No. 189,] 43 



The Year 1863. 



The temperature of December, 1862 was higher than the 

 average; the same was true of January, 1863, so that though 

 February was about the average, the heat of winter was above 

 the mean, rather warm and very pleasant, with little sleighing, 

 but with little mu*^! or open weather. While the mean of March 

 (28.3 degs.) was only a little greater than that of February 

 (26.1 degs.), the mean of April (43.2 degs.) was below the aver- 

 •age ; and as the first half of May was below the average, and 

 the last half a little above it, the opening months were back- 

 ward. The water of the three spring months was 6.14 inches, one- 

 sixth below the average. The earth was not well prepared for 

 summer. But June passed, giving us less than the average heat 

 and rain, and the grass crop was much affected. The average 

 •water of June is over 3 inches, but this June gave us only 1.37. 

 The heat of July for the first half much exceeded the average, 

 and the rain of the month (5.03 inches) greatly surpassed the 

 average (3.38 inches), and the under-growth of unmown grass 

 greatly increased the yield as well as the product over other 

 fields. The wheat harvest was near a fortnight late, but the 

 rains made the safe gathering of it quite difficult, and sometimes 

 impossible. The heat of August was above the average, as well 

 as the rain, and the weather fine, when not too warm ; season 

 excellent for Indian Corn, which matured generally. In this 

 section the harvest was bounteous, except of hay, which was be- 

 low the average, and was selling here at twenty dollars the ton 

 at the close of the year. The fruits, as cherries, peaches, apples, 

 pears, quinces, and grapes, were plentiful, and the autumnal 

 crops abundant and excellent. Apples were exported north and 

 east in vast abundance from this county, and both east and west 

 of it. 



Slight frosts occurred August 29 and 30, September 22, 23, 

 and 27; but only the last injured even tender vegetables. Oc- 

 tober 27th gave us the first severe frost, injuring corn and buck- 

 wheat, and other vegetables. On the same day was a great 

 snow storm at St. Louis, which extended east across Illinois to 

 Indianapolis ; at St. Louis, snow six inches, temperature 24 

 degs. in morning and below^ freezing point all day. The cold 

 was much less in Indiana and Ohio, the lowest temperature here 

 34 degs on the 22d; and the next colder, 33 degs. on the 25th. 



