As my posting Sunday is almost used up I will give you my answer directly. I would be interested in other opinions too. Never really thought about that before, even though I agreed with the line from the moment I first read it.


Eliot gives some reasons:

"Winter kept us warm, covering
Earth in forgetful snow, feeding
a little life etc. "

I agree with these lines, but for me there's more to it.
It's a cruel season because it's playing winter/summer all the time. One day of summer promise , four days of retreat into winter. Unsettling, uneven. As a child already I could not wait for spring to pass into summer. Looking at those green buds on the trees that took endless time to become leaves. I hated that.
I enjoy spring much better now, but still prefer the other three seasons.