The record-union., 1896-08-15
VEATHER'S QUEER FRANKS.
Those It Played During the Month Of
July.
While Hot in the Valleys Storms
Were Raging Along the
Mountains

Following is summary of the
weather for July, 1896, which Observer
Barwick has to make cut by the 10th of
August to be sent to the Chief officer
at Washington, D. c.:
Normal for the State, 13.1 degrees;
average for July, 76.6 degrees; depart
ure from normal, 3.5 degrees; highest
monthly mean, 1049 degrees, at Vol
cano Springs, in the desert regions of
San Diego County; lowest monthly
mean, 55.4 degrees, at Point Reyes,
near San Francisco; highest tempera-
ture, 124 degrees, on the 18th, at Vol
cano Springs; lowest temperature, y
degrees, at Quincy, Plumas County, on
the 2Sth-
Absolute range for the State, 81 de-
s-rees. Greatest local range 10 degrees,
at Turlock, Stanislaus County. Least
local range, 10 degrees, at Point Lobos,
San Francisco County.
Precipitation-Norm for the State,
% of an inch; average for July, .09 of
an inch; departure from normal, .O4 of
an inch; greatest monthly, 2.57 inches,
at Isabella, in the mountain regions of
Kern County; least monthly, nothing,
at numerous places throughout the
State
The unusual phenomena for July was
In the heavy precipitation and frequent
cloudbursts in the mountain regions of
the State and along the Colorado River
The Kern River, in Kern County, from
the heavy rainfall in the mountains,
rose eighteen inches, and the Colorado
River at Picacho, San Diego County,
rose twenty inches, and in both cases
did great good in supplying an abund-
ance Of water for irrigation, for which
purpose the water of the rivers was
getting rather low.
In Los Angeles County, at the head
works of Little Rock Creek, Burt Cole,
civil engineer, says that on July 9th
cne and a half miles north of his sta
tion, reports were received of q fall of
one inch of rain in two hours, while
five miles west of the station on the
same date there was a cloudburst re-
ported. and over eight square miles,
rough measurements, show that the
rainfall was from four to six inches in
one and a half hours.
There were heavy thunder and light
ming storms over all the mountain re-
sions of the State, with numerous
cloudbursts, and singular to relate,
these cloudbursts appear to have oc-
Cured on the day of the occurrence of
the maximum temperature over the
greater portion of the interior Of the
State, namely, the 9th of July.
Thunder and lightning storms were
reported from several places along the
coast, which are rather unusual occur
rences. Generally speaking, the cloud
bursts and thunder and lightning
storms occurred during the prevalence
o. the long and severe hot spell of July,
from the 1st to the 25th.
From all accounts, this was the most
disastrous hot spell to the interior val
leys of California since the unprece-
Gented hot wave of June and July,
1889, when horses died in great num-
ber and even birds and wild animals
succumbed to the fierce rays of the sum-
and several persons were reported to
have died from the effects of the hot
wave.
The hot spell of July caused numer-
Gus deaths to animals that were work.
ing in the harvest fields, and several
cases of persons being overcome by the
Intense heat. several deaths having oc-
Cured. Although no cases of actual
sunstroke were reported, numerous
cases of exhaustion and partial collapse
were reported. Those who died from
the heat were those who drank excess
sively Of ice cold water while in heavy
perspiration, being their own fault and
not from sunstroke.
Other most unusual phenomena
were the heavy dews of the latter part
of the month, being so heavy that the
threshers could not thresh grain before
8 OF 10 a. m. on account of the tough
ness of the straw preventing the grain
from being threshed from the heads.
In Santa Clara Valley. where fruit
drying is extensively carried on, the
unusually heavy dews caused the fruit
TO turn dark, thereby lessening its
value when placed on the market for
sale. Taken altogether, July 1896, was
a most remarkable month in many par
ticulars.
1t Is said by some of the oldest set
tiers that heavy dews in July and Au-
gust are good signs Of early rains, but
whether or not this theory is founded
on sound observation remains to be
seen from the results of the approach
ing rainy season.
Early rains at the beginning of the
rainy season fall ina the fore part OF