The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-01-14
SURFACE MOISTURE THE ANTIDOTE
FOR HOT WINDS.
To the Editor of tie Eagle.

To the Editor of tie Eagle
Were it not for the progress of the age
and the many discoveries IN the arts and
sciences, the pen that would dare to af-
firm triumph over the ''hot winds" OF
the plains would be denounced as a
crank and a lunatic.
But the public mind is becoming more
| considerable and more willing to listen to
the arguments which may be advanced
Seventy years ago had some one af-
tirmed that the densely tmbered lands
of some of our old states would, with the
disappearance of the timber and their
rustling coat of leaves become more dry
and arid and few, if any, would have
credited the proposition. Now all can
see that destroying the timber destroyed
the deep, thick coat of leaves that made,
with the shade of the trees covering
for the earth to keep out the sun and
sponge the rainfall till it passed into the
earth and thus furnish vapor for the AIR.
| 1t was this extra amount of moisture on
/ the earth that surcharged the air with
double portion of vapor, and caused the
| fiery electricity so dash from cloud 10
cloud till the air and the earth shook
under the fearful roar of the revebrera-
ing thunder, while the rain came IN tor
! rents.
Nor were the timbered states the only
ones that have been 'too wet. Indiana,
Illinois, the east part of Arkansas, and
the east part of Missouri with the east
part of Iowa have been ''too wet"
Their large rivers and numerous
streams, their large lakes and innumer-
able sloughS kept the lower strata OF the
air constantly supplied with all the vapor
/ it could contain. Hence their heavy
rains and their wet seasons. Does any
one doubt such fact? If not, then it is
clear that more moisture" on the
surface of these plains will directly tend
| to give more rainfall, more dew and
! better crops? Human agency has done
much to make the wet lands of Illinois
and other states more dry and season
able.
! If an excess of surface moisture made
| the older states too wet, will not an IN
crease of moisture on these plains tend
| to make them less dry? And if human
effort on the prairies of Illinois and other
states, have done much TO make the land
more dry and seasonable for crops, may
not these lands be made much less arid
| than they now are: VIII not the
same causes produce the same effects:
! The people of the older states by drain
| ing their lands, their lakes and their
! sloughs, and by cutting down their
timber and destroying the immense beds
of rustling leaves, have opened up their
! land to the sun aud the wind. The effect
/ Is, there is ''lesS surface moisture to
evaporate and surcharge the lower
strata of the air with a double portion
of vapor and thus swell the rainfall as in
| the past 1t may require more general
effect, to secure the needed amount of
moisture on these pralries, or 1t may
demand much less. That depends on
other conditions and requirements.
With few additional showers and no
hot winds, no land on the continent will
give better crop than these prairles.
True. more rain in the fall and more
in the caring time is needed. But these
will be greatly improved when a proper
effort is made to secure more moisture.
1t is useless to speculate as to the varl-
Gus causes which.may blend their infiu-
ence to make these lands sub-arld, pro-
vided we can agree on the antldote to
such evil. To me, the lack of a sutfi-
cient amount of water or surface moist
ure on the earth's surface in the last days
of June and in the fore part of July, to
supply the lower strata of our air with
proper amount of vapor, is the active If
not the sole cause of a partial or total de-
struction of our crops by what Is improp-
erlv called "hot winds" If this position
is correct. then the remedy is simple.
| We must in some way secure more water;
more surface moisture" or the crops OF
the future will be like those of the past
| The question is how can this water or Its
equivalent in surface moisture be secur-
ed? One of the conditions OF success IN
this struggle is that our people become,
as near as NAV be, a unit in their feeling
and in their action. The work TO be ac-
complished is too great, too far extend
ing to admit of being accomplished by a
few. What Is proposed? Nothing less
than in some way to supply the lower
strata of the thirsty air with, perhaps, 10
per cent additional vapor during very
few days, usually in the month of July.
And supply it over an area OF more
than 800 miles in extent from east to
west and 1000 miles in length. The
work is a great one in this respect. And
while in the end it may be accomplished
with much less effort than in now gem
orally supposed. still 1t viii require
patience and perseverance to so educate
the public mind that it viii become
crystalized in some definite plan Of
action that will effective.
There are many persons who hold that
it is not possible for human effort to so
increase the water, or moisture, on these
prairies that it will defeat the effect OF
hot winds And this positian will have
manv advocates, for the reason that our
! general experience and our conservative
tendencies have taught us that as rule
we can exert but little, if any. influence
on the regular order of nature. We
often error in assuming a uniformity IN
nature when no such uniformity exists.
A single instance will Illustrate: At
the equator the air by reason of Its most
wonderful power of expansion by heat,
and its capacity to receive vapor, picks
up a very large amount OF moisture III
! vapOrv form, and retains it TIL 1t meets
the colder air above. when 1t Is COM
pelled to part with this vapOr IN the
shape of rain. giving TO the tropics 100
inches and more of rain fall. While We
get less than p inches on these plans.
Hence we see there Is no uniformity IN
nature except as related to uniform
causes
To accomplish an object 50 full Of
good 10 our country and to our race.
should stimulate all classes of our people
10 stand ready u DO all that can te done
The work can not be done by one or ten
thousand. There must be practical
unity Of action. The peOple-each for
himself. OF his own land, the states and
the territories. and the general govern