perature of the month, when Saturn was in parallel declination with the sun and in trine aspect with Venus. The maximum temperature was on the 1st of the month, when the heat-producing planets Mars and Jupiter were in conjunction.
But turning again to the phenomenal month of February, and referring to its dates promiscously(sic) by accident rather than design, I find that the 13th was the coldest day in London, when the thermometer fell to 13 degrees – 19 degrees of frost. Ice was 6 inches thick in the parks, and was thus capable of bearing the thousands of skaters who resorted to it. On the Serpentine Capt. Wheatley, of the Foot-Guards drove a splendidly decorated sledge, whilst another sledge was drawn by an Esquimaux[a] dog, at a charge to each rider. On that particular day, too, Saturn was in quartile aspect with Venus. Then, from the 1st to the 3rd there were two angular influences of the cold-exciting Saturn and two of Herscel(sic), coincidentally with wintry weather in the form of “winds, frost, cold rain and snow” as predicted by astra meteorologists. The frost that visited Hastings, Bexhill, Eastbourne, Brighton and other parts of the south coast on Saturday morning, Feb. 3rd, affected such a scene as was never before witnessed by persons proverbially of good memory. There had been a strong wind during the night, with a fall of snow, succeeded by a heavy descent of rain towards morning with a sharp frost. At daylight it was discovered that every part of the ground not protected by snow was covered with thick ice, whilst the vertical surfaces of walls, doors, trees, lamp-posts and other objects were crystalised(sic) with ice and formed one of the most beautiful scenes imaginable. The trunks and branches of trees, even to the most delicate fibres, were clothed with ice in a most rigid and beautiful manner, and every beholder stood amazed at finding himself in a sort of Crystal palace. Locomotion was both difficult and dangerous – ay! almost impossible. Persons residing in elevated districts had to slide, rather than walk down to a lower position, whilst those who wished to ascend from a lower to a higher level were obliged to crawl on all fours. Such, indeed, was my own case. Newspapers then being stamped, came to the vendors from London in large bundles in the post-office sack, and I being necessitated to go to the St. Leonards post-office – then on the parade - for my daily and weekly supply, found it totally im(sic) to walk down the East Ascent from the top of Norman road, and my only alternative was to slide, which I fortunately accomplished without a fall. But how to manage the return journey with my heavy parcel was a complete puzzle. To walk upwards on the ice, with the burthen on my shoulder was a thorough impossibility, and the only practicable way I found was to jerk the parcel forward, and crawl to it on my hands and knees, and then repeat the operation many scores of -
Cite error: <ref> tags exist for a group named "Notes", but no corresponding <references group="Notes"/> tag was found
