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By PAUL SAMPSON National Geographic News Service
ABE Weatherwise, the mythical forecaster for The Old Farmer’s Almanac, fears the worst for 1973.
The sage predicts more than 200 inches of snow for the New England mountain areas by the end of winter. He also calls for spring floods in the Mississippi River valleys, the hottest summer in years east of the Rockies, and the beginnings of a severe drought in the fall.
Abe’s predictions carry on a centuries-old tradition of almanacs. In the 16th century, many tracts forecast the weather a year in advance by drawing upon the latest intelligence from stargazers.
Almanacs flourished as printing spread. Editors , found that sales soared when they spiced up their calendars and tables with predictions. They not only predicted the daily weather but such catastrophes as fires, famine, plague, and “sodaine tumultes-”
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