The Sentinel. [volume] (Trenton, N.J.) 1880-1882, 1880-10-30
How Planters are to be Warned OF Bad
Weather.

How Planters are to be Warned of Bad
Weather.
Adjutant- General iDrum, now acting
as chief signal officer, has issued an
order to the meteorological staff of the
weather bureau directing that until
January l probabilities" of frost be
furnished the Louisiana sugar planters
daily. This is q happy thought, as dur
ing the ripening and reaping period =
frost-forecast may often ave large
quantities of the cane which is fit for
the mill, but which the planter would
be in no hurry to secure unless warned
that it was in danger of being killed
In the island of ar6adoes and other
West India sugar-growing districts
where in autumn frost is unknown, the
great desideratum is the right and
requisite rain supply, which determines
the amount of the crop. But in the
narrow lowland districts on the gulf,
which constitutes our sugar-growing
district, the autumn rainfall is usually
ample, and the chief desideratum for
maturing and gathering the cane is an
even high temperature, averaging not
ess than fifty-five degrees throughout
November. The provisions of frosty
weather, when the mercury must sink
to about forty degrees, with dry, still
sky, is entirely practicable when the
wealth er report announce the presence OF
areas OF high barometer and pJlar cold
in the far northwest. One of these
frosty waves, first observed in Oregon on
the 22l of October, 1878, moving south
eastwardly, finally reached the South
Atlantic coast on the second OF Novem-
Der with minimum temperature OF
forty-one degrees at Jacksonville,
Florida. This is an illustration of the
slow movement OF the atmospheric con-
ditions which admit of being several
days pre-announced. Had the approach
of this frigid wave been forseen by the
Gulf States planters for one or two days,
they could and would doubtless have
turned tue information to great use in
securing the crop.
But this new application of the
weather reports will not end with sup
plying frost probabilities to the sugar
interests. General Drum. pposes to IS
sue special weather bulletn to all parts
of the cotton belt, and will open signal
stations at suitable centers, from which
the telegraphic information will h3 dis
seminated daily. Although this scheme
is too late to benefit cotton-growors this
season, it promises good results here
after. AS the plant continues to pro-
duce and ripen its boil until frost SETS
in, and the picking season lasts nom
August to November, there is large
opportunity for weather kilograms to be
utilized by the army of cotton pickers.
But the closer study OF the meteorologl-
cal conditions influencing The plant, to
which the weather reports will give
rise, will be Of great value in defining
the limits Of its most profitable culture
both as to area and altitude, thus en-
aiding Southern agriculturists to put
their fields to the most economic belt
Among the achievements of the French
since their occupation Of Algeria is the
reclamation by drainage Of $4,000 acres
near Algiers of excellent cotton growing
land. No doubt large expansion of
our cotton-producing region may be ex-
pected, and with more intelligent cultl-
vatioa. it's average annual yield, great
as it now is, will immensely increase
with every decade-a result which the
admirable plan of special meteorological
forecasts DIV projected will materially
contribute to hasten.-&. Louis Republic
can