The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-12-10
SUNSHINE AND RAN.
Albuquerque md Spain at Ono Extreme
aud India Mt the Other.

Albuquerque y VI. town Of $500 popula
ton It holds the record for the greatest mum.
her of sunShiny days IN the year of any town
on the American continent Its records show
period ~ three years IN which there were only
two totally cloudy days when the sun was no,
visible Al some time between the hours Of rising
and sitting. and there In official corroboraiion
for this in the announce cni Of the Signal Ser.
vice that tho point Of least annual rainfall In the
nucd States ~ AT Albuquerque y N" Other
rite- having low record of rainfall are Port
SAID Egypt rIyt"rabad India. Lima. Peru.
Madrid. Spain. Valparaiso, Chill. Oran, Morocco.
Ma orca in the Mediterranean Sea. Jerusalem,
cairo, barcelona. and AleNandria
The heaviest recorded rainfalls in the [ ni,.d
Kingdom have been inches at Ardrishaig, Ar
gyic on Dee :, 1868, and / :, inches al London
ON Aprl H. 1873 while - inches Of rain has fallen
at bombay IN twenty four hours ~ at Genoa
and ~ at Gibraltar I'll" wctirst place in Eng
land is scat lwht,r, where the average annual
rainfall - ii5 inches and In the world Cher
rapungi n southeastern Assam, where tho
average for fifteen wears Is I0S inches aud where
IN 1861 the record rose Ia aO5 inches The IAN
fail III the nitrd Kingdom averages ~ inches
ycsry on III. Egr"nan - ; c"n,in'n! Is inches
whole ,untry through
II is customary 20 designate as n sunny day
though the exact lines Of dcmarkation between
sunny days, cloudy days and rainy days are
rtONl 80 ClcArlNdcnnru M IO exclude controversies
on the subject Tho Meteorological department
Of the United States Government is conducted on
n more thorough. comprehensive method than
that al any European government when the extent
aud diversity 81 the territory covered and the
obstacles 10 accurate information are takcn into
account
II is computed by statisticians that the average
annual rainfall in the United States would il
by some magical or mechanical device all gath.
cred into one place. exceed by four times the vol
umc 81 water in Lake Erie, which has an area Of
nearly 10000 square miles and an average depth
Of 200 feet The annual rainfall Is computed
10 hc in volume about the same ns al the water
III the Mediterranean, and any person caught In q
storm without an umbrella may, II oi philo.
sOphcal disposition take this TACT into account
as evidence Of The truth Of the ancient saying
that nothing is really ~ bad but that II nigh, be
considerably worse.
In n controversy recently started in Europe as
10 the cmlncncc oi sunny Italy" sunny Spain"
or sunny France" II was shown fundamentally
that Spain was the country best entitled In the
designation sunny" for Spain IL the country
in which in all Europe the number OF sunny days
Is largest in n year, Italy following and France
coming third The rainfall IN Seville Is twenty
wOinchCs n year or only an inch year css than in
the city Of San Francisco an RpDarcnt discrepancy
which Is explained by the fact that when II rains
in Seville II rains very hard, whereas a rainsurm
in San Francisco docs NOT rise usually 10 tho
dignity 81 much more than n shower