The native American. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1840, 1839-06-01
From tie National Gasette.
ARTIFICIAL PRODUCTION OF RAIN.

MEssRs. EDITORS: Knowing the difficulty, if
not the mpossibility, OF making the subject intel
Ggble in short newspaper article, it is with re-
luctance that | am induced after much earn
est solicitation from my friends both near ana re-
mote, to give very brief summary OF the reasons
and FACTS, which have led me to desire, tlat all
experiment should be made to see whether ram
may be produced artfciay in time OF drought
The documents which have collected on this
subject. ifthev do not prove that the experiment
will succeed, do at least prove that II ought to be
tried; this trust will most satisfactorily appear
when thew shall be published entire. In the
mean time it mas become necessary TO present to
the public something on the subject lest longer
silence might be construed into an abandonment
of the project.
First. 1t is known by experiment that if air
should be expanded into double the volume by
diminished pressure, it would be cooled about 80
degrees OF Fahrenheit
Second. | have shown by experiment, that if
air at the common dew point in the summer sea-
son, in time of drought, II degrees, should 90 up
in column to height sufficient TO expand It by
diminished pressure, into double the volume, It
would condense into water or visible cloud, by
the cold OF expansion. more than one-haf OF It's
vapour, a quantity sufficient 10 produce nearly
three inches of RAIN
Third 1t is known by chemical principles
that the caloric of elasticity given out during the
condensation of this vapour, would be equal 10
about $4,000 tons of anthracite coal, burnt on
each square mile over which the cloud extended.
Fourth | have shown by experiment see
Saturday Courier, March IS, 1887, that this ca
loric ofeasticty would prevent the air from cool
ing only about half as much as it would, if it had
no vapour in It, about 10 degrees at the height
assumed, which would cause the air i'll the cloud
to be, al that height, about 40 degrees warmer
than the air on the outside Of the cloud at the same
height. | have shown from these prlnci pies
see journal of the Franklin institute for 1886,
that the barometer would fall under the cloud thus
formed, ia favorable circumstances, quantity as
great as it is known to fall sometimes under the
middle of dense and lofty cloud, and that con-
sequeAty the air would rush in on all sides to-
wards the centre OF the cloud and upwards i'll the
middle, and thus continue the condensation OF the
vapour and the formation Of cloud and the gene
ration Of rain. See also Journal OF the Franklin
Institute for September and October, 1888 and
for January, February, and March, and subse-
quent, 1899. ......
Fifth. have shown also in the volumes quo
ted above, that the air does move nWarls on all
sides, towards the centre OF the space, or region
where great rain is falling, and of course up
wards, after it comes in under the cloud, which
least, that it does SO in all storms which have
been investigated, which now amount 10 sixteen,
besides several tornadoes in all Of which the
trees were thrown with their tops !nWards. y.
From the principles here established by expe-
rment, and afterwards confirmed by observation,
it follows, that il large body Of air IS made to
ascend in column, large cloud will be gene
rated, aud that That cloud will contain in itself 4
sef-sustaining power, which may move from the
place over which it was formed, and cause tie air
over which 1t passes, 10 rise up into 1t, and thus
form more cloud and rain, until the rain may be-
come general; for many storms which commence
IN the West Indies, very narrow, are known to
move from the place OF beginning several thou
sand miles, widening out and increasing in size,
until they become many hundred miles wide.
(See Redield and Reid, and the reports of Joint
Committee.
If these principles are just, it will follow,
when the airls in favorable state, that the burst
ing out of volcano ought to produce rain; and
such is known to be the fact; and have album
dant documents in my possession to prove il.
So under very favorable circumstances the
bursting out d. -ra3t fires ought to produce rain;
and / have m>0y Iarta in my possession render
ing it highly ycobuor. If not certain, that great
rains haze sG.I> mes been produced by great
fires.
IL Is general opinion IN parts OF the country
where fires frequently take place. that those fires
produce rain. Now this opinion could hardly
have originated without some circumstances be-
sides mere coincidence attending them, such as
related in the following account. Mr.. Dobrez-
hoffer,a missionary to Paraguay, speakin of the
tall grass AID burushsS on fire, says:
81 myself have seen Clouds and lightning pro-
duced from The smoke, as it is flying off like q
nhri2ciad; so that the Indians are not to blame
for setting fire to the plains in order to produce
rain. they have learned that the thicker smoke
turns into clouds which pour forth water. "--.4c-
eo,1t q the .QJipho1ses, col. 5, p. $50.
Mr.. Lapice, Of Louisiana, informed DR.. S.
Calhoun, Of This city, "that the conhagraon Of
the long grass IN the prairies of that State
every thing with It's cnders for miles around and
that RAIN follows it shortly according to lmme-
mortal observation in that country"
Every extensive fires in Nova Scotia in the
woods, are 50 generally followed by heavy floods
of rain, that there is some reason to believe that
the enormous pillars Of smoke have some share in
producing them.'-(Mag. Nat. Hist. for Dec.
1882
The bad philosophy of supposing that smoke