The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-02-28
HAS A CHINOOK THEORY
The Latest Sprung by II. L.
Herzog of Great Falls.
BASED ON OBSERVATION
The Chinook Caused by the Sudden
Pressure of an Upper Current of Air.
Producing Condensation and
Release of Latent Heat.

Great Falls Feb. 27.-While remarks
over the exceptional mildness of the |
winter past are in order, particularly |
so far as it affected this and other por~ |
lions of the state, it may be a matter |
of news to most people that the latest |
theory of the chinook originated and
grew from experiments made In TINS
city by the local observer, G. l.. Her
zoe. The natural theory and the one
which held for many years until utter
" disproyed by Mr.. Herzog was that
the wind in some mysterious manner
came from the coast, where 1t obtained
its warmth from passage over the gulf
current Just how it managed to dodge
all of the high mountain ranges and
preserve it's warmth was a puzzle, but
like many another problem wherein ac-
curate knowledge is lacking resort was
had to faith and in the absence OF any
other explanation it was deemed
enough to say that it went high into
the air and then by some beneficeni
rule of nature descended just in time
10 make glad the hearts of Montana
sheep and cattle men.
Like many another skeptic, Mr.. Her
zog would not accept the common be-
lief, but sought more reasonable ex-
PLANTATION. Old timers had stories
wherein they said the peculiar rush
ing noise of the chinook could be heard
for a considerable time before its in
fuence was felt on the air. IL was
also noticed that there seemed to be
perpendicular movement IN the air at
the time of its coming Bits OF paper
would be picked from the ground and
carried high into the air without any
seeming cause. Other paper stored IN
wards with high fences would be taken
ap and deposited outside the fence, no
matter how carefully it was packed
into boxes away from any horizontal
atmospheric pressure. F1naIly, MT.
Harzog. being favored by his position
with the Rocky Mountain Telegraph
company had the observer at Cadotte' S
Pass and those at other weather sta
lions in Montana take observations
simultaneously with himself. The re-
suit was that the chinook was round TO
Be a very cratic sort of air current II
would occur sometimes in one place
and again in another, when all OF the
rest of the state was omitted, and even
when 1t apparently Travelled on a com
paratively straight line there would be
localities skipped over or only visited
after the wind had finished with the
rest of the state.
With all of this conflicting data con
fronting him, Mr.. HerZog set to Worl
and built little instrument of tin, 81
arranged that when there was down
ward pressure of the air lid would 81
dropped and when the current reversed
the lid would be forced open again
This was placed on the top of one Q
the highest buildings in the city, tina
which contains the Standard office, tn
Bach-Story building. and over scor
of observations taken The inNariabi
result was that when cold WaV
came the lid would drop-there was
strong descending current, and Whe
the chinook began there was an oppo
site action on the part of the lid. Fig
uring then from all of this data, tn
local observer drew the conclusion tina
the chinook was caused by the sudde
pressure of an upper current OF al
into a lower portion of the air belt G
the space left by it when driven gu
The pressure or condensation produce
the result which is always common I
that class of phenomena, the release
latent heat, and that caused the feal
ure common to all chinooks, gener;
rise in the temperature.
Mr. Herzogs experiments We're
many and produced such uniform r.
suits and his deductions from them S
logical that the department accepte
his theory and has since promulgate
1t without exception.