Astro-meteorologica, or, Aphorisms and discourses of the bodies cœlestial, their natures and influences discovered from the variety of the alterations of the air ... and other secrets of nature / collected from the observation at leisure times, of above thirty years, by J. Goad.

☌ ☉ ☽ CHAP. XIV. ☍ ☉ ☽

The Lunar Warmth further deduced, as to the Change and Full, in the Dissolutions of Frosts: A competent Catalogue of Frosts so dissolved; the vulgar notion justified, yet it is not perpetual, sometimes other Causes step in, specially ☌ ♂ ☽. If the Full ☽ dissolves more Frosts than the New, 'tis agreeable to our principles. Why the Frosts are not dissolved precisely on the day of the Aspect, but 2 or 3 days before or after.

§ 1. WE are indebted farther to shew the Lunar warmth in these two Aspects of Change and Full, by the periodical resolution of tedious Frosts, which sometimes lock up the Elements, with our Blood and Spirits in Icy Chains, till a comfortable Relent of milder air sends out a war∣rant for their release.

§ 2. This gentler Spirit blows as at the ☌, so at the ☍ Let the vulgar notion and public monuments attest it; of this sort is, to run back no further, the Frost VII^o Elizabethae An. 1564. It began, saith Stow, Dec. 21. and lasted till our City-River was frozen, so that New Years Festival was celebrated in warming Sports and Exercises on the River, the new Thames Street: now as Stow tells us, it thaw'd Jan. 3. An. 1564. the day after the Change.

§ 3. The 2d. of that noted year 1572. famous for the Star in Cassiepeia, a Tedious Frost from Alhallontide to Twelftide. This Frost is remembred for congealing rains, as they fell till the arms of Trees overcharged with Ice, brake from the Trunk; after Twelftide it took its leave, in good time, for reckoning the hour of the ☌ being Ho. 10. noct. Jan. 3. the dis∣solution falls within less than three days after the Change; A cold Spring fol∣low'd it, but that belongs to another consideration.

§ 4. A 3d. An. 1579. short, but by the fall of Snow perilous to Wayfa∣rers and poor Cattel, still mentioned by some of our yearly remembrancers; it began Feb. 4 and held till Feb. 10. the day preceding the ☌.

§ 5. A 4th. An. 1598. from Jan. 1. to 10. the Thames almost frozen, the Frost remitted Jan. XI. two days preceding the Change. Further in Decemb. of the same year the Thames almost froze again, which, the Week before Christmas was dissolv'd. Now Seven days before Christmas happened the day of the Change. Again, after that remission Dec. XXVII. it freezes a 3d. time, when lo! On New years day it relented the very day of the Full.

§ 6. Another An. 1615. Jacobi I. 13. held a months space from Jan. XVII. to Feb. XIV. yea with little remission till March VII. That 7th of March is the day following the Full.

§ 7. An. 1621. a Frost from Nov. 24. ad Dec 7. when after a milder season it returned again.

§ 8. An. 1627. * Jan. XX. for three weeks, till Feb. XII. Divers Booths, not for sale of Drink only, but other Merchandize upon the place. But All remove on Feb. 12. within three days of the Full ☽.

In Germany in the beginning of the year we find Frigus intensissimum, Frigus sonticum, immane, Danubius Concretus: but behold a gentle Aspect of a full ☽ brings a Relent. Jan. 27. St. Vet.

* Note that in the Frost An. 1622. the Relent was in Germany not so long, for with them the Danow was frozen by Jan. 8. 18. but the remissi∣on came at the approach of the New ☽ Jan. 31. St. N. Febr. 10. Such difference there is in nice cases between Regions. By Nicer cases I intend Frosts not universal.

§ 9. An. 1623. The Danow frozen the 3d. time, the Frost began Dec. XIV. ceased Jan 11. 1624. within three days before the Full.

§ 10. An. 1626. Nov. XXI. Danow floted with Ice, it terminates Dec. 4. the day next after the Full. Thus Keplers Diary affords us plenty of instances in a few years; for more may be observed from those Diaries, who yet, good Man, in his account of the natural cause, as is noted before, gives not half the due to the Aspect.

