Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-01-31
SIGNALS By STEAM.
Another Big Extension of the Weather
Bureaus Service.
FORECASTS GIVEN TO FARMERS
By Means of Combination of Long and
Short Whistles.
M0RGANZA MADE A SPECIAL STATION

The farmers of this and Washington
counties are now getting weather intelli-
gence by steam whistle.
People love to crack their Jokes over the
head of "Old Probabilities, but the Signal
Service system will continue to exist and
prosper as long as it is held in its
present esteem by boards of trade, naviga-
tors, produce dealers and some wide-awake
agriculturists whose number grows apace.
Many of the classes named buy and sell on
weather-forecast information, ship goods or
make extra arrangements for their care, or
sow grain or cut hay, for, though the Gov
eminent bureau does not profess to goose
bone-weather wisdom in spells of month,
or even a week, its "a or 36-hour predictions
have been shown by experience to be very
valuable to the interests named. Accord
| ingly every addition to its facilities is of
| general interest, even to those who still
half regard meteorology as sort of black
art.
Forecasts issued now are for 2S and 36
hours instead of "a, as heretofore. The one
| given out at s A. NJ. holds until P. NJ the
succeeding day, and the one issued at P.
NJ. holds until midnight of the next day.
Just here Pittsburg people have good cause
| for self reproach in not making themselves
more prominent in the mercantile world.
Necessity for a Forecast Official.
Instead of standing on the census tables
of 1890 in her proper place at 100000 she is
down with population of 23S,0Oo. With
the largest tonnage of any city in the
! United States and with single interests that
paw more freight than the produce of sew
eral States combined, this city is not fur
nished with special local forecaster while
Detroit is. In this respect Pittsburg has
been entirely ignored. There is no place in
the United States where such an officers
| services are more needed. The Chamber of
this way and are now making efforts to have
| such an Office located here. The reason as
signed by the Government is that only 20
such officers are allowed and all those
places have been filled, but this Congress
will be asked to provide such an officer for
Pittsburg.
The main reasons assigned for not grant
ing the request is that the location is OF no
special interest in the study of climatology
is not weather breeder-and the powers
that be have not taken into account its
not know, or have not gravely considered
the fact that one days shipment OF coal from
this port has been large enough to require
21O miles of cars and 80 miles Of locomotives
to move the same weight. News OF coming
weather is certainly of grave import on such
occasions, and they happen numerously DUR
ing a year. The Government makes
special appropriation to supply these fore
casts to the people who raise cotton, and
there are single firms in Pittsburg that pay
more freight in outgoing and incoming
product than is paid to move the entire
cotton crop. Two moro river stations were
established last week at Philip and Fair
mont, W. Va, but PIttsburg is not con-
sidred worth special local forecaster
Poor Place for Observations.
A suggestion made by Sergeant Stewart,
of the Pittsburg office, seven years ago has
not yet been acted upon, and it is one OF
Importance. The temperature is taken here
from the top of building surrounded by
100 square miles of houses in which fires
are burning, in a district where hundreds
of factories, furnaces, etc, are sending up
cubic miles of hot air every hour, and the
consequence is that there is difference of
80 to 200 between the official record and
the actual temperature in the surrounding
country 10 miles distant from the Govern
ment station. Mr.. Stewart at the time
mentioned argued the importance of hav-
ing the record kept in a number of places
in the open country, but the United States
is large body and moves slowly.
The department in this city is doing good
work in various ways. 1t at present issues
100 weather maps daily. They are placed
in the Grain Exchange buildings, postoffices
and in various institutions, such as the Coal
Exchange. ETC., and furnished to the public
ho,r 1r IL in
latter places, as they stimulate study of
meteorology among pupils who would
otherwise never learn anything practical
about it. The final result in this direction
is one that cannot be at present even esti-
mated.
Weather Records Taken as Testimony.
Another service rendered is the furnish
ing of data for the adjudication of law suits
in cases of damage either to river craft or
goods hauled by rail. Common carriers are
only held responsible for ordinary care in
the carriage of goods, and a record of tenn
perature, rainfall, etc., is of Importance N
order to fix the extent of liability in
special cases. During the agricultural
season the departments weekly weather
bulletins are closely studied by grain and
produce dealers as well as the daily maps.
These bulletins are only issued monthly in
the winter
A late extension of the service is of in
terest to farmers and will probably become
popular An arrangement has been made
at Morganza with Superintendent Jerome
Quay by which, if farmers keep the wax out
of their ears, those within a radius of ten
miles may learn at II o'clock A. NJ, what
the weather is likely to be for the next 80
hours Mr. Quay has arranged that the
whistles are sounded according to the ar
rangement given below and each granger
can have copy of the Interpretation
posted in convenient place and consult it
while listening to the blast;
Blasts. Indicate
One long. Fair weather
Two long ......................-. .hdll OF snow
IuTee iOHs .LOCdi IainS
One short. wer temperature
Two short. Higher temperature
Inree SnOrG... ...COlQ wave
Interpretation of Combination Blasts.
One long alone. Fair, stationary temperature |
Two long alone. Rain or snow stat'y temp. |
One long and one short. Fair. lower temp. |
Two long and two short Rain or s'w, high tenn |
One long and three short. Fair, cold wave |
Three long and two short. Local rms, high. tenn |
Co,,o raor1a fbipl eucb l