China, that enormous empire that believes in the ethical philosophy of Confucius, whose inhabitants have lived for four thousand years with less strife and bloodshed than any other nation, has as great a variety of climate during December in the widely separated parts of its broad domain as has the United States. On any day of the Christmas month some parts of this country are bound in icy chains, while other parts are sweltering in a torrid temperature.
That wonderful Island—Japan—whose people have made such amazing strides in catching up with the most advanced civilization of the Occident, and who never have accepted Christianity, has a most delightful climate during winter, with a large amount of sunshine and moderate temperatures.
The vast Christian nation so long ruled by the Tzar, and now in such deplorable chaos, has a varied climate during December. From temperate conditions in the southern portion of its European possessions it gradually grows colder as one goes northward until a region of great severity is reached. At Petrograd the average night temperature is 6° below zero. At Moscow it is colder, the average of its minimum temperature being 11° below. Two thirds of the time it is cloudy at these two cities.
Verkhoyansk, in the central portion of Siberia, is nearly the coldest place in the world where observations are regularly taken. There Christmas Day may be ushered in with a temperature as low as 75° below zero. For days at a time this extreme cold remains, the warmest part of the day varying but little from the coldest.
In many of the cities of the Southern Hemisphere Christmas Day is likely to be such as will cause the sojourner to long for some cooler region. There it is midsummer, the grass is green and the fruit is on the tree. We of the North could hardly realize that it is December. In the pampas of the Argentine Republic everything is parched. The white stucco walls and the red tile roofs in the cities reflect the intense rays of the sun into the shimmering air. In Rio de Janeiro the days are almost unbearable, the daily temperature rising to 100° and over at midday and seldom falling to 60° at night. Bear in mind that the greater part of the area of South America lies between the equator and 30° south latitude. But wherever in these South American cities one can escape to an elevation of several thousand feet a pleasant temperature may be found.
At Santiago, Chili, it is more comfortable than in Brazil, for the nights are cool, even though the day temperatures rival those of the Argentine Republic. But here the cool mountain tops are almost hanging over the coast cities.
At Cape Town, in the extreme south part of Africa, two days out of three are clear and the daily range of temperature is from 48° to 83°, making fairly pleasant conditions during the Christmas holidays.
At Melbourne, Australia, one half of the days are cloudy, and the temperature is moderate, having a range from 54° to 75°.