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Ingraham, J. H. (Joseph Holt), 1809-1860 [1835], The south-west, volume 2 (Harper & Brothers, New York) [word count] [eaf155v2].
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Note B. Page 27.

For the following meteorological table, the author is indebted to
the politeness of Henry Tooley Esq. a scientific gentleman who
has been a resident of Natchez the third of a century, and who
has during the greater part of his life kept a daily register of the
weather. The exposure of his thermometer was unexceptionable,
and always the same. The tables in the author's possession from
various other sources, date back to the year 1799, affording an uninterrupted
series of meteorological observations in this climate,
down to the present period. An abstract from these tables would
be too elaborate for a work of this nature, and would not, indeed,
convey any farther important information upon this climate, than
is contained in the accompanying abstract from the tables of Dr.
Tooley, for the past ten years. The general temperature, though
varying much from day to day, is so regular, one year with another,
that a meteorological table for any one period of ten years will
answer, with slight variations, for almost any other term of the
same duration.

The thermometer was examined at 5 A. M. and at 4 P. M. for
the extremes.

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ANNUAL RESULTS OF METEROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS MADE AT NATCHEZ
IN N. Lat. 31 ° 34′ Long. 91 ° 24′ 42″ W.

5 A. M. 4 P. M. 5 A. M. 4 P. M. Number of days.
Year. Mean. temp. Warmest. Coldest. Clear. Cloudy. Rainy. Snow. Sleet.
1825 60 81⅙ 71 1/12 81⅓ 49½ 63 5/12 178 88 99
1826 63¼ 75 74⅓ 80¾ 48¼ 64 9/12 134 120 110 1
1827 63½ 74 74⅚ 73⅓ 51⅓ 66¼ 151 126 88
1828 64 76 64⅓ 77⅙ 53½ 65¾ 133 121 112
1829 54 65 72⅔ 76⅓ 48 1/12 61⅔ 116 124 134 1
1830 62⅓ 74 72¼ 80¾ 48½ 66 7/12 161 121 77 2 1
1831 57 69½ 71¼ 77½ 44½ 60⅓ 187 141 34 3
1832 61⅚ 74½ 68⅙ 84⅓ 47 64 7/12 185 146 23 2
1833 60½ 72 71 1/12 78½ 48½ 65 177 138 50
1834 60½ 73¼ 73 9/12 82⅓ 47 65 166 151 46 2
to June
1835 21⅓ 26¼ 28½ 30⅙ 15 22⅔ 62 69 18 2

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1835.

Mean.
Months. temp. Warm, Cold, Cl'r. Cl'y. Rain snow Sleet
Jan. 46⅔ 57 69 64 32 48 12 16 3
Feb. 36⅓ 50 59 61 10 28 13 11 3 1
Mar. 46 65⅔ 68 74 32 50 14 11 5 1
April, 57⅔ 65 71 75 46 64 9 18 3
May, 69⅔ 77⅓ 76 88 60 82 14 13 4
June,
21⅓ 26¼ 28½ 30⅙ 15 22⅓ 62 69 18 2

Mean temp. obtained by adding mean of months together, and then
dividing by the number of months.

1834.

Jan. 29⅔ 50 67 74 14 27 5 12 11 1
Feb. 52⅔ 65 72 73 32 52 13 14 1
Mar. 47 67 69 78 39 62 9 17 5
April, 61 76 67 83 49 74 17 11 2
May, 66 89½ 76 93 54 63 14 12 5
June, 76⅔ 87 80 93 71 87 15 15
July, 77 89⅔ 82 83 74 91 21 10
Aug. 77⅔ 90½ 83 98 73 89 18 12 1
Sept. 69⅓ 70 77 77 57 77 13 10 7
Oct. 66½ 75½ 76 87 41 56 19 9 3
Nov. 55⅓ 63⅔ 69 77 31 51 10 15 5
Dec. 47½ 55⅔ 67 72 35 52 12 14 5
60½ 73¼ 73¼ 82⅓ 47 65 166 151 45 2 1

1833.

Jan. 53½ 37½ 68 74 31 51 9 17 5
Feb. 46¾ 60 59 72 38 56 11 9 8
Mar. 51 66 64 71 25 37 13 5 13
April, 63 76 73 65 55 66 13 16 1
May, 70 82 76 84 66 73 15 13 3
June, 75 87 80 92 65 84 18 11 1
July, 63⅔ 89⅔ 81 93 69 89 22 9
Aug. 74 89½ 80 93 69 88 19 12
Sept. 74 86⅓ 79 94 62 81 15 12 3
Oct. 58 69⅔ 68 70 37 56 18 8 5
Nov. 49 63 69 71 30 45 15 11 4
Dec. 48⅓ 58 61 62 36 53 9 15 7
60½ 72 71 1/12 78 5/12 48 7/12 64 11/12 177 138 50

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The author has been favoured with the following medical report
drawn up by a physician of Natchez, who has had long experience
in the diseases of this climate.