§ 11. An. 1635. A great and sore Frost within memory, the same which is celebrated by Poets of the time, began as I remember, about the midst of Dec. ceased as a Manu-script tells me Feb. 11. three days after the New ☽.

§ 12. An. 1645. Frost from Dec. 8. complained of by the Parliament-Forces, (so called) as an impeder of their winter-marches, the ☽ perigee might help to hasten it away, Jan. 17. for, die 18. as the Story says, the Frost was newly gone, and that comes within compass of three days before the Full.

§ 13. An. 1659 Decimo Caroli IIdi. at the end of the year, a Frost begun Dec. XXIX. and although it remitted a little Jan. XI. in 60. and again on Jan. XIII. yet it receeded not till day XVIII. the day after the Full.

§ 14. An. 1662. Nov. XV. Frost brought Ice on the River day XXIX. but Dec. 1. the day after the New ☽ it thaw'd; It returns again, and keeps its own, till day XII. which preceeds the Full not above two days. And the third time Decemb. XXIV. in four Nights the Thames floated with Ice, it took its leave on New-years-day, the day after the Change.

§ 15. An. 1663. Jan. XXVIII. the day preceeding the new ☽, a Frost, began (we confess, and could have own'd the like before) but if it begins at the new ☽, it ends at the full, with some little warning, the day pre∣ceeding.

§ 16. The Winter of that fatal. year 1665. is not yet quite forgot, the Thames was sick of dead palsie for three weeks, it seized her first Dec. XXVIII. An. praeced. now, what the Comet of that year could not do, the Plenilu∣nar ☍ performed, for, III. days before, the Frost vanished. It froze again Jan. XXIX. by the fourth of the next month Ice appeared on the Thames Feb. 7. All dissolveth two days after the Change.

§ 17. An. 1667. A strange Frost from Feb. XV. (at which time we com∣fort our selves against the Menaces of Cold by the Topick of the Suns alti∣tude, which will not, say we, suffer such Hyemal Enchroachments at that time of year) when mal-gre what the Sun could do, though in the Vernal Equinox, there was much Ice in the River. Mart. IX I will not ask the Anti-Astrologer an account of this accident, only acquaint the Reader, that March XIV. was new ☽, and the XV. day the bold Face of the Winter changed.

§ 18. An. 1669. Dec. VII. A Frost of XX. days, the bitter Christmas day and the Holy-Day attending were universally noted, as intolerable as those two days where, the 27 was sensibly milder ☍ ☉ ☽, and three days after the wind turning to the South, it wore away by Inches.

§ 19. The same winter in the year following, viz. An. 1670. Jan. XXV. Frost began with the Full ☽, we see when it begun, note also when it dissol∣ved Feb. XI. the Second day after the Change.

§ 20. An. 1674. Jan. XXIV. Frost began, the Full ☽, on Feb. I. Had a good mind to the dissolution, the wind turned, so the dissolution succeeded Feb. II.

§ 21. An. 1672. Feb. XXIV. as late as it is in the Winter; This Frost, like that in 67. held us uncivilly till March XII. on whose morn ☍ ☉ ☽ made its mittimus.

§ 22. An. 1677. from Nov. 19. Frost of X. days brought Ice on the River, die 29. It vanisht, two days after, which fell within a day of the Full.

§ 23. An. 1678. Dec. IX. ad 18. Nine days it held, and the last day was exactly the day of the ☍ ☉ ☽.

§ 24. The last (and in the name of those that were come to mans estate I could almost wish it were the last; I never met with any that could wish they might endure the like again) is, That which began presently after the Solstice, Dec. XIV. An. 1683. and lasted unmercifully all the Christmas twelve days with some Semblance of relent (according as it was predicted, even the flattering Semblance that I speak of) about Jan. XI. 4 days after the Change but returned again, and claimed another Lunar Month, even till Feb. the 4th. in the Evening of the day of the Change. A Frost so terrible all over Europe, that it was matter of debate at home and abroad to find a paralel, the River being froze even below the City-Bridge as well as above, (a circumstance I find not mentioned in any of our precedent Congelations;) but we shall have occasion to speak of this elsewhere; you see when it found its period, and the World was glad of it.

