Rice fell off in condition from 76.5 to 68.6 per cent. 

 Drought has been the principal cause of low condition. 



The average condition of apples has remained practically 

 stationary during September. The crop is heavy and of fine 

 qualit}'^ in the northern tier of States, and prices are ex- 

 tremely low. 



In Massachusetts the average yield of rye per acre is given 

 as 22 bushels ; the average yield of oats as 33.5 ; the average 

 yield of barley as 30 ; the average condition of buckwheat, 

 Octoljer 1, as 100; the average condition of corn as 106; 

 the average condition of potatoes as 71 ; and the average 

 condition of apples as 97. 



Massachusetts Weather, 1896. 



(Compiled from Data furnished by the New England Weather Service.) 



January opened cold, and an unusually sharp cold wave 

 prevailed from the 4th to the 8th. Peach buds were almost 

 entirely killed and some damnge was done to raspberries and 

 blackberries. The rest of the month was milder. The 

 ground was not protected by snow during the cold spell, 

 but there was a slight covering during the rest of the 

 month. 



February was a rough, stormy month, with damaging 

 floods, heavy snows and much rainy and cloudy weather. 

 The heaviest rain and snow fall came on the 4th to 7th and 

 the 29th to March 3d. A severe cold wave prevailed on the 

 17th and 18th. On the night of the 6th-7th hurricane sig- 

 nals were hoisted in Boston for the first time in the history 

 of the Weather Bureau, and the wind reached a velocity of 

 over 60 miles an hour. 



March was typical of the month, though rougher and 

 more stormy than usual. The rainfall was above the normal 

 and the number of stormy days also in excess. The snow- 

 fall was more than usual and there was a fair snow covering 

 till near the end of the month. The changes in temperature 

 were rapid, but the daily ranges were not great. 



The first and last parts of April were comparatively cool, 

 with frequent frosts, but the middle of the month gave 

 almost unprecedented heat for the season. The rainfall was 



