New-York tribune., 1900-12-23
HOTTEST YEAR IN THIRTY.
HIGHLY EXCEPTIONAL. WEATHER
RECORD.
WEATHER
THE HEAT sINGULARLT CONTINUOUS As WELL.
AS EXCESSIVE IN 1870

the weather throughout the greater part OF the
United states and, in fact all temperate lati-
tuoes' Is that il is unusual. ANY one who com
paFes the actual mean temperature for a month
WIN the average for thar month for the previous
thlrly or nifty years viii almost invariably, 5e.ec,
considerable excess or deficiency The Same is
roe OF the precipitation. The difference NAV ha
sNHA" and scarcely noticeable or il may be
lArse but II is practically always diseernIble
Not once IN a hundred times probably will either
'he average temperature or rainfall for four con-
secuufe weeks be exactly normal. And so. while
there is often a good deal Of extravagance in
popular comments on the weather. and especially
regarding the remarkable" character. il is
nevertheless the fact that it is always a little
warmer or a little colder and a little dryer or
httle Wetter than il ought to be-
THESE peculiarities are Offset a few months
later oy swing Of the pendulum in the opposite
direction Indeed, they are generally accom-
panied by a eompensating departure from the
normal either in some other part OF the country
or IN some other country. once in a while
though these deyiations from the standard are
conspicuous not only in amount but also in dura-
Ion And occasionally these will extend over a |
considerable area at one time. In these respects
the weather Of 1900 in the United States more
particularly in The eastern part and during the /
Iast nan of the year. has certainly been highly |
exceptional.
but these nearly balanced each other Janusr,
was mid, the average temperature in this city
Delng degrees higher than the normal while
Feoruary and March were colder than usual
Winter was late in coming but il came There
nave been severer cold snaps and heavier snow 4
falls, but the records show that over nearly the
whole region east Of the Missouri Valley the
temperature was abnormally low for two whole
months. Then the scales turned again April
and May were warmer than usual from the At
lantic seaboard TO the Mississippi exec u that .
the Gulf States kept pretty cool in ~ former
month Along the upper lakes in the Upper
Mississippi Valley and out in the Dakotas the
average excess was from 3 degrees TO : degrees.
Meantime, in England and France they were
complaining bitterly about their late spring. In
June there was excessive heat on the Atlantic
seaboari and beyond the Mississippi, but in the
intermediate region the temperatures We're
notably moderate not to say abnormally cool
Now ensued period Of hot weather which .
Is exceptional for continuity degree and the area
affected. In July the only spot east Of the
Rockies that did not experience excessive neat
was the southern part Of the eastern slope. In
August the same state Of things existed. In /
places the temperatures exceeded those Of tropi-
cal countries. During that month there was a \
notable lack Of tornadoes and thunderstorms 4
which always betoken a considerable drop Of the I
mercury. The region east Of the Mississippi suf- \
Tered lne worst IN september. The heat X
tended wei. up into Canada. Toronto reported /
that only Gn lSS1) since 1910 had such 4
high temperatures been recorded in that city |
During October the whole country this side Of
the Rockies was similarly afflicted, the average /
temperatures for the month in the upper lake \
region and Minnesota being Q degrees or 10 de-
grees above the normal. November showed some
mitigation Of the situation, and Yet the only
portion Of the United States where the heat \
was not abnormal was a strip along the Ca
madam frontier west OF Minnesota.
The returns all in for December and /
the cold waves that visited the East in the
second week Of the month went far toward wip-
ing out the temperature excess Of the first. 1t I
is 10 be noted, however that in Montana and /
the Dakotas, where the coolest weather is usu-
ally experienced, December has so far failed to I
match the November record Go degrees below
zero at Havre). The severest cold in the cur
rent month was recorded al White River On
tariO, in the lake region. This was IS degrees .
below zero. and New-YoTk's echo Of this event
was u degrees above, not very trying OF star
Ting experience
Omitting December from the calculation then,
because il is unfinished, il still remains true
that over a large part Of the country excessive
heat continued through five fun months The
series Of monthly balances the plus side Of the
accounf in NeH-York CITY n ADril. is