The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1912-04-20
NO SUMMER THAT YEAR.

out the United States and Europe
as the coolest ever experienced by
any person then living. There are
persons i'm northern New York who
have been in the habit Of keeping
diaries for years, and it is from the
pages Of an old dairy begun I'M 1910
and kept unbroken until 1910 that
the following information regarding
this year without summer has been
taken:
January was so mild that most
persons allowed their fires to go
out and di' not burn wood except
for cooking. There were a few cold
days, but they were very few. Most
of the time the air was warm and
spring-like. February was not cold.
Some days were colder than any in
January, but the weather was about
the same. March, from the first to
4
the sixth, was inclined to be windy.
1t came in like small lion an.
went out like a very innocent sheep.
| April came in warm, but as the
days grew longer the air became
colder, and by the first of May there
was a temperature like that of win
ter, with plenty of snow and ice In
May the young buds were frozen
dead; ice formed half an inch thick
on ponds and rivers corn was kill
ed and the cornfields were planted
again and again, until it became too
late to raise crop. By the last of
May in this climate the trees are
usually in leaf and birds and flow
ers are plentiful When the last of
May arrived in 1916 everything had
been killed by the cold.
| June was the coolest month roses
ever experienced in this latitude.
Frost and ice were as common as
buttercups usually are. Almost ev-
cry green thing was killed; all fruit
was destroyed. Snow fell ten in
ches deep in Vermont. There was
a seven-inch fall in the interior of
| New York State and the same in
Massachusetts. There were only a
few moderately warm days. Every
body looked, longed and waited for
warm weather, but warm weather
did not come.
1t was also dry, very little RAIN
fell. All summer long the wind blow
steadily from the north in blasts la
den with snow and ice. Mothers
knit socks of double thickness for
their children, and made thick nit
tens. Planting and shivering were
done together and the farmers who
worked out their taxes on the coun-
try roads wore overcoats and nit
tens.
A farmer near Tewksbury, VT,
lowned large field OF corn. He
built fires. Nearly every might he
and his men took turns in keeping
up the fire and watching that the
corn did not freeze. The farmer was
rewarded for his tireless labors by
Having the only crop OF corn In the
lregion.
| July came in with snow and ice
lon the fourth of July ice as thick
| as window glass formed Throughout
New England, New York and in some
, parts of Pennsylvania. Indian corn
which In some parts of the East hat
l struggled through May and June
gave up, froze and died.
,, To the surprise of everybody, Au
} gust proved the worst month of all
Almost every green thing in thi
. country and Europe was blaste'
< with frost. Snow fell at Barnet. 8
= miles from London, England, on Au
gust 30. Newspapers received fron
ENGLAND stated that 1916 would be re
lmembered by the existing genera
. ton as the year in which there wa
, no summer. There was no SUMMED
There was great privation, an
thousands of persons would hav
persisted in this country had it nc
been for the abundance Of fish an
wild game.
II /