Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1902-08-07
TIE SUMmERLESS YEAR.
Scrap Book Testimony as to the Re-
marka BILE w Gather in 1915.

The recent phenomenal weather, says the
Washington Post, has caused an old friend
to send an extract from a scrap book pre-
served in his family Of the remarkable
summer of 1916 1t is known in history as
the "cold summer of lSl6,' The sun seem, d
to be de> old Of heat and all nature was
clad in gloom The people We're brighten, d
and imagined that the fire in the sun was
being rapidly eXtngushcd, and fears W, re
entertained of the approaching end of all
things sermons were preached upon the
subject in all the churches. and scientific
men OF the day talked icarnedly in efforts
to explain the strange phenomena.
The winters of lSl5 and 1916 We're very
cold in Europe. but opened comparatively
mild in our country. January was very
mild and February gave no indication OF
the coming wintry aspect which succeeded,
land which rendered the remaining months
Of the year unlike any summer that had
preceded it within the memory Of the then
oldest inhabitants"
Alrll began with warm and bright sun
shine, but as tho month drew to "A close the
cold increased and it ended i'm ice and snow
aud very wiutry temperature. In May
the early buds were soon hldCkelIed by the
frost, and in one night during the first two
days of May the corn was killed and fields
had to be made ready for another planting,
but that was prevented by the extreme
cold. Ice formed to the thickness OF haitian
inch through AL the fields.
| June was a month of ice and dcsolation.
with the thermometer below the freezing
point, even in the southern latitude, and all
renewal of planting was abandoned Frost,
ice and snow Were common throughout the
country, every green thing which had
awaited itself during the few days of sun
shine to deN elop, persisted in the frost and
all kinds OF fruit were destroyed
| In Vermont snow fell to the depth of ten
inches during that month; seven inches of
snow in Maine and three inches through
out Mussa chusctts and central New York
July was accompanied by frost and ice
and on the glorious Fourth an abundance
of ice was found in the streams and pools
as far south as Virginia, That month the
Indian corn was entirely destroyed in al
hut the far Southern portion of the coun-
| try, and even there but a small quantity
| escaped.
| August, which II was hoped would end
the cold weather. soon dispcllcd that hope
il was even more cheerless than the
months which had preceded It. Ice formct
even thicker than in the preceding month
and the corn was 80 badly frozen that il
| was cut for fodder, and almost every greer
plant was destroyed. The news received
from Europe contained the intelligence,
that like conditions existed there la many
parts.
The papers received from England stated
that the year 1915 would be remembered FOL
a generation as the year in which there
was no summer. What little corn ripcneC
was worth almost its weight In gold. Far
mers were compelled to use the corn grow
In 1915 for planting in the spring of 1877
Seed never cost so much it was ohtainco
with great difficulty ard at a cost of 81
.hushol, The last month Of summer opened
bright and warm and was the mildest o
the year hut the expectation Of returnin.
siimmer was soon dispsllleh.
on August 16 ice formed everywhere, AM
winter clothing. which had been laid asid
q few days before. was ag1in brought fortl
to protect the people from the wintr!
wea her. October kept up the reputatto,
of its predecessors. as there was scarce!
; a day during the whole month that tn
thermometer rose higher than 30 degrees
3 November was extremely cold but, strang
to say, December was the mildest and mos
{ comfortable month Of the entire year
OF course the cold spell caused bread
stuffs To rise TO an unheard-o price, am
II was impossible to obtain the ordinar
vegetables for table use, az what were OF
sale were required for seed Flour sold II
1917 in the cities for sl2 s-er barrel