84 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



century. Indeed, the only other instance, in March, of the thermometer 

 fallin;? hcJow zero was on the r)th, in 1833, thirty-nine years ago. Moreover, 

 this March was the coldest within the fifty years, and colder than either 

 December, January or February preceding it; while March, 1871, with a 

 mean temperature of 43.37°, was the warmest, so that the warmest and 

 coldest third month occurred in two successive years ; which had not pre- 

 viously even been the case in any month whatever. 



"The droui^ht experienced in the latter part of 1871, continued until 

 the middle of May, 1872; when the deficiency in 1872 alone, was about 

 6 in. ; in the latter part of the month the rain was in excess, also in each 

 of the five following months. In August the fall of rain was 10,^ in , and 

 on the 1st of September there was an excess of rain, in 1872, of nearly 

 3 in. ; on 1st of October, of 6J in., and at the end of it, 7^ in. ; in Novem- 

 ber there was a little less than the average fall, and on 1st of December, 

 the excess was 7i in. The quantity of snow in the year was 32^ in., 

 (December, 8i in. ; January, 7 in. ; February, 4 in. ; March, 12i in. ; in 

 April, slight flurries, and in November, about half an inch.) At the end 

 of April the season, owing to the intense cold of March, and the coldness 

 of April, up to the 23d, was very backward, and peach and cherry trees 

 did not blossom until ten days or more after the average time; but the 

 warmth of the weather, 8th, 9th, 10th of May, caused the apple to bloom 

 in the vicinity at its usual time (May 10th), and the four growing months, 

 June, July, August and September, were all warm to very warm, which 

 seldom occurs, and there was in each month an abundance of rain. The 

 last frost in Boston (thermometer 314°) occurred on April 23d, and the 

 first in the autumn (thermometer 30.i) on IGth of November; interval, 

 (in the old city,) 207 days. In 1871 the interval was 212 days, from April 

 6th to November 4th." 



At the risk of being charged with repetition of our last report, 

 we would remind readers of this table that the temperature out- 

 side of Boston, in which city Mr. Paine's observations were made, 

 would show about four degrees lower, thermometers at Salem 

 showing on Thursday, December 21, 1871, from — 4*^ to — 7° in the 

 morning and not rising to more than 4* above zero during the 

 bright, sunshiny day, and falling to — 6° or — 8*^ before midnight, 

 but rising to 3*^ or 4*^ above on the morning of the 22d. On the night 

 of the 2;')d came a warm southwesterly gale and heav}- rain, very 

 qnicl<ly carrying off all the snow upon tlie ground — a sudden and 

 extreme change from the 21st and 22d. The night of January 6, 

 1H72, the mercury took a sudden turn downward, and on the 

 morning of the 7th was — 2* with a higli wind. On the 17th of .Jan- 

 uary a few inches of snow fell which laid only a day or two, being 

 carried off by a heavy rain. The heaviest fall of snow was on the 



