Plumb's Cider Ap/^le. 119 



Peculiar Winters. 



BY WILLIAM P. LIPPINCOTT, VERNON, VAN BUREN CO., IOWA. 



ED. Western Horticulturist: — This staunch old ship (the earth) has had an 

 unusually hard time in doubling her Cape Horn (the perihelion point) this 

 winter. Nearly all the time since the middle of November we have had unusually 

 severe winter weather, the mercury getting down as low as 29° below zero here on 

 the high prairie, and 36° below along the river. On the 19th ult., mercury about 

 zero, ten miles from here, a house was struck with lightning, scattering the hot 

 stove and its pipe about the room, and tearing up the floor. The discharge came 

 from a small cloud passing over the house. Here, on the 29th ult., mercury 12° 

 above zero, a clap of thunder issued from a small passing cloud. About the same 

 time a church was destroyed by lightning in Mahaska county. Besides these 

 unusual occurrences in cold winter weather, Iowa has never before had so much 

 sickness ; more than half of the people in these parts have been sick. 



It is plain to an observer, that this winter in nearly all its vicissitudes, is different 

 from any other winter that we know anything about. Can it be that we have been 

 sweeping through the tail of a comet? Or, has the earth been attracted a little out 

 of its orbit, when near the winter solstice, by some passing body ? At this date, she 

 is most likely in the old path, and speeding on to the vernal equinox, only a little 

 beyond which, in our latitude, lies the green fields and flowery meadows, so heaven- 

 like, and so well calculated to gladden the hearts of all animated beings. 



Perhaps you remember the winter of 1812-43. During the months of February 

 and March the cold was excessive. In the evenings of these two months, during 

 twilight, and in the direction of where the sun sets, there was to be seen a cone- 

 shaped light, differing from the twilight, extending about one quarter way to the 

 zenith, and about half as broad at the base. This was a great wonder to people of 

 these parts. Many were the conjectures what it could be. Some thought it was 

 a comet's tail, others thought it was the zodiacal light. The ignorant and super- 

 stitious supposed it was a token of some great calamity approaching. It was 

 probably the zodiacal light, but what made it so conspicuous at that particular time 

 when it can scarcely be seen at all since then ? Of course it was the altered con- 

 dition of the earth's atmosphere, but what made that, we cannot know. 



On the 7th of April, of the year under consideration, the Des Moines river was 

 still solidly frozen over, afi'ording good teaming up and down, and across the river 

 which was much used, as roads were scarce and poor at that early day. When 

 spring came, it was wet and lingering. Corn was planted late, scarcely any getting 

 ripe. Wheat was a tolerable crop, grass was excellent, and prairie flowers as 

 abundant and beautiful as at any previous time. 



Plumb's Cider Apple. — After no little research for some months past, we have 

 at length obtained a single specimen of this apple, and from a source, we suppose, 

 that leaves no question of its being a true specimen of the apple called Plumh\ Cider. 

 We had prepared a truthful illustration of the fruit, with our impressions for the cur- 

 rent number, but to give place to other matter longer on file, feel constrained to lay 

 it over for another month ; we can scarcely avoid, however, at this time, an expres- 

 sion of surprise over the long and persistent controversy had concerning the identity 

 of this apple with Smith's Cider. 



