The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1897-12-07
OF A RAIN MAKER
Some Personal "Reminiscences Of
Frank Melbourne.
HIS INITIAL TRIAL A SUCCESS
The Man and the Mystery-Cuarded
Secrets Of His Work-Sensation
of a Year-Failure and Death.

mentioned in local paper few days
ago. He is dead now, having killed
himself about year and a half ago.
If he really had any secret he did his
best to take it with him. He had
burned all his belongings in a small
stove in the room in which his body
was found. This was in Kansas after
trial at cloud control that failed.
There are several people in Honolulu
who knew Melbourne we'll when he was
in the zenith of his fame and when
he seemed to be successful This was
in Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska
seven or eight years ago. The writer
was detailed to him for six months
or so. Melbourne must have been in
Honolulu once. He said he came from
Sidney, where he had been a real estate
dealer till he discovered how to manu-
facture showers. He received letters
from brother and other relatives in
the Colonies
The Wizard, as he was called, first
located at Cheyenne, Wyo. This was
likely because, barring half dozen
or more saloons to every down town
square, that is the dryest region on
earth out the Sahara district. Droughts
there of the duration of eleven months,
three weeks and six days are not un-
common. The records will show that
for years at stretch the rainfall has
been less than half an inch per an
mum. Water comes from. the snow that
banks in the mountains in winter 1t
SHOWS there in that season in a way
evidently calculated to compensate for
the absence of showers in the proper
months. The writer can prove by peo-
pie here in Honolulu that at the capital
of Wyoming one March anyone could
walk from a snow drift right on to
the roof of a three-story building. Peo-
pie tunnelled in and out of houses and
stores. There was sleighing and skat-
ing on this snowfall of three days
for six weeks. Bodies were found in
dissipated drifts the following August.
On the plains sheep were smothered
by the thousands and horses and steers
perished by the hundreds. The same
living aftidavits can be produced if
necessary to back up the statement
that Decoration day parades have been
postponed in that country on account
of snow storms and that snow plows
have been sent out by the Union Pacific
Railway Company there in July. This
is all true and extraordinary, but it
has not much to do with Melbourne
except by way of association.
Melbourne was a dreamy, reserved
chap. He was about 80 in years, dark
and tall and slight and handsome. He
had deep and round black windows
in his face. Melbourne was not un-
pleasant to one. But to get anything
out of him was about like trying to
bore into a granite slab with cork
screw. He'd converse right enough
till the subject of the modus operandi
of his business was broached. There
was simply no crossing that line. The
keenest and most experienced fellows
the best papers had, tried it and failed
to a man. His partner and business
manager was Virginian to whom he
had taken a tremendous liking. Frank
Jones was his name and Col. Rain
water Jones was the title gained The
colonel was unable to learn any
more about laboratory doings than
anyone else did
The first experiment was called
success, but there was never another
like it. Those who were in any way
interested can never forget it. There
had been no rain for half an year.
Melbourne with his two vaises had
been in a barn loft for forty-eight
hours. He did not eat any during that
time and it is very doubtful if he slept
any. He looked famished and fatigued
when he showed his face and col
lapsed completely when the trial had
ended. For weeks there had been such
a pure cobalt sky day after day
as is seen only in that unbroken coun-
try. Melbourne had struck the mouth
of funnel out of the top of the barn.
He refused to answer questions. The
time set for his shower had passed
an hour or more. A number of the
special correspondents, including the
writer, had filed the STUFF for their
afternoon papers. The latter from one
end of the country to the other an
nounced in their first editions that
Melbourne had failed. Some of the
head lines were flippant and some of
them abused the poor fellow. There