The evening times., 1896-04-17

For five long hot. sizzling days Old Sol
has been putting his rays straight over
the home plate, and the umpire has Deen
calling strikes on the Weather Bureau
This is the hottest OF the five, and at last
accounts the Official thermometer on top
of the bureau building, at Twenty-fcurth
and NJ streets was stIll climbing. IL Is
80 degrees in the cellar. '.t
Everybody is perspiring. Collars aud
shirt busoms that should be Immediately
white and St if flap weakly IN the breeze
hut out in Montana and the Dakolas, with
the thermometer at 6 degrees above zera,
they are wearing fur overcoats and putting
away ice. The festive Sioux has not yet
discarded his winter plug hat, aud, While
the residents or the District OF Columbia
are sweating their lungs out, the wicked
COWBOY in that section Is protecting his
beasts from the flying snow and warming
his own feet at fireplace. oh, for
ranch in the Northwest!
ABOVE THE NORMAL TEMP ERATURE.
The past five days have been the war.nest
ever experienced here at this season OF the
wear. All over tho central valleys and lake
regions and the New England and Middle
Atlantic States these meteorological condi-
tons have prevailed. The thermometer mas
registered 20 degrees above the normal
temperature in these sections.
An unusually 10 w pressure over the central
valleys. and high barometer in the other
sections have caused southeriy WINDS ana
produced the extreme heat.
The weather Bureau holds out faint
hone OF drop of at least or 3 degrees
by Sunday, however, and AFTER that Il
| cooler atmosphere. They don't dare prom
ise rain, though, and their forecast for
The District of Columbia and Maryland
until O'Clock tomorrow evening is Nery
| uncompromsing one, -,
They announce. cheerfully, that it Will
| he generally fair tonight and tomorrow,
with a slight fall in temperature, probably
cooler Saturday night and Sunday. South
westerly breezes will blow, becoming va
| riabIc. They can't be steady In such hot
weather.
The only place they've had any rain is in
| Senator PETERS district in Kansas.
| The District of Columbia is in the center
| of the low pressure area, and further south
! the temperature is from ten to twelve de-
! grees lower. n very unusual condition.
The street thermometers here register
several degrees above the instrument at the
Weather Bureau, owing to thelr exposure
to reflected heat
| The official thermometer is placed in n
! latticework cage on top of the Weather
| Bureau that protects it from the direct rays
| of the sun and any refra cted heat, so thar
| il registers only the temperature or the
| air. Those on the street however, are
| exposed to the reflected heat from the
| street and pavements. and really register
! the temperature to which pedestrians are
| exposed.
| THERMOMETERS AND SODA WATER.
Thestreet etthermometers have been largely
| consulted all day by perspiring humanity,
| and the lavishness OF the soda water trade
ill many of the down town drug stores was
dae to the patent influence of the thermome.
ter hung on the door-post. People never
| know how thirsty they are until they know
| how hot 1t is.
In spite of the heat, however, there were
no prostrations reported. This, too, is
| a rather unusual condition. Generally with
the first very hot wave there are number
| of people overcome by the heat, and often
| the results are fatal.
THE PRICE OF ICE.
With the jimp from March weather to
July, icemen are busy taking orders. and
everybody is considering the price OF con
denscd GOODNESS for the season. That is
| thousands Of housekeepers are. Big con
| sumers made their contracts weeks ago.
and are receiving their supply regularly as
wanted, careless Of combinations to raise
| prices and little concerned as to the supply
There is always plenty OF ice for Wash
| llStOu. iHt pi hi'ipti sooiNc VI SSpPiS q
the Maine rivers. aud not three times IL
half a century is the winter such that ar
unlimited crop cannot be cut. There are
too, plenty of boats, so that Transportation
need not be interfered with.
But with the coming of hot weather th:
combination of ice companies draws closer
Freight rates were advanced IA cents yes
;erday. big jump, and higher prices maj
be in order.
whats the price this year, asked
The Times reporter at an ice office this
morning.
Fifty cents hundred to house con
sumers,'' was the reply.
Cant I do better than that? There
no combination this year, is there, and tht
supply Is PLENTIFUL
] "No combination and no shortage. bu