248 



FARMEHS' REGISTER. 



[No. 4 



not, for one, believe in the opinion, but will give 

 facts as stated by our historians, and let every one 

 form his own opinion. In referring to these, it 

 will be more interesting to give extracts, and not 

 to be studious about a logical arrangement of mat- 

 ters. Let us proceed and see if the weatlicr 200 

 years ago was not, for a series of years, about the 

 same kind of weather which we have had for the 

 last 25 years. The Ibllowing account of our cli- 

 mate about the year 1608, is given by Smith. 

 The first permaneiit settlement of Virginia was in 

 1607. "The summer is hot as in Spam : the win- 

 ter cold as in France or l]ngland. The heat of 

 summer is in June, July and August, but com- 

 monly the cool breezes assuage the velK^mency of 

 the heat. The chief of winter is half December, 

 January, February, and half March. The cold is 

 extreme sharp, but here the proverb is true, that 

 no extreme long continueth. 



In the year 1607 was an extraordinary frost in 

 most ot Europe, and this frost was found as ex- 

 treme in Virginia. But the next year for 8 or 10 

 days of ill weather, other 14 days would be as 

 summer." — Smith. 



This Avinter (1607) was extremely cold in Vir- 

 ginia, and It was likewise remarkable for an extra- 

 ordinary frost in Europe. — (Stith's History.) This 

 was the winter in which Capt. Smith was taken 

 prisoner in a swamp on the Chickahominy, by 

 Opechancanough. 



This winter (1607) is noticed in the life of Gor- 

 ges, to have been dreadfully severe in New Eng- 

 land. — (Belknap's Life of Sir F. Gorges.) 



It may not be uninteresting to remark here, that 

 the year 1607 was a year in which Halley's comet 

 returned, in its revolution of about 75 years. The 

 appearance of the same comet last fall, was the 

 third appearance since 1607. The same comet 

 appeared in 1682. On the 11th December, 1681, 

 the Delaware river froze over at Chester; yet Wm. 

 Penn, in a letter written in 1683, says that the win^ 

 ter of 1681 — 1682, was mild, scarce any ice at all. 

 The winter of 1682 — 1683, was his first winter in 

 Pennsylvania, and he sa3-s it was the coldest the 

 oldest liver in the province could remember. "From 

 December to the beginning of March, we had 

 fiharp, frosty weather — asky as clearas in summer, 

 and the air dry, cold, piercing and hungry." He 

 intimates that the great Delaware was fl-ozcn up 

 lor a few days; but he does not speak of extraordi- 

 nary cold weather. (Mr. Penn's letter to Free 

 Society of Traders.) I find but few notices of the 

 winter of 1759, the next appearance of Halley's 

 comet. On the 6th December, 1758, the weather 

 was cold and the ice run violently in the river at 

 Pittsburg — it snowed — 22nd, cold and stormy — 

 27th, it snowed the whole day — 28th, do. 3rd 

 January, 1759, it snowed, freezed and rained — 9th 

 January, the Susquehannah was crossed on the 

 ice.— (Journal of C. F. Post, 1758—9.) 



The winters of 1779—80, 1782, 1791, were very 

 severe in Virginia. It is asserted by Burk in the 

 1st chapter of his history of Virginia, that it is 

 known by actual observation and experiment, that 

 the climate of Virginia has perceptibly changed 

 within the last 30 years. The winters are neither 

 so long or severe as formerly, and there is a pro- 

 portional abatement in the heat. He imdertakcs 

 to state the causes of the supposed change of cli- 

 mate. This was written about 1801. Now it 

 seems to me if Burk had experienced our climate 



since 1829, he would not have entertained longer, 

 or hazarded such o[)inions. It seems to me, that 

 this alleged change of our climate is altogether 

 ideal, and has no foundation in fact. Judging 

 from historical data, we have in these days the 

 same kind of seasons experienced here 230 years 

 ago. Some winters were uncommonly cold — some 

 very inoderate. So has it been of late years. But 

 so far li-om the winters being shorter and less se- 

 vere than formerly, I do not believe it can be shewn 

 by recorded f icts, or by the memory of man, that 

 there ever was before in this State, a succession of 

 such severe winters as have occurred since 1829. 

 F can find a record of no such winter as the past. 

 By referring to the recorded facts in other States 

 relative to the climate, we find the same evidence 

 as to the similarity of the seasons many years ago, 

 and (or a few years past. We find it stated in 

 Pennsylvania in 1760, that the winters there were 

 longer and more severe than in England — the 

 summers hotter and dryer — the springs very short 

 — the autumns long and mild. The snows are 

 frequently very deep in winter, and the frosts so 

 intense, that it has not been very uncommon for 

 the large river Delaware, even where it is near a 

 mile broad, to be frozen over in one night so as to 

 bear people walking on the ice in the morning — 

 which river sometimes in the winter season for 

 several weeks together, even opposite Philadel- 

 phia, is as much frequented with loaded carriages 

 as any part of terra firma. They had their warm 

 winters at that remote period, as well as cold ones, 

 and the following account of the weather in Penn- 

 sylvania written in 1729, more than 100 j'ears ago, 

 although written in poetical lanfruacre, is doubtless 

 accurate. It was written in Philadelphia by Tho- 

 mas Makin. 



"Yet oft tho' warm and fair the day begun, 

 Cold storms arise before the setting sun, 

 Nay oft so quick the change, so great its power, 

 As summer's heat and winter in an hour! 

 So violent the wind, that ofl the ground 

 With rooted trees is covered wide and round; 

 Sometimes the ice so strong and firm is found, 

 That wagons pass as on the solid ground. 

 But yet so temperate are some winters here, 

 That in the streams no icy chains appear, 

 And all the season boats and shipping may 

 With oar and sail divide the liquid way: 

 So various and uncertain is the clime. 

 For heat and cold extreme in little time." 



Such being an account of the seasons 100 years 

 ago in Pennsylvania, it seems not difficult to form 

 an opinion as to the alleged change of climate, 

 from our own knowledge of the climate the last 

 few years. 



Samuel Williams, a very able man and former- 

 ly Professor of Natural Philosophy in Harvard 

 College, takes, in his History of Vermont, the same 

 ground as Burk, relative to a change of climate. 

 This dissertation on climate is long and learned, 

 and contains some tables of meteorological obser- 

 vations made by the Doctor himself in Rutland, 

 Vermont, in 1789—90—91. The greatest height 

 of Farenheit's thermometer during that period, in 

 latitude 13 degrees 36 minutes, was 93.^ degrees. 

 The least was 27 below 0. The mean heat was 

 43J, degrees from all the observations. The tem- 

 perature of the water in dccj) wells in the same 



