National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1884-01-29
Storm and Flood Signals.

TO The Edtt0r.
1t is published that the signal Office has
two observers on the upper Potomac to tele.
graph coming flood or ice gorge. Ever
since the establishment of the telegraph, II
has been common for station agents at oil
towns on rapid rivers to telegraph coming
sudden floods, which has been Of considerable
advantage to tho towns, but not to the
farmers in the bottoms between the towns
What 10 wanted is q cannon to be fred al
each of these towns-generally from ten ia
twenty or thirty miles apart-to warn
farmers and others in the bottoms on both
sides of the rivers between the towns, OF
coming sudden floods, by which many lives
with much stock and movable property, will
be saved. For thirteen years l have urged
this inexpensive and practicable plan upon
the signal Office but to no avail. Within the
next two months the rapid rivers will be
swept by floods and ice gorges, with great
destruction of property and many lives,
while many floods occur at all seasons. As
no effort is made by the signal office to avert
these great calamities why should not the
agricultural department take up the subject
in the interest of farmers, who are the great
est losersP And why should not congressman,
most of whom represent districts having
rapid rivers liable to sudden floods, see that
these or some other system of warnings are
established?
The expense of this would be triling COM
pared to the great expense of the signal of
fee, and when once the Hood signals are es-
tablished successful, it would lead to the
universal establishment of my general sys-
TEN of storm and flood signals by the tele-
graph and cannon, to give certain, instant,
and general warning of coming cyclones,
tornadoes, destructive storms, and rain
storms, for tho benefit of farmers during
Ln..
fall, and sudden floods on rivers. Tho signal
office never has pretended to give warning
of cyclones and tornadoes the system being
inapplicable; but IL has greatly boosted of the
value of the Farmer Bulletins, put up at the
postoifices for the benefit of farmers. But
now, after more than ten years of these bull
letins, the Office publishes they are of little or
no advantage, and it proposes to congress to
make an appropriation of S25O,OOO to enable
the Office to establish its system by the tele-
graph and flag warnings for one-thirdsof the
country, the whole country at the same rate
to cost $750.000 A flag hoisted at cities,
county seats, and principal towns, as proposed,
would not be seen by 100 out of every 1000
farmers, while il CANNON was fired as q
warning of coming storms IL would DO heard
by 800 out of every 1000 farmers.
The Western Union Telegraph company,
with 100000 miles of lines, and $4,000 sta
ton agents, has three times offered free
kilograms of coming storms and floods, to
test my system at all military stations where
cannon are in use and located in the populous
states, and also all cities and towns which
may establish the signals. And yet for thir-
teen years the signal office has refused ia
make the test at military stations, although
expressly authorized in the act establishing
the Office AUGUSTUS WATSON.
WASHINGTON, ID. O., Jan. n, 1884.
MR.. GAIL n. JOHNSON, the business manager Of