Part 12 (1/2)

”It is accordingly well known that in England, on the east side of the Atlantic 7 or 8 farther north than Traverse Bay, the climate, as it regards cold in winter, is about equal to that of Was.h.i.+ngton City, and so it is on the east side of the Pacific ocean, in Oregon. Hence it is evident that the seasons on the east side of Lake Michigan must be uniform.

”Around Traverse Bay the frost seldom kills vegetables till in November, and seldom occurs in spring later than the 1st of May. In November it gets cold enough to freeze. The vapors arising from the lake and bay fall in snow and cover the ground before the frost has penetrated it at all; it acc.u.mulates several months till it is two feet deep, sometimes deeper, and remains till April; and when it goes off; cattle find enough to eat in the woods. This region is much more sunny between the middle of March and December than southern Michigan, and every vegetable physiologist will at once state that the influence of this on vegetation must be very great, and accordingly spring crops grow with such rapidity that corn is fit to be cut by the 1st of September. From December to March, as above, the atmosphere is hazy, cloudy, and frosty, though the thermometer never sinks so low as in the south of Michigan by ten or twelve degrees (8 or 10 degrees below zero, being the lowest yet known), and a winter thaw is unknown here.

Hence we never have mud in winter, and but little at any season.

”With the very defective cultivation hitherto used here, yield of crops are as follows:--Potatoes, free of rot, 150 to 300 bushels to the acre; oats 25 to 60; corn 25 to 50; wheat (spring) the largest yet raised 27 bushels. Wheat raised here is much more plump than in southern Michigan, and there is no instance of its being smothered or injured by snow, because the snow never thaws and alternately freezes into a hard crust, or ice, so as to exclude the air from the wheat, as in other places.

”We confidently predict that this will become the most prolific wheat region in the west; rust and insects are unknown. All experience goes to prove that this will be a great fruit country. The Indian apple and peach trees, although few in number bear well every year; and as to wild blackberries and raspberries, both as to size and flavor, there is absolutely no end. They serve all the inhabitants and millions of pigeons for several months.”

United States census, 1850, shows products of States.

Average per acre of Wheat. Oats Corn. Potatoes.

Michigan 10 Bushels 26 32 140 Illinois 11 ” 29 33 105 Indiana 12 ” 20 33 100 Iowa 14 ” 36 32 100

Average per acre of Wheat. Oats Corn. Potatoes.

Ohio 12 ” 21 36 Wisconsin 14 ” 35 30 Pennsylvania 15 ” 20 New York 12 ” 25 27

CLIMATE.--Council Bluffs is in lat.i.tude 41-1/2, Dubuque 42-3/4, Green Bay 43-1/2, and Mackinaw City about 46. By reference to the following tables of temperature, it will be seen that these points are about on the same isothermal line, practically removing, by these tables, the prejudices generally existing against the climate of northern Michigan--see Blodgett's Climatology and Army Meteorological Reports of United States.

Quebec, Canada. average in January above zero, 13 Montreal, ” ” ” ” 16 Hampden, Maine ” ” ” 17 Portland, ” ” ” ” 21 Cannel, ” ” ” ” 15 Burlington, Vt. ” ” ” 19 Deerfield, Ma.s.s. ” ” ” 21 Granville, N. Y. ” ” ” 22 Potsdam, ” ” ” ” 18 Plattsburgh, ” ” ” ” 20 Gouverneur, ” ” ” ” 20 Lowville, ” ” ” ” 22 Oneida, ” ” ” ” 22 Buffalo, ” ” ” ” 23 Silver Lake, Pa. ” ” ” 22 Concord, N. H. ” ” ” 22 Boston, Ma.s.s. ” ” ” 28 Albany, N. Y. ” ” ” 24 Chicago, Illinois ” ” ” 24 Ottawa, ” ” ” ” 23 Muscatine, Iowa ” ” ” 20 Detroit, Michigan ” ” ” 27 Pittsburgh, Pa. ” ” ” 29 Philadelphia, ” ” ” ” 32 Cincinnati, Ohio ” ” ” 30 Green Bay, Wis. ” ” ” 19 Dubuque, Iowa ” ” ” 20 Council Bluffs ” ” ” 19 Mackinaw City ” ” ” 19

These extremes of lat.i.tude of Philadelphia and Mackinaw include the princ.i.p.al agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and commercial interests of America, elements naturally pertaining to Michigan, and second in their variety and extent to no State of the Union.

