No. 4.] REPOET OF SECRETARY. xi 



throughout the tirst six mornings in all ])ut coast sections. 

 During the second decade and the greater part of the third 

 the mercury went below zero but few times, although the 

 closing days brought a cold spell. There were numerous 

 mild, spring-like days, and the general conditions presented 

 a marked contrast to those of the same month in 1896. The 

 precipitation averaged a departure below the normal of 0.95 

 inch. A good snow covering protected the ground. The 

 snowfall averaged 13 inches. 



March was a stormy, disagreeable month, although it is 

 true that there was no great storm. In the first half of the 

 month there was precipitation on nine days, but the storms 

 were moderate. Fair weather prevailed from the 15th to 

 the 18th, followed by the second storm period, which lasted 

 until the 27th, with heavy rains on the 24th. The closing 

 days were fair and remarkably pleasant. The precipitation 

 was but slightly below normal. The average snowfall was 

 but 4 inches. At the end of the month, the ground was 

 bare and rivers and ponds were in general free from ice. 

 The month opened with a temperature ranging nearly as low 

 as on any day of the winter. Low morning temperatures 

 continued through the first ten days, and another cold period 

 prevailed from the 13th to 18th. From the 18th to the close 

 of the month the weather was almost uniformly mild. 



The monthly mean temperature for April was above the 

 normal by 2.3°. The highest temperatures were mainly 

 recorded on the 25th, and were above 80°, as a rule. The 

 feature of the month with res^ard to this element was the 

 sudden and most decided fall on the 20th, amounting almost 

 to a cold wave. South-westerly winds on the 19th made 

 that a mild day, but all the time a large body of cold air was 

 proceeding eastward from the lake regions, following closely 

 in the rear of a storm which was moving down the St. 

 Lawrence valley. By the morning of the 20th the fall in 

 temperature amounted to from 40° to 50°, and the mercury 

 registered below freezing all over the State. The cold was 

 all the more bitter for being so unseasonable. No particular 

 damage was caused by this freeze. 



The temperature of May ranged below the normal during 

 the first eight days, averaging a deficiency of about 2.5° 



