The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-11-23
VALUABLE WEATHER MAN.
Countless Lives and Much Property
saved by Department FOrecasts.

WASHINGTON. Nov. 22.-Professor Will
lis l.. Moore, chief of the Weather Bureau,
has submitted to the Secretary of Agricul-
ture his report of the operations of the bu-
reau during the fiscal year of his admin
istration. OF the forecast and warnings
Professor Moore says, in part:
Timely warnings of all severe storms
likely to cause injury to shipping were sent
TO all maritime stations and resulted in al
most incalculabie benefit. In the harbor OF
Buffalo alone during six or the most Sc
we're storms of the past winter total OF
over 80 vessels aggregating In value up
wards of 81, zoo, 600. having on board about
1900 persons, were detained in port by ca
son of the Weather Bureaus warnings
The Professor points out that as re-
suit of the danger signals displayed at an
points in advance of the West India hurri-
canes on the Atlantic coast no lives were
lost and but little property destroyed: that
no cold wave or frost of unusual intensity
has occurred without forewarning, and that
while no disastrous floods have occurred
during the year, warnings given by the pu-
reau in cases of heavy rains ana melting
SHOWS were the means of saving large
amounts of property. The average per
centage of verihcaticn of the bureaus fore
casts during the year was s24 per cent.
an Improvement OF "a over that OF last
year. Among the new features introduced
perhaps the one most highly commended by
all classes is the corn and wheat region
service established in the pr nc,pal corn are
wheat states n OF 5ne OBJ
| tanned concerning rainfall and temperature
is promptly bulletined and disseminated for
| the benefit of persons interested.
More prominence has been given TO the
| subject of aerial Investigations than TO
other experimental work. Concerted cloud
observations in cooperation with foreign
| countries have been made at a number or
| stations. From these 1t is hoped 10 gain
| information regarding the general clrcula-
| ton of the atmosphere. particularly during
| the stormy weather Kite experiments are
resumed. On one occasion an altitude OF
seven thousand feet was obtained. Prof.
| Moore SAYS that the use of kites is always
| limited by the condition of the winds.
| There appears TO remain but one other
| means of exposing meteorological instru-
| ments at approximately fixed points in free
air. namely. by the use of devices sus-
tanned by the action OF promoters Wnic n
| a specially ascending or descending mo-
ton.
proposed by ingenious inventors. 1t is
| possibility that important meteorological
| stations of the future will be equal in char
acter One portion will remain as at pres
| ent. at the surface of the earth. The other
| portion will be poised at great height
in midair. riding at anchor to the base
| of the station. il were. Simultaneous
| observa tons from q system of widely dis
| tributed stations of this character would
! enable the future forecast official to map
out the atmospheric condition. both hori-
| zontally and vertically. and arrive at a
more exact knowledge of the temperature.
| The report says it is not believed that
| there has been an increase in either the
| frequency or severity OF tornadoeS- IN
| fortunately those of the present year have
| swept through populous sections of the
| country. Three hundred and six persons
/ lost their lives in the storm of May n
| last-more than the aggregate loss by vio-
| lent winds during the years 1891 and 1895.
During the three severe tropical storms
| that occurred during the present fall sea-
son and for which hurricane signals were
issued by the bureau, about two thousand
vessels came into or remained in port
! the eastern gulf and Atlantic coasts dur
| ing the periods for which the warnings
] were issued.