Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1889-07-11

| with an average per month tor the same
| period for January of 0.52 inches; Feb.
ruary, 0.89; March, OG5; April, or !;
May, OBJ June, l.22 July, 2.72; August,
2So; september, 81; October, l.03 f.; No.
vember, OS9; December, 0.80; or per
year OF l4.Sl inches, OF which fall into
spring about II per cent, summer AS per
cent, autumn % per cent, winter II per
cent.
4 glance over these tables will show
that the years 1853, "a and '55 were the
most remarkable ones for the amount of
rain and SNOW, While June was general
ly" found to be dry, and May and July
we're driest in 1859, 1860 and 1857 re-
spectiyely.
From observations taken at the signal
service Office here it appears that for this
year 1889, to July /, the precipitation has
been: In January, 0,84 inches; Feb
ruary, 053 March, 0.80 April, 0.44;
May, OILS; June, O.63, or total OF 3.39
inches.
And comparing this figure with the
above average or standard" which for
the same period amounts to 4.82 inches,
the precipitation has been 40, or nearly
= inches less than could have been ex-
pected.
The observations conducted by and
under charge Of the U. S. geological sur
vey now on foot, in addition to those of
the L. S. signal service, will throw more
light upon the subject of rainfall. The
old stations comprised in the report have
been abandoned, but the signal service
branch has extended their number to IS
and the geological survey has of late al
ready 20 new ones established, all with
tendency to comprise larger range of
elevations above sea level and of country.
Volunteer observers are easily found, as the
interest taken in the work to redeem the
no" idle lands is really general.
Practical meteorology, that is the APP
plication OF all those instruments used in
determining atmospheric occurrences, will
assist in bringing forth better knowledge
OF general as well as local causes-for
such do exist as connected with rainfall.
The report says that while We know
i'll general way that rainfall in the
"arid region" depends mostly on acct
dental disturbances and not on steady
prevailing winds which change at certain
periods of the year, and that rain or
snow there is simply the deposition OF
moisture through the cooling of tho air
drawn by winds from the elevation OF the
sea to high attitudes. If such moisture
OF the air is suddenly condensed cloud
bursts occur the general rainfall depends
upon the cooling OF the air through the
cold OF elevation"
While the secular variation of rainfall
is now undoubted, nothing is known
as yet as to the laws governing it; periods
of 4, 5 and years have been observed,
but not even theories have been advanced
in regard to them.
Fort Bliss, Texas, has records for TWEEN
ty-three years showing that the rainfall
there for the first eleven and half years
has been lilo inches less than for the
last half
Santa Fe, N. NJ, has records for thirty
years, badly interrupted, the mean during
the first half is 0.5 inches higher than the
last half.
In New Mexico there is general maxi
mum of rainfall in summer and a re-
stricted maximum in winter, the princi-
pal minimum in spring; half OF the total
rainfall is in summer and half OF the
remainder in autumn. Ii. II.