Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-03-08
LOCAL INTELLIGENCE.
LAIN PROSPECTS.

The following statement snd rain statistics,
prepared by Sergeant Barwick, are presented
"a probably the best basis upon which to
guess, or form argument for hope, in the
dry weather appearances and probabilities,
now regarded as urcomfortably drawn about
us on every side. The Signal Corps observer
says:
There Is considerable discussion as to what
the amount of rainfall will be the coming
spring season. thought it Of interest enough
for the Sacramento valley people to search
the records and compile q statement giving
the rainfall for the fall and winter seasons of
all that gave total rainfall of equal to Is
inches, which includes those that gave the
same, or nearly the same, amount of rainfall
IS the fall and winter just past. There are
two seesons that gave SO near the amount of
rainfall as the past one, up to March LIST,
that q comparison may be of interest and
record, 10 the way of quoting the fears Of
those who think every thing is about to go
to destruction. Our present season, to March
LIST, gave 1888 inches; season of 1878,
gave 1862 inches season of 1872, gave
1929 inches; the present season gives 1888
inches; the fall and winter season Of
1878 was followed in the spring by
a rainfall of 20 inches-1.64 inches
following in March. The fall and winter
season for 1872 gave TO- % incheF, and was
followed in the spring by fall of LIZ inches,
1878 inches Of that falling in March. It is
also found that the dryest season ever known
bere, that Of 1891, gave but inch during
the fall and winter, and was followed in the
spring by 81 inches, l IS inches Of that fall
ing in March.
The dryest menths of March were those Of
1857, which gavs Only .6S OF an inch ; 1865,
AS Of an inch 1871, SO of en- inch 1878,
IS Of an inch; 1875, so of an inch; 1877,
sc of en- inch. That was for six years out of
thirty.two. Two of those were in succession,
that is, the small rainfall occurred in March,
1871 and 1872 The occurrance of very
small raiufall IL March appears to come at or
near the end Of each four or eight years, and
having passed the four-year period, we are
likely to not have very cry month for sew
eral years yet that s. we have every chance,
Judging from the comparisons of the last
thirty three years, OF having a rainfall during
the present month of from one to two inches
or more. The average rainfall for March for
thirty-three years is about $50 inches; for
April, L. 81 inches, and for May, SO Of an
inch. For the spring season the average is
about LIE inches; therefore, We may be
morally certain of getting nearly two inches
more rainfall during the spring season, and
it may run up to ten or fifteen inches. There
can be no certainty of the amount, but we
are justified in anticipating more than two
inches, from comparisons of thirty-three years
past.
The following table gives the rainfall dur.
ing the dryeat and the moderately dry fall
and winter seasons and the rainfall that fol-
lowed during the spring season, and it will
be well worth whils fer agriculturists to cut
this ont and post It up for reference, and also
TO see how near our judgment, from thirty
three years comparison, shall sgree with the
actual amount of rainfall in the next three
months. Sioes this country has been settled
by the American r8ce, there have been three
very vet springs, az an average of shout
eleven years between. This first Was in the
next was the spring Of 1860, snd gave 10 As
inches the last one occurred ia the spring of
1880, and gave 16 66 inches. We may, there
fore. not look for such q wet spring again
much before the spring Of 1890, which
will probably DO an extremely wet one !;
therefore there appears to be cycle of ten and
twenty years between the wet springs. For
instance, 1850 was wet, so was 1860, and then
none since until 1850, or period of twenty
t5ars. We may therefore look for another
extraordinary wet spring Judging from COM
parisoD) IN 1890. This is not intended for
any prediction, but only the probabilities
arising from comparing past records. Our
driest spring seasons seem to reappear only
every eighteen years, and If that Is so, then
another extreme dry spring season is about
eleven years eff. / cannot, therefore, see, by
comparing the records for the last thirty
three years, but that the comparative
indications ere for more than sn average
rainfall for the next three months, the aver
age being for March, 2 80 ; April, 1.S7 May,
SO of an inch.