no unusual extremes of temperature, and the usual warm 

 period, or " January thaw," was absent. The precipitation 

 showed a slight deficiency, as compared with the normal 

 of the month. The snowfall was also rather light, but, 

 owing to the uniform temperature, the ground was generally 

 well covered until the close of the month. 



February was marked by rapid and pronounced changes 

 in the weather. A heavy snowstorm, a cold wave, a thaw, 

 thunderstorms and gales of hurricane force were prominent 

 features. The storm of the 16th-17th was unusually severe. 

 It reached all sections with heavy snow, and gales of great 

 violence occurred along the coast. The month was warmer 

 than usual for Februarj^ the monthly temperature being 

 about 2° above the normal. The precipitation was also in 

 excess, but the distribution was somewhat irregular. At 

 the close of the month the ground was generally bare of snow. 



The weather during March was very pleasant, although 

 unseasonal, and some of its elements were phenomenal and 

 without precedent in a century of authentic meteorological 

 records. The precipitation was largely in excess, the 

 monthly amounts being from iy2 to 2 inches above this 

 normal. The snowfall, was, however, unusually light, and 

 at the close of the month there was none on the ground. 

 The monthly mean temperature was the highest of official 

 record, covering a period of thirty-two years, and averaged 

 10° above the normal for March. According to authentic 

 records covering a period of a hundred years the month was 

 the warmest of its name within a century. 



The weather of April was uneventful, and generally char- 

 acteristic of the season. The temperature was somewhat in 

 excess, ranging about 1.5 above the monthly normal. The 

 precipitation was near the normal, the departures generally 

 being from one-quarter to one-half below the usual monthly 

 amounts. Generally speaking, April was a pleasant month. 

 At its close the season was estimated to be from a week to 

 ten days in advance of the normal. 



May was distinguished by a preponderance of sunn^ 

 weather and a marked defici(>ncy of precipitation. The 

 temperature conditions presented no unusual features, ex- 

 cept some noticeable extremes during the first week of the 



