The Durham recorder. [volume] (Durham, N.C.) 1879-19??, 1882-11-29
FORESTS AND CLIMATE.

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a paper has been prepared W Dr..
Schomburg. the Director ofthc Butani-
cal Garlens.at Adelaide, on the inAu-
ence of forests on climate, The object
of the author il to prove that the de-
struction Of forests usually has the
effect Of reducing the rainfall. while,
On the contrary. the planting of trees
broadcast over i country ispne of the
best methods which can be adopted
for ameliorating its climate and IN
crcasing The annual fall Of rain. II
cannot, indeed, bc proved that the
climate ofSouth Australia isaltcring
for the worse in this respect. In
fact, a comparison Of The meteqr0'
logical records will shaw that Tia. r.
nnal average rainfall fir the sSIopy
duringthe past ten years has been
2l.l inches, as compared with 20.1
inches for the previous ten years.
The fact il, that in the agricultural
district. Of the colony, and especially
IN those which were not originally
timhcred, the bringing Of the land in.
to cultivation has had the effect Of
slightly fayoring the fall ofrain.
Plowed land attracts moisture to a
much greater degree than the IN.
broken soil. In considering the eff
feet which the removal of forests per
Sc has in altering the climate in
S,uth Australia, the only direct test
that could be taken from the records
issued by the Government Astrono-
a,er j. the experience ofthe neighbor-
hool of Adelaide. II the time il di-
vided which has elapsed since 1880,
the year In which observations were
commenced, into two periods, there
is found for the first mn average rain
fall Of 22.s inches, and for the second
one Of 2l.7 inches. 1t will thus be
seen that, ION the whole, the rainfall
at Adelaide is diminishing, Though
very slightly. and pcrhapsthc diminu-
tion IN the amount &c timber may
have something tod witllthe change.t
DR. schombarg, in searching for II
lustrations Of the effect. Of trees On
climate, goes further afeli. and
brings forward spma striking In
stances, in which tits evident that loss
Of forests mu:ins loss Of rainfall, and
rice refsa. iIe recalls how the Rus
SLAMS, by burning down some Of the
trans Caucasian forest, al the tim e,f
the struggle with the Circassians,
lc,rpserteal fise eeHn,r,y frs.r' = ss=srsi.:
land into a desert, simply through
the cutting Off ofthe supply of rain.
Similar instances Of rain having ,le-
serted a country den,ried Of forests.
nave occurred in the Manritius, in
.Ianaica, the Azores, and, j, may also
hsia.lde,l. 70 i, still mpre remarkable
exttnt ID several Of the smaller West
India island-. NJ sooner had the
forests 81 these places been destroyed
than the springs and riyulets ceased
;;o fl,w, the rainfall became irregular,
and even the deposition Of dew was
almost cntlrrly checked. On tile
other hand. il i generally accepted
a. |: fact thai M.iieinet Ali increased
tic fertility of Egypt eirrnlmsiy by
plarting trccs. lie ElDnc planted
spnie aO,OOD.OUp on the Delta; his
successors followed up the work. and ID
Is noteworthy circumstance that the
rainfall rose from inches 70 IG inches.
Planting has also, il would seem,
produced remarkable effects in
France and Algicrs. Extensive re.
gions have been planted with gums
and other trees, which, for the mos
part, grew 10 about 30 feet Or 40 feet
IN Leigh'. and il Il nuticed that the
Quantities Of rain and dew which now
fall on the adjacent land are double
what they formerly wcre.--Architect.