The record-union., 1891-10-28
THE WEATHER BUREAU.
Its Marked Improvement Under the
Department of Agriculture.
All States and Territories, Except Ida
no, Represented by Local Services
The Liberal Policy Pursued.

OA July l., 1881, Inc w Gatner bureau
became part of the United States De-
partment of Agriculture, and was reor-
ganized with u view Of carrying out the
expressed intetion of Congress to
especially develop and extend its work
IN the interest of agriculture. State and
territorial services were organized in
Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia,
Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota,
Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, Washington,
West Virginia and Wyoming, thus COW
ering every State and Territory in the
| United States except Idaho.
While the organization of the new serv-
ices has been i'll progress much attention
was devoted to general supervision of
the work of those cooperating services
previously established, the desire being
to greatly increase the number of me-
teorologjcal Observers and to effect a
more thorough dissemination OF cur
rent weather-crOp information among
those classes OF people most likely 10
/ be benefited thereby. Nearly five hun
| dred voluntary meteorological stations
| nave been established since July lst,
! the total III operation on June 30, 1891, be-
ing less than 1850, and at date nearly
$500
VALUE OF VOLUNTARY REPORTS.
The reports from voluntary observers
serve two fold purpose: For agricult-
ural societies and experiment stations.
| giving them accurate meteorological data
on which to rely in dealing with e,lperi-
/ ments on vegetation, etc.; and the re-
/ ports OF rainfall, temperature. sunshine,
! etc., are utilized weekly III the weather
| crop bulletins as standard meteorological
features for the State or Territory, while
/ the compiled monthly conditions are
! used iii various ways in establishing the
! cllmatology OF the sections, and as rec
ords for courts, physicians, engineers, etc.
WEEKLY WEATHER AND CROP BULLETINS.
The most practical portion of the ex-
! elusive work of the several local services
Is the issue of the weekly weather-crop
| bulletins. These are sources OF reliable
! information for all interested i'll agricult-
urc, following up the season from week
! to week so That an excellent estimate can
| he made ut any time relative to the crops
| of any county, State, or the country at
large. These bulletins have q thorough
! dissemination in all the States and Terri
| tories, and are Of very great practical!
benefit TO all interests. The National
Bulletin, issued at Washington City dur
ing the growing season, deals with fha
weather Of the week throughout the
/ country, consisting of charts showing the
departures OF temperature and rainfall,
the table OF seasonal and weekly DEPART
ures of like data, besides giving discus
sion OF such charts and tables, with edited
kilograms received from the several local
services showing the actual condition of
| crops and the effect of the weeks weather
thereon.
DISPLAY STATIONS.
On June 30, 1891, there were about $50
weather-signa display stations in opera
ton to which the Government tele-
graphed the forecasts; SO stations 10
which cold-waye warnings were tcle-
graphed; 5l 1rOst-Narning, and Cali
1Ornial rain-Warning stations At date
there are about 800 weather-signal sta
tons in operation, and marked in .rcuse
! OF co4d-WaYe and frOSt-warniuw stations
or an increase OF nearly 100 per cent. i'm
less than four months, and with con
stant demand for additional stations from
I all portions of the country. Since these
| displays of weather signals We're for the
/ immediate benefit of the agricultural in
! terests, and since the number of stations
! III operation on June. 80, 1891, was totally
inadequate to give the information to the
/ people Of the country, steps were taken
| to have all sections represented, with the
! above result.
The directors of the several local serv-
ices have all been instructed to perfect
! frost t-Warning systems to cover the to-
bacco, cranberry and other local interests
requiring such warnings the result of
such a system in Wisconsin alone having
| been 50 thoroughly satisfactory that a
warning OF killing frost for the cram
berry interests in four of the west-central
counties on August oath resulted in the
saving Of over one-third Of the cranberry
crop representing over Sl25, 900 through
flooding, whereas the remainder of the
crop was destroyed, owing to no facilities
for protecting it from the predicted frost.
In Minnesota and the Dakotas frost warn
ings were issued during August of the
| current year to protect the grain and lit
tie or no damage resulted where farmers
used smUdges TO cover their fields with a
dense smoke during the period of antici-
paled frost. In the State of Kentucky
alone nearly $50 frost-warning stations
were established, and are now in opera
ton TO protect the tobacco interests of that
State.
The several methods Of disseminating
weather forecasts and warnings at pres
ent in vogue are by means OF flags, bulle-
tins and stationary steam whistles; and
| besides such forecasts as are telegraphed
at Government expense, displays are
made and bulletins are posted iii thou
| sands Of cities and towns where this
weather information is received free over
private telegraph and telephone lines
and by means Of the daily press.
|