The state herald., 1891-10-16
Artificial Rain.

The artificial production Of rain 10 lust
now . topic Of much interest. Tho gov.
ernmsnt experiments carried on by Gen.
Dyren1orth, at Midland. have not at ali
satisded the public mind that rain can be
produced on demand, but have aroused an
interest which 10 intontly waiting for fur
ther developments.
fall q Midland, during tho time Of exper-
imenting, arc conflicting. MIR. Dyrenforth
stated TO reporter, when on his way 70
Washtngton, that the grcatest succeas had
attended his work; that Midland haa had
NO grass rain for three years before his
advent 70 the arid district, while during
his brief stay three copious grass rains
% follcws: "At three o'clock one after
noon . balloon was sent up about one mile
and quarter and then exploded by means
Of electricity. There were but few
hescy clouds in sight, tho air was very
dry, and the barometer declared that the
weather was fair. Ten minutes after the
balloon had disappeared In peal Of thun-
the tails was dynamite. This was OK
ploded when the kites were high in tho
air; and then great quantity OF powder,
which was scattered over the ground for
about two miles, was set of by electricity.
This made noise like succession OF bat
tories OF artillery. Tho smoke rose In the
air about 200 ieet and drifted toward the
the experts headquarters. Before 1t
reached there, however, It was driven to
tho earth by torrent Of rain."
This testimony is rapturous, but over
against II We are forced to put the testi.
mony Of some native ranchmen and visit
Ing reporters, who, from some unfortunate
cause, failed TO discover any relation OF
cause and effect between tho noise and the
rainfall Thnu hut Lac iv,. L.
their rainy season, that more rain foil ut
groat distance than fell near the G
ranch, where the experiments were made;
and w. T. Foster In so unfeeling 40 TO
intimate that they chose his storm day to
make the experiment But Senator Stan.
ford comes 70 the rescue Of the rain max
ers with his assurance that the daily
the Southern Pacific Railroad through the
desert region was attended by daily
storms whore such phenomena had hither-
TO been unknown.
With these scanty but interesting data
before US, we must stoD and wait for
more light. But meantime wo may take
. look at tho theoretical side Of the qucs.
ton
Science has never known method To
condense . vapor except by supersatura-
tion. This may DO effected, lst. by cool
Ing, or 2nd, by pressure. Noise has not
heretofore been considered factor in pro-
ducing condensation. Shall the Time
come when the chemist will lind it advan.
taRe0us to hire the boy with tho tin whis-
hasten tho precipitation Of vapori Can
the distillers Of tho future throw aside
their spiral condensers and attach instead
q village school building to their pinnti
But II theory Is opposed to the new pro-
cess, they claim that facts substantiate IT.
Have not great battles been followed al.
most invariably by rainfalli Perhaps 80.
We were not there TO sec. But history is
SO uncharitable as 10 tell US that In an
cicnt times, before gunpowder WIS known,
the same was true. And this suggests an
other cause for tho subsequent rainfall.
Everyone has noticed that when water
passes from the liquid TO the solid condi-
tion, the process begins about some for
cign substance. Little sticks and straws
projecting into tho water ure first girdled
with fringe Of ice. II has becn noticed
by some scientists that the same is true In
water passing from vapor 10 liquid. This
affords rational explanation why rain
fall follows . battle. Think of the volume
OF smoke and dust sent up In the atmos-
phere during an all days engagement be-
tween two powerful armies. Each minute
particle OF carbon or sulphur or dust, Too
small for detection In the rain, forma n
Gus vapor cluster very like swarm Of
bees settle on limb.
The eruption OF volcanoes Is almost al.
ways attended with heavy rainfall, and
during the eruption tho quantity of ashes
and cinders hurled thousands OF feet into
the heavens is inconceivablc. They have
been known TO fall hundreds Of miles from
the place Of eruption. During the great
eruption Of Tomboro, In 1918, enough elm
cersswerc elected to cover the whole OF
Texas two feet deep. and the most violent
rainstorms succeeded it. OF course. those
who wish TO will believe that the noise OF
the eruption produced the rainfall. but 1t
seems more rational TO attribute IL TO the
volume OF solid matter thrown into the
atmosphere. They put stress also on the
TACT that during q atorm the rainfall Is
greater Immediately after the thunder
claps. This Is true, but Il has no bearing
on the question on hand. During tho
storm the small rain drops nre buoycd up
by ascending currents Of air, and the thun-
der Jars the atmosphere so that number
Of these small drops arc lostled together,
and peing collectively too heavy 10 be
buoycd NJ, they fall 10 the carth.-I. j,
James Of Dallas IN Scientific american.