Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-10-25
CITY AND DISTRICT.
THE WEATHER SERVICE,

CITY AND DISTRICT.
THE WEATHER SERVICE.
Suggestions from GEN. GreeIy-His Pro.
posed Reorganization Of the Corps.
During the past year the Chief signal onicer of
the Army has been consulted, according TO his last
annual report, BY thirty-seven boards Of trade,
chambers OF commerce and other commercial
CARNATIONS throughout the country. The cor
respondence OF the central office with the outside
world has grown to large dimensions, and attracts
considerable portion OF the Chief signal Off1cers
attention. He says: Every effort has been made
70 reduce the methods OF conducting the corre-
soondence OF the ONCE 10 the simplest form, 70 the
end that while due regard Is paid TO the proper
record OF public business, It may be transacted
with the greatest possible speed and with the least
clerical labor The enormous volume OF CORE
spOndence, averaging over fifteen hundred CON-
Quoted under oldmethods without a very great In
crease IN the clerical force During the year there
have been sent from this office, Including all Its
communications received. Not included In the
above 1O2I 600 code words and weather reports
Nithstsndins this enormous amount Of Clerical
work the duties have been performed more ex-
peditiousy than usual and with u decreased force,
the number OF clerSs on duty at the beginning or
the fiscal year being fifteen, and at the close
eleven.
USELESS REPORTS
The Chief signal Oricer respectfully invites at
tention the great and apparently pront!ess con-
sumption OF time, at Government expense, en-
tailed BY the daily reports OF work, made by each
person performing clerical duty, to the chief clerk
OF this office, as prescribed by existing orders II
Is within bounds to estimate that the cost or such
work 10 the Government consumes the time OF four
clerks, at an expense OF about q, 200 annually.
The outcome OF such daily reports Is a summary,
falla lnfxu larra han.
read and distributed, how many briefed. recorded
and numbered, how many noted, and other items
OF Ike character but II Is impossible that data OF
this character shall give any adequate idea or the
amount OF work annually performed by the clerk.
Many letters are or such character that nifty
sucn letters daily would not be an arduous task
for typewriter or copyist, while others are OF
such length and are written under such disadvan-
work.
The chiefs OF divisions should be- and are be-
neved 10 &c, men OF such character and standing
under their charge do a lair days work for the
Government, ana In case any division chief is In
cnned 70 favor any person under his charge, he Is
enabled, under the present ysIeIn, to 50 arrange
matters that the poorest clerk In the division
have the largest record on paper. IL Is urgently
recommended that the report be discontinued.
An enormous number OF obsolete forms and val
ueiesS papers have accumulated In tniS service
during The past eighteen years. These worthless
papers have been digni1ed by the name OF records
although they really are not such, since they con-
tain data, which once seen for the purpose OF
checking other papers, immediately become use
II is respectfully recommended to the honorable
Secretary OI War that Congress be asked 10 APP
point a commission or an Inspector OF public d0cu-
mentS, who shall be authorized TO take charge OF
all worthless public papers, and report their char
str.tson Sos oS,w are M. ~ s,rs wnrshSs
but they are great tax upon the Office space or
the different bureaus.
ESTABLISHING NEW STATIONS.
Urgent recommendations for new stations have
hoap l.tff fh.sr bliS
is Impossible without Increased appropriations.
The present number or stations sufficiently large
Tor the general needs Of this service although II Is
certain that In u lew Gases the stations might be
better arranged Tor the general good OF the
try IL Is possible that few additional sJatioIs
could be established and maintained, strictly III
local interests Is Ii the case With Baltimore Nd,
New Haven, Coaa., and OJner stations i'll large ami
Important cities. The Chief signal Oiilccr en-
oeayOred 10 bring The detailed meteorological IN
formation collected By this service promptly as
possiole 10 the attention of the public, and lii no
other way can this DE done so thoroughly as by
the distribution VI the weather map. Tn5 cyclic
style weather map, published 1T about forty OF the
larger stations has been received with great FAVOR
BY the business community, as 1t presents the
data IN such a manner as TO be easily understood
and utilized By such business Inen OF the country
have interests affected by weather conditions. A
more liberal and extended policy has been ar
ranged for the ensuing year, through which 1t is
hoped 10 furnish the daily weather maps for am.
