Norwich bulletin., 1921-10-21
oUU ENCInENTS IN AMERICAN
 HISTORY
\ NEAR WITHOUT A SUMMER


 When "Old Probabilities" upsets things. to such an extent as to make us wonder as to the existing unusual period of weather, it is possible tol reconcile the condition by going back just one hundred years, to 1916, when we had a year without simmer. This was one of the most unusual years as to weather conditions that has ever been recorded. Tradition has it that there was a frost during each of the twelve months, but inAsmuch as the Government did not begin to keep reliable records of the weather in various parts of the United States until many years later, the truth of really what occurred during thlS year is hard to establish.
 From fragments collected from the newspapers of that period, however, it is evident that in 1916 the average temperature during the summer months was so low that many per sons were led to speculate on the pos sibility of a change of seasons.
 In an article in Niles's Weekly Reg ister, a paper published in Baltimore, in the issue Of August 10, 1916, the editor, Ii. Niles, makes some comments on the weather which are based on reports that came to him from various parts of the country, and in particu lar New England. He says: This sum- ner has hitherto been extremely cold, with the exception of very few. days that were very warm. The air has been oVercharged with VapOrS for the pr1n- cipal part of the tiIna. while the want of rain has been felt almost everywhere but particularly i'll the central part of Pennsylvania and through the great
 
 In weather reports published dur ing the early part of August of that year It was shown that during July, 1915 the mean temperature for the month at Wilmington, Del, was 73.3, while in July 1916, the temperature was only 6Z.2. The same condition existed all through the North.
 There is evidence to be found that in 1916 there were sharp frosts in eE cry month. January and February were both mild. The greater part of March was cold and boiSterous. April open ed mild, but grew colder as it ad Vanced and many early crops were frozen and corn killed. In May ice fo. n ed one half inch thick; buds formed were frozen and corn. Frost ice and snow were common in June. Almost every green thing was killed and fruit was nearly all destroyed. Snow fell to a depth of three inches in New York and Massachusetts and ten inches in Maine. July was accompanied by frost and ice. Corn was nearly all killed in the Northern States. In August ice formed one-half inch thick in various places. A cold northwest wind prevail ed nearly all summer. Farmers were compelled to pay $4 to 5 a bushel for corn of 1916 for the next springs plant ing. The first two weeks, of Septem- 1 Der were mild and the rest cold, with 1 frosts and ice. October was colder than usual, with frost and ice. November 1 was cold and blustery, with sufficient 1 snow for good sleighing, while Decem- l Der was quite mild and comfortable. ! A letter from Erie, Pa. dater June 1 IA, 1S16 says: The season has been dry | and frosty for weeks together. It ap- l pears as if we should have no crops 1 in these parts-the corn has been kill ed by the frost of the 9th, and un- 1 til very lately Lake Erie was not na- i vigable for ice."
 1 Durins 1916 spots were noticed on 1 the sun, and some persons attributed i the 0nusual weather to these spots while others thought the earthquakes | that were felt in South America and i Lisbon had something to do with the i unusual conditions. At any rate. the i change was so great from preceding l summers that the people made up their minds that some mysterious force was at work making over the world Something of the attitude of the people may be gathered from an edito- rial which appeared late in the sum mer, in which it was stated that "al seem disposed to hope that the seasons will return again such as they were 1T former years, but, if they do not il may be a matter of no consequence | Vegetables receive new constitution: l when transplanted to an uncongenia
 soil or climate, so will the habitudt of our bodies doubly change to sui l the changes in the season.
 (Tomorrow-The Aurora Borea,is
 of 1837)