Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-03-09
3 MORE SNOWSTORMS,
SAYS s. MOKEMACHER,
AS BLISS STDESTEPS
Aged Andalusia Prophet
Stands by His Onions,
Bristling With Proof Of
Storms to Come Ere
Winter Ends.

'.rhere'il be three more snow storms er,
the winter ends"
Old Simeon NJ. Mokemacher made thii
remark this morning after he had spen
fifteen minutes in his private garden
hedged In BY tangled sapings cunninsly
planted BY Mokemacher and even more
cunningly interviewer by nature. The
garden Is situate few miles from Anda.
luslaa Pa. II is reached by a clrcultous
path that winds through dense under
growth and sometimes is completely
hidden.
The old prophet had just been told
what George s. Bliss, local weather fore
caster, had to say about snow. The Of
hciai predlcter was asked IL he thinks It
win snow any more this year. He laughed
a short, sarcastic laugh and replied:
''Nobody can foretell snowstorms but
goosehone and grounding weather
prophets'
'Theunderation." calculated Moke-
macher when this was repeated to him.
I'm not goosebone and I'm not
Rroundhog The asseveration OF the Of
fetal weather forecaster Is no reflection
on my system, so why should ] resent 1t.
simply stand by my onions. Mr.. Bliss
can't tell whether IT will snow three times
more or not. Take out your little note
book, young man, and mark 1t down
three more SHOWS ere winter ends"
Mokemacher has what he claims TO Re
an infallible system for prophesying the
weather. He says It is a simple system,
and today he consented to explain 1t to
a reporter who followed him from the
store at Andalusia to his hermit homo
and garden.
"The' greatest authorities are agreed"
he said, "that there is little difference
between animal and vegetable life Could
they discover the connecting link the
evils of this world would be solved
instanter. My life work is searching for
that link, and I may say I am in a fair
way to find It. My experiments are being
conducted ON onions.
ITO make a long story short, 1 can
foreteIl the weather accurately by the
amount of resistance being put forth by
my private growth of highly developed
onions. Under my system of grating,
have developed an orion that is as mild
as pleasant 20 the palate and the nose
MS a strawberry, in it's own season. But
when storm is in the air the onion mar
shRls all it's latent strength.
'This special brand of onion Is covered
with coat of hair so marvelously fine
that 1t cannot be discerned by the naked
eye. Ordinarily, 1t is almost impossible
to see this through n powerful micro
Rcope, but when a storm Is coming this
hair stands up. like that on the neck
Of a savage dog. 1t is infallible.
'Today ! found the hair standing up
like bristles on my onions. Also l de-
tected a quivering in the onion itself. and
from this I am certain there will be three
more snow storms
How do you determine the number2"
Mokemarcher was asked
Anal" he calculated, that's the Sc
cret; that, in conjunction with the hair
standing up and the quivering of the
vegetable, Is not only the secret, but 1t is
the proof that l have found the connect
Ing link between animal and vegetable
life"
'Will you not reveal it?' he was asked
II will not" said Mokemacher. "Why
should II"
Elaboration and entreaty were in vain.
Mokemacher was besought to tell but
he remained obdurate. He was courtesy
was treated to a cup of steaming coffee
In the little two-room stone house the
old weather prophet built with his own
hands 25 years ago, when he started his
experiments, according to his story, and
then escorted to the outside world
through the maze of underbrush
''You keep in touch with me-" was
AIokemacher's parting remark, "and I'll
keep you informed about the weather.
And also keep your eye open for three
more snowstorms this month and ere the
winter ends"