18 
FORWARDNESS OF THE SEASONS. 
of all the places thus corrected (with the exception of Johnstown, Montgomery, Onondaga, 
and Millville, whose elevation above tide water I could find no means of estimating) is 
less than is due to their latitude and elevation, as computed by the foregoing laws, by 
0° . 16. The coincidence is surprisingly close, and this small difference may be accounted 
for by the low temperature of several places that enter into the computation, depending 
upon accidental circumstances, or by error in the assumed elevation of some of the places; 
or, which is not improbable, by small errors in the data from which the laws were 
deduced.* 
To indicate the forwardness of the seasons, I selected the following facts from a great 
number of others published in the Regents’ Reports, viz. the first appearance of robins in 
the spring; the blooming of various trees and plants; the ripening of strawberries; the 
commencement of hay and wheat harvest; and the first killing frost of autumn. The 
mean time of these for the whole State for fifteen yearsf ending with 1842, and also the 
mean temperature and mean annual extremes, is shown in the following table, which 
may serve as a standard of reference in examining the same kind of facts in the different 
sections of the State. In preparing this table, I noticed a few obvious errors in the records, 
which I rejected. 
MEAN 
Number of 
Number of 
DATE. 
localities. 
observations 
Robins first seen . 
March 19 
44 
266 
Shadbush in bloom .. . 
May 1 
48 
168 
Peach do . •■ . 
“ 2* 
57 
175 
Currants do ... 
“ 4 
58 
269 
Plum do ... 
“ 6 
52 
264 
Cherry do _ 
“ 7 
52 
250 
Apple do ... 
“ 15 
59 
374 
Lilac do ... 
“ 15 
45 
151 
Strawberries ripe. 
June 12 
58 
210 
Hay harvest commenced, 
July 8 
34 
127 
Wheat harvest ditto .. . 
“ 25 
45 
186 
First killing frost .... 
Sept. 23 
57 
471 
First fall of snow . 
Nov. 5 
536 
Mean temperature .... 
46°.49 
59 
577 
Mean annual maximum, 
92°.00 
59 
550 
Mean annual minimum, 
12°.00 
59 
551 
Mean annual range .... 
104°.00 
59 
550 
* As the Peach does not grow in the northern part of the State, 
this date must be considered as the mean for the southern and middle 
parts only, and is hence too e 
arly as compared with other trees. 
) 
* If, the law in respect to latitude remaining unchanged, we should allow 1° of temperature for every 313 feet of 
elevation, instead of 350 feet as I have assumed, the mean, calculated and observed temperatures would be precisely 
alike. 
j The observations extend through a period of seventeen years, but I was unable to obtain the reports for 182.6 
and 1827. 