Archangel, Russia, in January, averages above zero 6.60 St. Petersburg, ” ” ” ” 15.70 Christiana, Norway, ” ” ” ” 21.30 St. Bernard, Switzerland, ” ” ” ” 14.40 Moscow, Russia, ” ” ” ” 13.60 Erzeroum, Turkey, ” ” ” ” 18.

Taganwa, Sea of Azof, ” ” ” ” 20.70 Astracan, Caspian Sea, ” ” ” ” 21.30 Kasow (Volga) Russia, ” ” ” ” 3.50 Stockholm, Sweden, ” ” ” ” 24.30 Cracow, Poland, ” ” ” ” 23.40 Pekin, China, ” ” ” ” 26.00 Odessa, S. Russia, ” ” ” ” 25.20 Berlin, Prussia,” ” ” ” 27.70

Extremes below zero, 1835.

Bangor, Maine January 4, below 40 Bath ” ” ” 40 Portland, ” ” ” 21 Boston, Ma.s.s. ” ” 15 Salem, ” ” ” 17 Chicago, Ill. February 8, ” 22 St. Louis, Mo. ” ” 22 Cincinnati, O. ” ” 18 Lexington, Ky. ” ” 20 Nashville, Tenn. ” ” 10 Huntsville, Ala. ” ” 9 Philadelphia, Pa. ” ” 6 Lancaster, Pa. ” ” 22 Was.h.i.+ngton City ” ” 16 Clarksville, Geo. ” ” 15

Army Meteorological Reports for 1854.

January. Range. above below Mean. Max'm. min'm. mean. mean.

Fort Hamilton, N. Y. 31.49 50. 12. 18.5 19.5 Fort Niagara, ” 25.04 48. 6. 23. 19.

Alleghany, Pa. 29.08 64. 5. 34.9 24.1 Fort Delaware, Md. 32.38 54. 10. 21.6 17.4 Cincinnati, Ohio 31.78 54. 1. 22.2 32.8 Fort Snelling, Min. 1.30 45. 36. 43.7 37.3 ” Leavenworth, Kan. 24.68 67. 8. 32.3 32.7 ” Mackinaw, Mich. 13.09 34. 15. 10.9 28.1

Blodgett's and Army Rain Charts, showing rain and snow in inches for a series of years.

Jan. Feb. M'ch. Dec. Total in year.

Mack'w Island, Mich. 1.25 .82 1.14 1.24 23.87 Fort Kent, Maine. 3.73 2.60 1.77 3.36 36.46 Portland, ” 3.37 3.39 2.92 4.17 45.25

Jan. Feb. M'ch. Dec. Total in year.

Charleston, Ma.s.s. 2.66 2.22 4.08 2.27 35.83 Montreal, Canada 2.84 1.84 2.69 2.58 47.28 Fayetteville, Vt. 3.93 3.91 4.07 3.55 53.99 Cincinnati, Ohio. 3.35 3.51 3.93 4.29 46.89 Green Bay, Wis. 1.19 0.87 1.70 1.30 34.65 Detroit, Mich. 2.18 1.38 2.86 1.30 30.07 St. Louis, Mo. 1.93 3.37 3.82 1.99 41.95 Fort Hamilton, N. Y. 2.98 3.67 3.65 3.84 43.65 Pittsburgh, Pa. 2.18 2.17 2.70 3.13 34.96 Philadelphia, Pa. 3.09 2.94 3.43 4.03 43.56

CHAPTER XIII.

Agricultural interest -- Means of transportation -- Railways and vessels -- Lumber -- Vessels cleared -- Lake cities and Atlantic ports -- Home-market -- Breadstuffs -- Michigan flour -- Monetary panics -- Wheat -- Importations -- Provisions -- Fruit -- Live stock -- Wool -- s.h.i.+pping business -- Railroads -- Lake Superior trade -- Pine lumber trade -- Copper interest -- Iron interest -- Fisheries -- Coal mines -- Salt -- Plaster beds.