§ 25. Yea but who takes the pains to note the Failers? I answer 'tis our Interest to note them, first That of An. 1600. from Jan. 2••. which in one se' night had neer froze the River. Stows Abridgement.

§ 26. 2ly. That of the 5th. of King James I. An. 1607. destroying Her∣bage, Fish, Waterfowl, of which, France, Ireland, yea and the new-planted-English, complain in Capt. Smith's voyages, parallel in some Mens opinions to that of 1684. but at no hand to be yielded, because of its frequent inter∣ruptions, viz. from Dec. 8. ad 15. then from 22. to 31. again; from Jan. 3. 1608. to 15. and from 24. to 30.

§ 27. 3ly. That of 1615. for though we have seen above, the 7th of March of that year to agree to observation; yet we must give an account of that part which began before Jan. 17. and held till Feb. 14. where no such observa∣ble is pretended.

§ 24. Like as An. 1621. from Nov. XXIV. ad Dec. VII. which bears the exception.

§ 29. 4thly. That memorable Sore and tedious Frost An. 1676. from Nov. 16. to Dec. 23. yea 10 days further; not inferiour to many for duration and severity, specially taking in the renew'd Assault à Jan. 21. ad. d. 30 An. 1677.

§ 30. Lastly that severe one for 2 Months space (with a few days inter∣ruption) a Dec. 26. viz. An. 1678. ad Feb. 9. An. 1679.

§ 31. It is our Interest, we say, to note these, not only because we gain a little Catalogue of Frosts; but also a confirmation of the rule by a paucity of exceptions; yet who knows not but the other Aspects of the ☽ either with ☉, or with others may deserve our glance on them, (though not conside∣rable enough to found an Axiome) as in our Aspect with ♂ for example; for whereas we find some of our Frost not terminated at the ☌ or ☍ Lunar, but keep aloof at three days distance; if that proportion seem too wide, we find the ☌ Mars with ☽ ready to patronize the Birth: Verily there must be something in it, when An. 1653. above introduced, we find the ☌ ♂ ☽ on the very day there noted for the departure of the Frosts. I do not pretend that so it was An. 1623. 1669. but I say that An. 1607-15-20. three of our ex∣cepted years we find a supply of the ☌ or ☍ ♂ with ☽ in the very day, or within a day of the Frosts dissolution. So on Jan. XXXI. An. 1602. Feb. XI. XIV. An. 1615. 1620. nay Once or twice, (as if this Planet were Rival to the ☉) the Frost begins with a ☌, and ends with an ☍, & contra, viz. a Jan. III. ad XV. An. 1607. & a Nov. XXIV. ad Dec. VII. An. 1620. yey from a very piece and quarter of a revolution also, as from a Square to a ☌. So Jan. XXIV. usque ad XXX. An. 1607. just as we observed some shorter Frosts, among the Soli-Lunar Aspects; The like will hardly be shewn with any other Planet, though 'tis true again, that ♂ hath no finger in the dissolution of the last: reckoning the absolute dissolution on Jan. 3. An. 1677. for if we speak of ten days before, when a kind offer was made, the new ☽ claims its right,

within whose bounds the drooping world hath hopes of a release in such cases.

§ 32. Now if any one finding upon the survey of this Table, that the Full Moon dissolves a Frost more frequently than the New, should strive to make an Inference contrary to the foregoing termination, I believe it will be hard to accomplish, because it will be found, perhaps upon this or a longer survey, that the Frosts which are dissolved at the Plenilunar Aspect, caeteris paribus, were found of a brisker Solution in the night than in the day, and the Novi∣lunar Solutions, slower.

§ 33. But if they persist to enquire, why sometimes, we meet not with the dissolution precisely at the Aspect, but more commonly about it, at 2, nay 3 days distance; 'tis truly answered, that when such effects are not unjustly ascribed to the Aspect, as the more worthy, there appear others under its wing, to co-operate with the more noted configuration; as we have said before, that ☿ or ♀ with the ☽ help to the Credit of the change or full: in the very Spring Tide, for confirmation of which, be pleased to know for a certain, that that prediction of flattering Semblance before spoken, in that wearisome Frost An. 1684. was determined not to the day of the Aspect only, but to the 3d. or 4th. dayafter, the Artist observing the Rule now proposed.