118 MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. MARCH, 1898
firsttime that the frost hurt the fruit 01 plantain the light of the moon. By 'the light of the moon' I do not mean any time the moon is shining, but only the eriod when it is getting bi ger each night. As
soon as the moon is fu% it is then 'the dark of &e moon,' and frost will injure the green things that it would not affect before. During the resent lunation the li ht of the moon ends April 6 when the moon is f&, if we have any colt weather after that you may look out for damage to fruit but none before that."
The Editor does not believe that there is any such lunar
influence as above described, and appeals to the intelligent
farmers who have kept full records of this subject to give hini
the actual data of observatione whereby this subject may be
tested. Every belief in lunar influence has thus far proved
to be contrary to the facts, and he expects that this one will
also be proved to be so.
___
RAIN IN THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.
Our correspondent, Mr. Curtis J. Lyons, in his report for
March, printed elsewhere, states that-
The month has been an unusually rainy one throughout the group. Kaumana (near Hilo), Hawaii, reports 55.55 inches; 10.15 inches fell at Luakaha, Oahu (5 miles from Honolulu); on the "thunprecedented floods did much damage, especial1 in Oahu and Kauai; heaviest rain
on north side of Oahu on the z i t i . Frequent thunder and lightning from the 12th to the 24th.
As before stated in the hloNTHLY WEATHER REVIEW, the
Editor's study of the general circulation of the atmosphere
leads him to believe that the conditions that bring droughts
or floods to the Indian Ocean, Asiatic coasts, and Aust,ralian
regions move slowly eastward over the Pacific and are event-
ually felt in North America. We shall, with interest, look
for a rainy season a t some time following theae floods in the
Hawaiian Islands.
RECENT EARTHQU-S.
The seismographs maintained by Professor Marvin at
Washington, D. C., and Professor Morley, a t Cleveland, Ohio,
were not affected during the month.
The following reports have been received from the observ-
ers of the Weather Bureau, or culled from newspaper corre-
sponden ts:
2d.-California, Visalia, 2:48 p. m.
3d.-California, Descanso, slight shock n t 2:30 a. m.
17th.-California, Upperlake, a t 11:40 p. m. ; motion from ~-
east to west. 19th.-Mon tana, Marysville, 6:OO a. m., a rumbling noise - followed by a severe shock lasting three seconds.
29th.-Kentucky, Mount Hernion, 7 3 0 p. m., very slight
shock. 30th.-California, Oleta, 11:40 p. m., Peachland, 11:40 p. m.,
vibrations from southwest to northeast, severe. Riovista,
11:40 p. m. San Leandro, 11:40 p. m. Santa Clara, severe
a t 11:40 p. m. Santa Cruz, heavy, 11:40 p. m., duration from
30 to 40 seconds. Stockton, severe a t 11:42 p. m. Vacaville,
11:45 p. m. Fort Ross, 11:45 p. m. Georgetown, between
11:30 p. m. and midnight. Hollister, about midnight, slight
but of long duration. Lytton
Springs, violent shock, no time given. North San Juan, at
11:42 p. m., vibrations southeast to northwest.
Sonoma: 11:45 p. m., one of the most violent and prolonged
shocks ever felt here. The vibrations were from north to
south accompanied by a rattle and a noise. The first shock
was followed a t intervals by four ot.her tremblers that were
very heavy and over twenty lesser ones.
Sacramento: 11:38 p. m., three shocks were felt here; they
were of an easy undulating motion and seemed to be from
southeast to northwest.
Ignacio: Tubbs Island, among the tules, sloughs, and salt
water creeks, was surely the center of the great earthquake
Iowa Hill, about 11:45 p. m.
of the 30th ; the island heaved, rocked, and trembled like a
platter full of jelly, and everything on it was moved out of
place.
Agnews: 11:30 p. m.; Campbell, 11:42 p. m.; duration
forty seconds ; vibrations from west to east ; the motion was
slow ; it was considered as heavy, if not the heaviest, ever
known here.
Centerville: 11:43 p. In., direction north to south ; dura-
tion thirty seconds; 2 shocks. First shock rolling motion,
second and severest seemingly an up and down motion;
severest felt since October 21, 1868.
