Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-08-07
$ udd en- Changes From
Fever to Chills Nearer
the Rule Than the Excep-
tion - Some Figure s
From Past.
AUGusTs ANTICS IN
WEATHER HISTORY

August is elk days old. going on
seven
August /, the temperature. as the cul.
nnlnation Of several days OF intense heat
reached % degrees
August the heat continued, and the
total OF fatalities for the most protracted
hot speil" Of the summer reached more
than 70.
August 0. late in the evening, a terrific
storm broke over the city and did much
damage, as Il dumped an excessive rain
fan Of 40 inches, In y hours, on Phila-
delphia.
August II was hot again.
August It was hot again once more.
August 0, II was cold, with the mercury
a. a. degrees, a 32-degree drop from the
maximum OF six days previous.
People are asking themselves what Is
wrong about August, 1915 when It can
MI twoscore with the heat, make others
homeless through the devastation OF
foods, and cause thousands to shlver, all
within the period OF a week.
An examination Of the official weather
bureau records, as well as those made
previous 10 the establishment OF the local
bureau, shows that there is nothing un-
usual about the month this year. August
has always maintained the quality OF in
consistency OF weather In general
II might be we'll to say right at the
start that tho theory that the summers
are getting colder or warmer than they
used to be has no foundation in fact Ac-
cordlng to George s. Bliss. the local FORE
caster! an expert on climatology OF Phila-
delphia, the average temperature for the |
20 years the local offlce of the weather |
bureau has been established is 537 de- !,
grees, while that for the AZ years previ- |
Gus, when the weather records were kept |
by the Pennsylvania Hospital, was $40 |
degrees.
The coldest August on record, according
to'the transactions OF the American Phil
osophlcal Society, which are accepted az
authentic, was that OF 1868 The average
temperature for the month was 657 de-
grees. That Implies lower daily tempera-
turea than those on record, but the daily
temperature record OF the society has not
survived. The coolest August days as
far as is known were in 1885 and 1890
when the mercury registered at 81 de-
grees
In passing, It can be mentioned that
the coldest summer was that of 1915,
which Is generally called the year with
out summer" The average tempera-
ture for that year was 4S.S degrees. while
for June. July and August It was 06 de-
srees. Charles Pierce, of Bucks County,
says In his diary of August, 1915, lice
formed half-inch in thickness and
eyefything green was destroyed"
The warmest year was 1870, with the
.yerage for theaentire 12 months period
of 56.S degrees; the warmest summer that
'f 1870, with temperature OF 1873; the ,
garmest August, in 170S, when the mer- |,
Jury stuck close TO the Sl6 degree point. z,
md the warmest August day. in 1900, i,
'hen on one occasion. the temperature :
vRs l0i 9
The wettest August on record was in =
seI, when a total OF 1882 inches of rain !
ell, and the dryest, in 1891 when but Al !.
x an inch. or less than one-sIxth of the
mount OF the storm OF last Monday, fell I
august holds the distinction of having +
Entertained in 1898 the record l2-hour .
ainfall. Five and eighty-nine hundredths N
nches Of rain fell between the hours Of y
H. m ana 1880 p m. On that occasion n
louds hung so low that It was impossible q
see BILLY Penn" on top of City Hall -