Mexico Missouri message., 1918-01-17
THE WEATHER ONE
HUNDRED YEARS AGO
Eighteen Hundred And Sixteen Re,
ferred To As Eighteen Hundred
Starve To Death"

An esteemed reader of The Mes
sage, w. p. Singer, at Montreal, Mo-,
noticing some time ago what we said
about prices, etc, in this country one
hundred years ago, sends us the fol-
lowing remarkable article concerning
the weather one hundred years ago:
The most curious weather of which
we have any record was that of the
year 1916. There are but few now
living who recollect It, but European
and American data represent It as
having been phenomenal in almost
every particular.
The winter was very cold in Eur
ope and quite mild in this country,
but the following summer was the
coldest ever known in the United
States. January was mild, so much
so as to render fires almost needless
in parlors. February was not very
cold, with the exception of few
days it was quite mild. March was
cold during the first part of it; the
remainder was mild.
A great freshet on the Ohio and
Kentucky rivers caused great loss of
property.
April began warm, but grew cold
er as it advanced, and ended in snow
and ice, with a temperature more
like winter than spring
May was more remarkable for
frowns than smiles. Buds and flow
ers were frozen; ice formed a half
inch thick: corn was killed, and the
fields were again and again planted,
until it was deemed too late.
June was the coolest ever known
in this latitude; frost, snow and ice
were common. Almost every green
thing was killed; fruit was nearly all
destroyed; snow fell to the depth of
10 inches in Vermont, 7 in Maine
and three in Central New York and
Massachusetts,.
Considerable damage was done at
New Orleans in consequence of the
rapid rise of the river. The suburb
roads only were passable in boats.
July was accompanied by frost and
ice. On the 5th ice was formed to the
thickness of common window glass
thruout New England, New York and
some parts of Pennsylvania; corn
was nearly all destroyed.
This was true of some of the hill
farms in Massachusetts.
August was more cheerless, if
possible, than the summer months
already past Ice was formed half an
inch thick; corn was so frozen that
the greater part was cut down and
dried for fodder. Almost everything
green was destroyed, both in this
country and in Europe.
Papers received from England
stated that it would be rendered by
that generation that the year 1916
was year in which there was no
summer. Very little corn ripened in
New England and the Middle States.
Farmes supplied themselves from
corn produced in 1916 for the seed
of the spring 1917. 1t sold at from
$4.OO to $500 per bushel.
September furnished about two
weeks of the mildest weather of the
season. Soon after the middle it be-
came very cold and frosty, and ice
formed a quarter of an inch thick,
October produced more than its
share of cold weather, frost and ice
particularly. November was very
cold and blustery. Enough snow fell
to make good sleighing. December
was quite mild and comfortable.
Thru the summer all nature seem
ed to be clad in sable hue, the sun
gave out little heat when it did
shine, and man exhibited no little
anxiety concerning the future of his
life.
The average wholesale price of