 in the
| northwest and 55 in the lower lake region.
Last year this cold spell seems to have been a
| little belated but from the eighth to tho
tenth of August it passed over the country
and was attended "by decided fall of tenn
perature," which the official data show ranged
from 10 to Is below the normal in the
northwest"
These statistics abundantly prove that this
abnormal huctuation of heat discovered by
| han In tha iah oli fa 10
visible in our own weather records. If the
"cold period" Is due in northwestern Europe
| be tween the sixth and eleventh of August il
would follow that the polar winds which
cause it there would reach our Pacific coasts
about the same dates, or possibly. a little
earlier. For, as the north Atlantic opposes
to the flow Of polar air, southerly winds of
higher temperature than those of the north
Pacific, the chilling effect would be sooner
realized in this country than in Europe. If,
therefore, future and fuller investigations
show that the decline of temperature noted
in Europe at this period is generally observed
at nearly the same time over the middle lati-
tudes Of all the northern continents, as they
probably will show, the science of weather
prediction will have gained an insight into
the working of the seasons which will greatly
facilitate forecasting the general weather
conditions over tho whole continent, and
for longer time ahead than Is now possible
ally 'warm period" in the second week OF
August is as strong as that for the antecedent
cold spell. This warm spell in western Eu-
rope begins apparently little later than il
does in America. Mr.. Buchan's figures fol-
Scotland place it between the twelfth and
fifteenth. Between these, precise dates In
1877 there was marked rise of temperature
in the United States, which in the Atlantic
states was registered as ''above the mean fol
the month" In August, 1873, tho weather
reports show that "the maximum temperature
Of the month" occurred in portions of the fai
west on the eighth, as also was the case OF
the eighth of August, 1876, when the ther
mometer rose to 1869 in Dakota On
the eighth and ninth of August
1874, the government reported: "From
Nebraska and Iowa southwark to the gull
states the temperature continued rising, and
thermometer readings varying from 1902 tC
1869 were reported for several days" On the
same dates of 1875 the hottest weather o
August occurred at some points in the ives
and northwest and high temperatures a day
or two later in the east. The appearance o
such warm spell between the seventh ant
fourteenth of August in the years following
1873 has been sufficiently we'll marked t,
prove that, however cool our wea ther may b.
in the outset of this month, the thermomet
ric reaction is speedy, and that the agri
culturist may dismiss his fears that the hea
of late summer will be insufficient to mature
his crops.
A warm period" is now in all probabilit,
approaching, as we might fairly expect from
these exhibits of the heat fluctuations in pre-
ceding summers. The important crop of In
dian corn is still backward in the northwest
and needs higher temperatures than have re
Gently prevailed to ripen it fully. But ther
is probably time enough before any seriou
frosts take place in that section for this crol
to mature and for an improvement of tn
general harvest prospects of the northern
sections of the country. That the remission
of the great anti-trade wind currents, whicl
bring lis summer heat and moisture, has no
yet taken place is evidenced by the fact tina
the tropical storms which are simultaneou
with their remission have not yet set in wit
force. We may, therefore, expect one or tw
more spells of decidedly high temperatur
before the season closes, and lateness in tn
autumn which will be particularly favorabl
to southern agriculturists.
An Honest Grip.
Exchange