CLIMATE, &C., SOUTH SHORE LAKE ERIE. 167 



advancement will be made by Spring, so long as any con- 

 siderable bodies of ice float upon the lake, even as low 

 down as Buffalo. No sooner do they disappear than Spring 

 sets in with a reality, and vegetation puts forth with a suh- 

 Arctio activity. 



The Lake, rapidly imbibing the heat at this season, 

 becomes a safeguard against any subsequent vernal frost. 

 Its influence was manifested in a satisfactory manner early 

 in the present season. On the first of May, Spring seemed 

 to be fully established; fruit trees had blossomed, and in 

 some localities young fruits had formed. The morning 

 was cold, and the temperature declined during the day 

 and evening. At 2 o'clock, P. M., it was 48° Fahrenheit; 

 at 7, 34°, and at 9, 32°. The atmosphere was calm and clear, 

 indicating to an inexperienced observer the approach of a 

 destructive frost. At 10 o'clock, P- M., it had risen to 40°; 

 a heavy cloud of haze hung about twenty degrees above 

 the Lake, and soon overspread the whole horizon. The 

 morning of the following day was warm and misty; by 12 

 o'clock, A. M., it was clear and Spring-like. Not a fruit 

 germ was injured on the Lake shore. A different state of 

 things occurred throughout the West and Southwest, where 

 no local influences interposed. The temperature steadily 

 declined, without intermission, during the day and night, 

 down to about 26°. The day following was cold and blight- 

 ing, and fruits were generally destroyed. 



The modes by which the Lake exerts its influence on 

 such occasions do not appear to be uniformly the same at 

 different times. c 



On the approach of a cold night, as in the instance above 

 noticed, the warm emanations condensing may give off 

 caloric, and obscure the atmosphere with haze, mist, or 

 clouds, when no frost will occur. 



Under circumstances apparently similar, on the approach 

 of a cold night, neither haze, mist nor clouds may form, 



