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tinned nearly all the time till 5J p. m., at which time the wind shifted to 

 westerly, and snow commenced falling. After night wind from northwest 

 and very heavy. Snow too much drifted to ascertain the depth with cer- 

 tainty; it is thought to be about four inches. 



Eockville, Indiana. — December 31, 6| a. m., drizzling rain; 7.15, sleeting; 

 ■7. 30, snowing, flakes large and fleecy; continued till 11^ p. m. January 1, 

 at 7 a. m., two very bright mock suns in the east and south; also two mock 

 «uns at sunset. 



South Bend, Indiana. — Seven inches of snow on the 31st of December, 

 Temperature at 9 p. m., 18°; fell thirty-eight degrees by 1 a. m: next morn- 

 ing, January 1. 



Winnebago, Illinois. — December 30, sky cloudless till about 4 p. ui., when 

 a low bank of clouds was observed along the southwestern horizon, which 

 overspread the sky during the evening. December 31, a severe snow-storm 

 set in soon after midnight and continued through the day; wind, N. NW., 

 4 to 6. The snow ceased soon after nightfall. The wind continued blowing 

 a gale through the night, with heavy drift and increasing cold. The day 

 following (January 1) was one of the most severe on record in this latitixde. 



Tiskihva, Illinois. — December 31, snow all day, with high wind from the 

 northwest. 



Ottawa, Illinois. — January 1, weather intensely cold; one man in this city 

 froze to death but a short distance from his own house; also a man and his 

 wife, and their span of horses, within two miles of this station. Snow, of 

 the 30th and 31st December and to-day one foot in depth. It is badly 

 drifted, and the cars have stopped running. 



Oalesburg, Illinois. — Very cold high wind night of December 31; snow in 

 motion; cattle, horses, and hogs sufiered greatly, and many froze. The 

 roads were blocked up, and no mail was received from Chicago for a week. 

 Such a storm and such cold are seldom experienced here. 



Sandwich, Illinois. — One of the most terrible snow-storms ever witnessed 

 here, accompanied with severe cold, visited us at the close of the old year 

 and the beginning of the new. It began the last day of December to storm 

 moderately from the north; at 3 a. m., January 1, it began to increase in 

 violence, and continued until it became impossible for man or beast to with- 

 stand its violence; at 7 a. m., January 1, the mercury marked — 26°, and 

 snow falling rapidly; railroads became blocked, and the Chicago, Burling- 

 ton and Quincy road was so obstructed that for one week no mail expi'ess 

 passed this (Sandwich) station. Many cattle perished in the corn-fiields; 

 stock in transportation on the cars perished by hundreds, and thousands of 

 fowls froze upon their perches. The depth of snow falling here was about 

 two and a half feet. Tlio extreme cold continued about eight days. Peaches 

 are destroyed, that is, the fruit germs, and in many instances the trees are 

 ruined. The fruit germs upon nearly all early varieties are also destroyed. 

 Early Richmond cherries also, and probably plums. Peaches are said to be 

 destroyed more than a hundred miles south of Memphis. 



Pekin, Illinois. — December 31. I was up several times last night; 

 the wind increased in force; the snow came faster each time I looked out; 

 4 p. m., the wind is from northwest; it is so severe that I cannot at times 

 walk against it without using all my strength. I do not remember ever ex- 

 periencing so severe a snow-storm; it continued about the same to mid- 

 night. After 8 p. m. the wind was from the west. 



Upper Alton, Illinois. — On the afternoon of December 30, about 2 o'clock, 

 it began to sleet, and in the evening a glaze of ice covered everything. On 

 the morning of the 31st the ground was covered with snow and drifting. 



Augusta, Illinois. — December 31. From 9 o'clock last night to sunrise this 

 morning, snow fell to the depth of about seven or eight inches, and it con- 



