The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1874-12-12
.:PROBABILiTiES."
Gae Vast Territory Embraced IN e Na'ioha Meteor
.,oyicaI Investigations - TieU Usefulness
and Connection With Lnp-Sa'ing.
rN :. Tribune's Wa hingtc. Letter.


1874, has just been presented to the Secrstar
of War, and is document CT unusual interest
as showing the vast extent OF the operation
Of the signal service, and the thoroughnes
and efficiency with which they are prosecuted
together with the great economical and scien
.ifc value of the results attained. [. is grea
.nisti.ke TO suppose that the publication of thu
probabilities OF the weather III the daily pa
ygers is the end and aim OF the organization
81 this branch OF the government service.
This is, to he sure, one feature of it and O.
great practical moment, involving rs it does
:. careful record several times day OF varia
.ions OF temperature barometricai pressure
.he direction OF the winds. condition Of the
sky, tho rain and snow fall etc. with observa
lions of the meteorological phenomena, and
hose recurring periodically IN the animal and
.gegetable Kingdom. 1t likewise embraces a
careful study of the condition Of the waters
IN our Western rivers, by means OF which an.
aouncements of threatened rises in any part
r,f their extent are transmitted to their lower
portions in time for the protection OF property
and life against their danger
Nor are meseorologic inv estigations limited
merely to the older portion of the United
States, rs the proper appreciation of weather
phenomena involves a much wider field of
investigation. Stations have been established
on st. Paul, island in Behring Sea, rs st.
Nlchael's in Norton Sound, not far from
Behring Straits: at Fort Ynkon, and across
the northernmost portion of the Hudson 8
Bay Company. Even Greenland, Labrador.
Iceland Norway. Sweden and Russia have
combined to form liue OF posts encircling
the globe at which observations are taken at
the same absolute moment OF time. cor
responding as nearly a. possible to 7:35 A.
a., ut Washington.
Furthermore. the more southern obserya-
tories in Europe and Asia are cooperating in
the same general plan of obseryatories, while,
beside the stations Of the signal service in the
West Indies. not Il few trst-cliss establish
ments in South America render their assist
alnce also Thus the entire scientific resources
of the world have been called into play by
Gen. Myer in his plan of simultaneous OBJ
servatons, not merely for the purpose of adj
sancing our knowledge of the atmospheric
physics of the globe generally, but with the
very purpose of making such generalizations
and deductions as will allow the prediction of
atmospheric changes far IL advance of what is
now possible from facts noted by telegraph
within the imm ediate vicinity of the United
States.
THE BOUNDARIES OF THE SERVICE ENLARGED.
The satisfactory nature OF the work now
done by the signal service, together with
the department OF meteorology, has induced
Prof. Henry to relinqush into its hands the
great system of meteorological operations
carried on for so many years by the Smith.
sonian institution, and its hundreds Of OBJ
servers resident in nearly every county in
every State in the Union, have been request ed
~ transmit their communications to the war
department. A similar service, which has
been conducted satisfactorily by the medical
department of the army. has also been trans
ierred to the signal Office, so that that estah-
ishment now controls the entire meteorologi- !
al interest of the United States
The daily publications Of the 81 nal Office /
consists in addition to the "probabiliti s.
furnished to the papers Of review OF the
weather for the preceding seven days and of
q map showing graphically the conditions of
che atmosphere at 1885 A. M. of each day.
There is also II review nthly of the weather,
with several maps showing the mean baro-
metric pressure, the temperature, the rain
fall, ETC., together with several other series of
more or less varied interest.
For the purpose OF making its forecasts
more widely disseminated, cautionary signals
are displayed by the signal office at all import
ant points on the lakes aud sea.coast for the
special benefit of mariners. The agricultural
communities which have an equal interest in
knowing the probable changes of the weather.
arc favored in different way.
Many of these are, of course. ont Of the
reach of the daily papers, and for their bene-
tit the plan has been adopted of telegraphing
10 the signal-station observers at midnight,
from Washington, the same forecasts which
appear in the morning papers to twenty cen s
tres OF distribution, namely; Albany, An
yusia, Bangor, Boston, Buffalo, Burlington l.
,IoNa). Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, Leaven-
worth, Logansport. Memphis, Montgomery, S
New York. Philadelphia, Pittsburg, S
st. Louis and Washington | I
hoe nh 1,,.a tal ofI 8
he signal service upon bulletins enveloped t
IS rapidly rs printed, in post Office wrappers. s
tlready stamped and addressed to the different !
post Offices within a radius of as many miles 4
IS can be reached by the swiftest conveyance S
~ , =. NJ. of the current day II
As soon rs each bulletin arrives at the post Il
,fiice to which it is sent, it is posted up in d
ramc, such exhibition averaging the point of '
Il A. NJ, at the different offices, the average S
ime thus elaSping from the monent the dis
'atch leaves the signal Office in Washington \
i'll it has appeared in the interior towns and #
illnges fron Maine to Louisiana being ten il
iours. The total number of bulletins dis /,
ributed during the past year has been 62S6 ii
This system can beincreased indefinitely with "
roper appropriations. 6
CONNECTION WITH THE LIFE AND SAVING SER 1
VICE. g
An other extremely important feature Of b
he signal service operations, during the past [
ear, has been its connection with the life II
aving service 1t may be remembered that Il
congress lhas authorized the establishment Q
certain number of lite-saving stations at 81
different points on the coast, where crews are Ii
he placed permanently for the relief of c
essels IN distress. With each such station
mere Is combined telegraph station supplied Il
y an oVerseer OF the corps. not only for the W
purpose OF giving the meteorological indica- 81
70 at the stations, but also to furnish infroma- N
ION IN reference to threatened or actual al
wrecks, ana the measures necessary Tor their D.
elef. At present these stations extend from in
andy HOOK to Barnegat, and from Norfolk 10
0 Cape Hatteras. and Others are being con- as
tructed rapidly as possible Connected o,
nh this system is series Of telegraphic sio- ca
ais by which passing vessels can report at pl
ny point OF the coast and have informet;on "
onveyed from the station to their owners
The men engaged lin this are all skilled "
Geographic operators, and are familiar with "