Posted on 03/18/2015 2:42:50 PM PDT by daniel1212
A man could lose his job today for writing that!
Came across this and thought it was worth sharing. Never know what a year can bring, and these folks did not know the cause or solution.
Note that hardy character of the people then, which also prayed much:
In 1816 there were no railroads. There were freight-carrying wagons but limited roads. Bulk cargo could be transported economically only by water. This meant that inland towns & farms were very much on their own as nothing could be imported.
Isolated as they were, accustomed to the privation caused by subsistence farming, 90% of the population of New England was essentially self-sufficient. Without public utilities or access to markets, most people were probably quite capable of surviving for a season on shortened rations. They knew how to improvise. Each family was an economic unit, though neighbors depended on one another for many things and trading goods & services was common.
One of the farmers biggest problems came in the spring of 1817, when there was no seed for new crops and no money with which to buy it. The May 18 th 1817 edition of Portlands Eastern Argus, records a town meeting authorizing the Overseers of the Poor to furnish seed of various descriptions to those individuals who are unable to procure the same from his own resources the advances to be paid for either in labor on the highway, or in kind at the harvesting of crops. We sincerely hope that this example may be generally followed in other towns.
Tight-fisted, ornery & independent, the Yankees gained a reputation as jack-of-all-trades. Their independence was largely a matter of necessity & it would stand them in good stead when they were faced with the scanty harvest of 1816.
I learned of this from one of the Frank Edwards books. I think it was ‘Stranger than Science’.
Coming soon to a planet near you?
It’s been a long winter in Maine. It’s March 18, and there is still two feet of frozen snow on the ground. I hope we don’t have a summer like this.
A 40 dollar bounty on wolves in 1816 would be 549.00 today.They sure wanted those wolves dead.
For the next week the night temps are not sppsd to be above freezing, being as low as 13, and we still have lots of snow in yards and on sidewalks. But that is mainly due to a persistent stationary high off the West Coast, given them abnormal high temps.
With the starvation. i am surprised they even needed a bounty.
There’s a very real possibility that this could happen any time. But nobody is self sufficient anymore. Millions would die.
“A 40 dollar bounty on wolves in 1816 would be 549.00 today.They sure wanted those wolves dead.”
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Probably even substantially more than that. I went to the following on-line inflation calculator and found out what $40 in 1914 would be equivalent to in today’s money and found it would be over $900. There likely are similar on-line calculators that go back further (to 1816?), but I didn’t find one in a limited search.
http://www.dollartimes.com/calculators/inflation.htm
FINDING: “$40.00 in 1914 had the same buying power as $939.25 in 2015.
Annual inflation over this period was 3.17%.”
I believe that 3 of my own ancestors were among them.
Some have speculated that higher volcanic activity can occur during prolonged low solar activity periods. Not as far fetched an idea as it seems.
Imagine the money of the time, gold and silver coin.
Two $20 dollar gold pieces today ($1168.50 an ounce) would fetch at least $2261 (gold content of 0.9675 troy oz per coin)
That represents how worthless our dollar is right now. It takes $56.53 'dollars' of today to equal one real dollar. In 1934 it was a 1:1 trade.
As far as that goes, transportation to a great extent mitigates regional crop loss. Likewise, preservation of food is much, much better today.
Even at the height of the Dust Bowl in the US, that wiped out tens of thousands of small farms, because of deflation and currency shortage, much of the agricultural production was not worth shipping to market. There was still far too much food being produced.
Wow A good round bale will weigh the better part of 1000lbs and can be bought today for $30-35 for cow grade hay.
You are correct. What a run on grocery stores would be seen if a super volcano blew, or an asteroid hit, while Globaal Warming religionists would demand even more measures against CO2.
Rev. predicts great meteorological events, whatever they mean:
The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed. And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter. And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise. (Revelation 8:7-12)
Global Warming on Free Republic
But the bales on the farms around here (MA) are the much smaller rectangular ones.
I’m guessing those near the coast probably ate a lot of fish, mussels and whatever else they could get from the ocean, ponds and lakes.
Yes, but inland it was more difficult. When living hand to mouth, and no refer, electricity, little medical care, etc. it was very hard even for such sturdy self reliant people.
Today such a crisis in the US could result in forced divestiture of goods to be distributed to those who demanded such as a right, and strict Venezuela-type purchase controls, and with fishing, hunting etc. being very restricted by those who worship nature, as the liberal elite use the crisis to reign in control over all, which they seek, since they serve in proxy for the devil.
But such are to be smitten with the sword of the Spirit.
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