San Jose: One of the heaviest ever experienced occurred a t
11:42:22. Lick Observatory reports the total duration forty
seconds, and that after the first twelve and thirteen seconds
the shocks were more violent than has ever been recorded
there. The greater motion was sout>heast and northwest; the
earth moved approxiinately one-quarter of an inch.
Santa Rosa: Most severe ever felt here; chimneys and
plate glass windows destroyed.
Stockton: Severe quake a t 11:40; vibrations for thirty
seconds.
LOB Angeles: No shock was felt here and all reports indi-
cate that the quake was confined to a limited area close to
Sail Francisco. The vibrations died away in Monterey
County to the south and in Mendocino and Colusa counties
to the north. The greatest energy p a s exhibited a t Vallejo.
Oakland: Lasted several seconds. Tremor not so violent
but the duration much longer than usual; a t the Chabot
Observatory the mean time clock stopped a t llh 42" 24" p. m.
Bolinas: 11:43, seventeen seconds duration, vibrations from
north to south ; shocks short and sharp.
San Rafael: Severe shock shortly before midnight.
Suisun: Severe and prolonged shock a t 11:45 p. m.; vibra-
tions seemed north and south but the shake was very con-
fusing as to direction.
San Francisco: Davidson Observatory, 37O 47' 28" N., 122O 25' 41" W., 54.6 miles north, 53.5 miles west from Lick Ob-
servatory. The first shock was a t llh 42" le, Pacific standard
time, and lasted seventeen seconds. An ivory carving hnng-
ing in front of a mirror and almost touching i t indicated by
its gentle tapping that tremors continued passing until llh
44" 48', and then after a pause, again a t llh 45" 48", and again
later still. The mirror faces south and indicates north and
south motions. The vibrations increased for the first six
seconds; decreased somewhat to the twelfth second and died
away, as far as could be perceived, a t the seventeenth second.
San Francisco: The earthquake which occurred a t 11:43 p.
m., as shown by the hands of the clocks stopped in San Fran-
cisco, waa the severest which has visited this region for mauy
years. There was no preliminary tremor, but the rocking
began without an instant's warning. The 19-story building
of Claus Spreckels swayed somewhat, but sustained no injury.
One house collapsed, while hundreds of chimneys fell and
many panes of glass were broken, but on the whole the
damage was slight. The water in the bayrose 2 feet and im-
mediately subsided.
Mare Island: The navy yard on this island appears to have
been the center of this earthquake. Many of the brick build-
ings and costly engineering plants belonging to the Govern-
ment were injured, and the most conservative estimates place
the damage to Federal property a t more than $lOO,OOO, while
about 1,300 men have been temporarily thrown out of em-
ployment.
Berkley: At the Students Observatory, University of Cali-
fornia, severest experienced here since 1868. The large
astronomical clock was stopped by the vibrations a t exactly
11:42:26, Pacific standard time, but it is difficult to say how
many seconds after the beginning of the disturbance this
occurred. The best record of the direction and the intensity
MARCH, 1898. MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. ,117
Prof. A. Leuschner, of the Department of Astrononly a t the
The duplex seismograph showvs that the vertical vibrations were
University at Berkeley, stated:
nf t.hn vihratione W ~R ohtained from the diinlex seismoeranh I north to south and from east to west. The first displacement was
of small vibratidns, at first southeastand later northwest. A northeaet movement followed and was succeeded by one almost twice as strong in a direction exactly opposite. Here an almost circular vibration oc- curred, and then the vibrations gradually died out in a southwest
__"___ _______-_ of prof. A. ~~~~~h ~~~, ana is analogous toi& record ob&ie,j north. It then turned west, and there were a series of-short tremors, principally southwest. The displacement next turned southeast, and from the Chabot Observatory. the maximum UD and down vibration followed. Then came a series
METEOROLOGICAL TABLES AND CHARTS.
By A. J. HEXBY, Chlef of Divlslon of Records and Yeteorolodoal Data.
For text descriptive of tables and charts see page 68 of REVIEW for February, 1898.