Sturgis advertiser. (Sturgis, Dakota [S.D.]) 1887-1???, 1891-09-10

ing for several days, as in the battles OF
the Wilderness, they occurred nightly
1uring the continuance of the engage
hents. History a9sD shows that during
The Mexican war many battles on the
rid plains of Mexico were followed by
.opious rainfa'ls, condition previously
Utmost unknown in some of those iocalt-
lies
Gen. Daniel Ruggles, of Fredericks-
,urg, Va, was among the number OF
those who observed the regularity of
This phenomenon or rainfall after bat
lies, and soon after the close of the war
he applied for a patent on the idea Of
81 oducing rainfall artificial ly by means
Of explosions in the upper air" Gen.
Ruggles ideas were crude, but he OBJ
tanned his patent and thereby the eXclu-
Bive right to the wholesale and retail
trade in the artificial rain-storms in this
country. However, when Congress took
up the matter and began to talk of in
vestigaring the subject Gen. Ruggles
fl eely surrendered all his rights in favor
of the government
After Gen. Ruggles had taken out his
papers the subject of artificial rainfall
received little attention for twenty years
or mole, but as the grain and cattle in
terests extended into the semi arid re-
gions of the West aid Southwest, the
possibilities of the subject began to be
discussed. and many of the prominent
farm and ranch owners of the West
were soon convinced that the scheme
was well worth trial c. B. Farwell
and Nelson Morris, of Chicago, both of
whom are largely interested in stock
lands, took the matter before Congress
and by dint of earnest agitation OBJ
tanned last year an appropriation of
~, 900 for use by the Department
of Agriculture in prosecuting inves-
LEGATIONS in this line, and the last
Congress added $1,000 to this sum for a
series of practical experiments. At the
urgent request of the friends Of tho
scheme Gen. Robert G. Dyenforth con-
scented to superintend the Investigations
and exper ments.
A series Of tentative experiments were
| first prosecuted near Washington at
which number of prominent officials
and scientists were present. At the time
of the operations In the District of Co.
lumbia the explosions produced great
alarm throughout the suburbs, and a
petition was Immediately presented to
Uncle Jerry Rusk praying that he re-
move "hs dynamiters" to region more
| remote and secluded, and an arid spot in
| Texas was selected
| The mode of operation which General
| Dyrenforth adopts is to form slime OF
battle" covering position about three
miles long and two deep, Along the
| front of the line giant powder is fired
| from mortars, and bombs of "rackarocka
| mixture are exploded. Behind this q
| second line is formed, consisting of fifty
cloth kites held by electric wire and
| bearing loads of dynamite The dyna
| mite is exploded when the kites are higI
In the air by means of cap and al
electric current which is passed through
the wires. The dynamite is suspended
from the kites by wires of length
sufficient to prevent the kites from be
ing injured by the explosions.
i A third line is formed behind the kite
consisting of explosive balloons OF 10, IL
| and 20 foot diameter charged with oxhy
/ drogen gas, which is one OF the mos
| violent explosives known to scienc,
Ten to twenty of these balloons are II
the air at once, each containing from
500 to 5000 cubic feet of the explosive
gases The conclusions from the explo
sion of one OF these balloons is so grea
that it must be allowed to rise to grea
height in order to prevent injury to tn
operatives and surrounding objects
The explosion Is produced by means Q
electric wires or by time fuse SO regul
ated that the explosion will take plac
when the balloon has had time to reac
the proper altitude, which varies accord
Ing TO conditions, from 1000 to 100
feet