and pm. 10 every prominenG town that Can be
City, NO., ST Louis, Mo-, Boston, Mass, New YORK
city and Washington city, and at s M. map from
Cincinnati, OHIO, and Philadelphia, Pa
TESTING INSTRUMENTS
All the thermometers, rain-g gauges, and other me-
teorological instruments belonging TO the service
were Inspected, compared ana examined during
the year. The tests have been conducted with the
utmost care and precision TO insure accuracy
Every thermometer Is carefully tested the rreez
ing point OF water, and Tor every ten degrees be-
tween that point and temperature OF 1l2o; be-
low the freezing point OF water IL Is tested for
every twenty degrees to -2So. The rigid require
ments OF the service, which reject all thermome-
tiers with errors greater than 0o.3 F. are still en-
forced. Two thousand eight hundred aud thirty
two instruments OF various kinds have been
received, ana 2 $50 issued during the year. Asss-
tant Prof. Russell tested ., $50 thermometers Tor
the service and 20 for voluntary Observers Ia ad-
dition to the ordinary testing OF Instruments the
telegraph wire purchased Tor military field lines.
or for sea-coast lines, mas also been tested.
The purchase and testing or instruments for
private parties has been discontinued, save in
tests are plainly In tie interests VI the public
service, as Ia the case OF the directors OF state
weather services or Of persons engaged In special
Investigations requiring standard Instruments
BIBLIoGRAPHY AND LIBRARY.
The general photography OF meteorology con-
sists OF about $1,000 Independent titles, CLASSIFIED
BY subjects, arranged In ABOUT two hundred
divisions. and OF card author index OF nearly
1900 authors This includes separate pubIIca-
lions ana articles in serial publications, and ter
inmates January j. 1852. In addition 10 the above
the present librarian (Nr. FasSlg) Is engaged with
Mr.. HilLon, mis- assistant, In Supplementary cata
logue Tor current use In the office or the Chez
signal Ofncer. This supplement contains about
1000 cards arranged according 10 authors, and as
NO current work has been Neglected In Its pfepar-
ton, Is Incomplete, containing OILY such separate
publications and articles IN periodicals. as are
easily accessible. This Supplementary author
catalogue Is now being classified by subjects after
the scheme OF the general index, which latter
work Will also be rendered more complete later BY
an Alphabetical subject index.
over One-haf OF the material OF this bibiiOgraphy
has been contributed through the voluntary la
bors OF foreign and American Librarians and me
teoroiogists The publication OF this work would
be an act OF reciprocity Of exchange from the Cow
Chief signal Oncer urgently recommends that It's
puoiication be recommended 10 Congress AT a cost
not exceeding $4,000. The library has been In
creased oy purchase, exchange, or giIt 415 VOL
umes. and now contains 10, $50 volumes exclusive
OF pamphlets, which, although caIalogued have
never been numbered as booka The nDrary has
already been moved 10 the new ONCE building
Nearly 10000 publications have been distributed
by the service during the past year.
ORGANIZATION OF THE SIGNAL coRPS
The military reorganization or this service. the
report says Is one demanded In the interest or
justice, economy, and efficiency. But two de-
tached omcerS of long experience remain ON duty
with this corps, and the high sranQing OF their
WORK emphasizes the necessity OF their retention
The relief OF other officers 10 replace them by
young, unframed, and inexperienced men has
lions, and been 70 the injury or the general pubc
who have hight 10 demand that Competent men
shAll be retained, and Incompetent oricers weeded
The REORGANIZATION which - here