2. The _cold region_ comprehends a great and very unequal range of country. In the eastern division it extends from the foregoing line, to Lakes Ontario and Erie, westward; and south, on the Atlantic coast, to about Cape Henlopen on the Delaware. Hence a line may be protracted to Washington, and along by the foot of the first mountains in Virginia to about Morgantown, North Carolina; thence through the mountains to Kenaway river, and north-east on the west side of the mountains to the upper part of Chesnut Ridge, in Pennsylvania. In the westward, the southern boundary of the very cold region before-mentioned, may be assumed as the northern boundary of the cold; and the southern boundary of the cold may be protracted westward from the head of Chesnut Ridge to the high lands, dividing the waters falling into the Ohio from those falling into the great lakes, and along in a northern and western direction, crossing the Mississippi about thirty miles below Praire des Chiens, thence south and west, crossing the Missouri about thirty miles below the Platte river; thence southward to the west of the Great Osage village, and then eastward to the Arkansas river, above the Hot Springs. In this division the winters commence in December and end in March, and the heat of summer commences in May and ends in September. The heat and cold here also go to great extremes; but the weather is very changeable, particularly in winter, so that neither severe heat nor severe cold lasts long at a time. The country in this division is also generally healthy. In this division are comprehended the south-eastern and western parts of New York, New Jersey, the northern and eastern parts of Pennsylvania, most of Delaware and Maryland, the central and mountainous parts of Virginia, the southern portion of Michigan territory, the northern extremities of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, and portions of the Missouri and Arkansas territories. In the south-eastern parts of New York the prevailing winds, during the summer, are southerly; the weather is variable, and the change of temperature sudden and frequent. The mild and damp sea air penetrates far inland; indeed, as far as the Highlands, the climate differs little from that of the seacoast. In the parts of New York west of the mountains, the average temperature is about three degrees higher than in the same latitude farther east. South-westerly winds prevail through most of the year; and the chill easterly wind is nearly unknown.[38]