156 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



It had been my intention to embody these tables in the first volume of the 

 geological survey of the State, which was tben in progress under my direction. 



With tbe view of bringing these most interesting generalizations before 

 another class of readers, I drew up a paper on the "Climate of the Lake 

 Ilegion" for one of the most widely read of the literary magazines,"'' and this 

 was accompanied by two isothermal charts and other illustrations. 



My memoir read before the American Association in August, 1870, was ap- 

 pended, without charts, to my " Report of Progress," communicated by the 

 Governor to the legislature of 1871, and is included in that report as published 

 by authority. f It was supposed that this general presentation of the peculiar 

 features of our climate would awaken an interest in the minds of the members 

 of the legislature which would easily secure the requisite appropriation for pub- 

 lication. But, for some reason, the interest and importance of these results 

 were not appreciated. There were special active influences at work adverse to 

 the interests of the survey. 1 presented the subject at an evening meeting of 

 the members, and finally, laid upon the table of every member, a copy of a 

 pamphlet on " The Climate of Michigan," in which the salient points in our 

 climatology were very briefly pointed out, and illustrated by isothermal charts; 

 but, suffice it to say, the appropriation failed, and this, of course, ended my 

 official connection with the effort to publish to the world the great and benefi- 

 cent facts which constitute the only superior natural resource of our peninsula. 



In 1873, I was called upon to furnish several chapters of information con- 

 cerning Michigan, for Walling' s ''Atlas" of the State. One of the subjects 

 discussed was Climatology; and in this paper, I presented again the numerical 

 results of the studies which I had before completed. This paper was accom- 

 panied by four colored charts of isothermal lines. The first of these gives the 

 isothermals for July and January; the second, for Summer and Winter; the 

 third, for Spring and Autumn, and the fourth, for the year, and for the mean 

 minima and extreme minima. I This makes, in effect, nine sets of isothermal 

 lines. The memoirs embodied in Walling' s Atlas were subsequently reprinted 

 in a thick pamphlet, of 121 pages, accompanied by the same charts as were 

 contained in the Atlas. || 



Though the efforts, of which I have given a sketch, have received no legis- 

 lative appreciation, I do not rely on my own judgment alone, in declaring that 

 they set forth, on a scientific basis, a body of generalizations possessing the 

 utmost importance for the agricultural and horticultural interests of our State. 

 My report on the Grand Traverse region was circulated during 1866. In the 

 older portions of the State, it awakened some undisguised incredulity. This 

 was participated in by Mr. Sanford Howard, then secretary of the State Board 

 of Agriculture; and accordingly, in 1867, Secretary Howard made a tour of 

 the region, and embodied the results of his observations in a contribution of 

 twenty-four pages to the report of the Board of Agriculture for that year.§ 

 Departing, as I was informed, with the full purpose of exposing the fabulous 

 character of my report of the year before, he returned with a complete con- 

 firmation of all my statements, using very many of the same facts, and asso- 



* Harper's Magazine, July, 1871, pp. 275-285. 



t Keport on the progress of the State Geological Survey of Michigan. Presented to the State 

 Geological Board Nov. 32, 1870. 



X On this chart the minus signs before the numbers denoting mean and extreme minima have 

 been omitted by the engraver. These numbers express, of conrse, temperatures beloiv zero. 



|| Michigan. Being condensed Popular Sketches of the Topography, climate and Geology of the 

 State. 8 vo., 121 pp. 1873. 



§ Sixth Annual Keport of the Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture of the State of Michi- 

 gan, for the year 1867, pp. 79-102. 



