METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 189 
December also it was especially heavy. The heavy precipita- 
tions during the earlier and later months brought up the total 
for the year above the average, in spite of the severe drought 
during the summer. 
The average temperatures for January and February were 
slightly above the averages for those months as recorded at 
Storrs, while that of March was slightly below the average. 
April was cold, and the spring was rather backward. The last 
killing frost, which was unusually severe, occurred May I, with 
a minimum temperature of 25°. The temperature for June was 
about normal, while that for July and August was above the 
average for Storrs for the past twelve years. The first killing 
frost in the fall did not occur until October 18, so that the 
season was especially favorable for late maturing crops. The 
length of the growing season between May 11 and October 18, 
158 days, was twelve days more than the average at Storrs for 
the past twelve years. October was generally mild and favor- 
able for the harvesting of crops. ‘The fall season was rather 
short, as considerable snow fell on November 9, and the month 
on the whole was cool. 
The following general summary of the meteorological phe- 
nomena of New England in rgoo, and the general review of 
the crop season, given in the annual summary of the Climate 
and Crop Service of the United States Weather Bureau, al- 
though pertaining to the whole section in the main apply very 
well to conditions in Connecticut: 
General summary.—The year 1900, in New England, was marked by meteor- 
ological conditions which were greatly at variance, in several of the elements, 
from those generally recorded in this section. It opened mild and without the 
severe storms usually experienced at that season of the year. This was suc- 
ceeded by a period of continued cold weather, with the average temperature 
considerably below the normal, and precipitation generally in excess, which 
extended through May. ‘These conditions resulted in a backward spring, which 
delayed farming operations. June was practically normal and a very pleasant 
month. <A severe and general drought, which had its beginning in July, con- 
tinued through September. The temperature during this lengthy period was 
continuously and largely in excess of the normal for those months. The abnor- 
mally warm weather also continued through October and November, the excess 
of temperature being especially phenomenal in the former month, when the 
monthly mean was about six degrees above the normal. The long duration of 
hot, dry weather in many instances proved disastrous to crops. The weather 
of the year, briefly and summed up as a whole, was unfavorable to agricultural 
and commercial interests, and has seldom been paralleled in the official records. 