MEDICAL REPORT.

Return of deaths within the city of Natchez, from 1st June 1822,
to first June 1835—including thirteen years:

The population of Natchez is ordinarily between three and
four thousand—lessened, probably, in the summer season, from
500 to 1000. With this number of residents, the mortality cannot
be regarded as very large. On the contrary, few places of
equal magnitude, either north or south, can boast a greater degree
of general health than this city. Since the year 1825, it will be
perceived, it has been growing gradually healthier—with the exception
of the last two or three years,—when, owing in a great
measure to the severity of the winter season, a great proportion
of the sickness and mortality has occurred in the winter and
spring months. Indeed take a period of seven years—from 1825
to 1833, and we challenge any southern or western city, with the
same amount of population, to show a less number of deaths—
especially in the summer season, than the city of Natchez. The
bill of mortality has been considerably augmented of late, by that
appalling and sweeping epidemic, which increased in strength,
and doubled its roll of victims in proportion as it travelled south—
together with small pox and intemperance—for both of which
nature has provided specific remedies—but which certain classes
continue still to avoid, and will hence continue to suffer and die
in spite of Jenner and the temperance societies, as long as incredulity
shall exist, and distilleries pour forth their floods of poison
in the land. Most of those with the last mentioned diseases,
it would seem, have been inmates of the public hospital.

On an average, about ⅕ to ¼ of the deaths annually occur
from bilious remittent, congestive and typhus fever. The yellow
fever, be it known, has not appeared here as an epidemic for the
last five or six years, and may be regarded as quite extinct in the
city. Owing to the careless and imperfect manner in which the
returns have generally been made—and this we are sorry to say,
is too often the case—a large portion of the deaths are from unknown
diseases—as to which in regard to the age of the subjects, and
the colour, which in this country is somwhat important, we are

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left generally in the dark. By giving the subject some considerable
attention, however, we have been enabled to preserve a degree
of accuracy in the proportion, and the general result, we
believe, is nearly, if not specifically correct.

The whole number of deaths by fever, during 13 years, is 511;
cholera 107, consumption 100, intemperance 58, small pox 45,
infantile 49, dysentery 30, delirium tremens 23, drowned 10, murder
10, old age 10, suicide 4, unknown 205.

The remainder, which we purposely omit, are by ordinary
diseases, which are not peculiar to any clime or season. We
have examined a meterological table, kept with a considerable degree
of accuracy for the last 10 years: but it presents nothing
peculiar—and its details are too minute and comprehensive for
our present object. We notice, however, a greater proportion of
“cloudy and rainy” days than could be expected in this “sunny
clime,” while the average degree of heat is by no means greater
than in latitudes somewhat farther north. The greatest range of
heat is 98, and the greatest cold 10°.—This we are inclined
to believe, is not strictly correct, as we have twice, within a
few years, seen the thermometer as low as 10° in the neighbourhood
of New Orleans.

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DEATHS IN EACH MONTH.

Months and years, 1822 1823 1824 1825 1826 1827 1828 1829 1830 1831 1832 1833 1834 1835
January, 7 4 5 7 5 4 7 5 4 5 4 14 17
February, 4 10 7 6 2 7 4 6 5 6 5 16 16
March, 8 5 1 3 4 3 7 6 8 3 11 30 18
April, 12 6 3 4 4 5 7 2 6 5 8 22 25
May, 11 6 5 9 3 6 6 3 11 9 16 19 32
June, 9 15 8 6 7 3 9 5 4 6 3 27 44
July, 33 15 19 4 11 4 5 3 7 5 4 9 27
August, 29 102 14 17 9 5 2 6 16 4 3 11 14
September, 28 155 13 33 10 6 12 19 9 4 9 15 17
October, 22 56 8 48 5 26 9 21 10 5 13 30 20
November, 12 8 5 15 4 16 9 16 7 4 10 10 26
December, 6 7 4 4 12 8 3 2 5 12 8 13 20
Total, 139 400 102 148 87 86 74 103 80 74 75 159 269 108—1904
Males, 119 315 80 128 62 76 56 80 55 57 55 124 193 79—1479
Females, 20 85 22 20 25 10 18 23 25 17 20 35 76 29—425

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Ingraham, J. H. (Joseph Holt), 1809-1860 [1835], The south-west, volume 2 (Harper & Brothers, New York) [word count] [eaf155v2].
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