Hoar-frosts, the dread of the Finnish husbandman

Sir John Carr remarks, that the summer burst upon him in this region with fiery fury, and with no earlier precursor than grass and green leaves. Suddenly, with the hot weather, the flies awake from their torpor in myriads, and distress as well as annoy the traveller. Modifications have been observed in the climate in recent times, the winter arriving later, and being less severe than formerly, while the autumn is more prolonged. This alteration is doubtless owing to the diminution of the extent of the forests, and the drainage of the marshes for cultivable purposes. Hoar-frosts, the dread of the Finnish husbandman, continue to be severe, and frequently destroy in a single night the flattering prospect of the richest harvest.

Thomas Milner: The Baltic: its gates, shores, and cities