The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-07-25

IN VIEW Of the fact that Scranton is soon |
1 to be a regular observation station of the |
Il United States weather bureau. some facts, /
historical and otherwise, touching the work |
OF that bureau and its value to the public may
be worthy Of extraction from a recent publica' |
tion Of the department of agriculture at Wash
ington.
During the eighteenth century but little
progress was made in detecting any sort Of
regular sequence in the apparently cratic phe-
nomena known as the weather. Franklin had
perceived that storms moved northcastward from
Philadelphia toward New England, which view
was the result Of his observations and private
correspondence regarding the exact time when
the maximum severity of storms was felt at
different places. Thomas Jfcrson, at Monticello
and James Madison, at Williamsburg, in Vir'
gna, had taken some simultaneous obserNa'
tions In the years l772.l777, and certain CON
clusons were drawn from them. The belief
gradually took shape among students OF the
day, both in America and in Europe, that storms
had a progressive movement and whrling
motion about the center. Lavoiser and Borda,
in France, proposed to establish stations over
large territory and examine the simultaneous
records In order to detect the laws of storms.
Mitchell, in America; Capper, in India; Lang
ford, for the West Indies and Brandcs and
Dove, in Europe, had contributed certain no.
tions on the subject, some holding that storms
are vhirls in the atmosphere, though generally
the view was expressed that they are straight
kne gales Charts of various kinds were con-
structed by different individuals, and the pub.
lication OF these at length placed students in
a position to begin the slow advance from mere
hypothetical coniectures regarding the motions
OF the air to the definite scientific knowledge
Of the laws which we possess today. During
the nineteenth century the observations of at
mospherc phenomena have been enormously
multiplied all over the world, and a correct
classification Of them around fundamental laws
has proceeded steadily, il not very rapidly.
In 1856 weather charts were displayed every
day by the Smithsonian institution, under the
direction of Professor Henry wherein appropri-
ate symbols indicated the state OF the atmos'
phere over the United States, and this onlight'
ened plan was continued till interrupted by the
civil war, in 1861 LevCrrier, the great astron-
omer of France, in 1854 studied the European
reports received concerning the weather In
| 1855 he submitted plan to the emperor for
meteorological network over France In 1856 he
| began to make maps, with a system OF thiT-
| teen telegraph and eleven post stations. In
| 1857 he published an international bulletin. In
| 1858 it became a daily bulletin. In 1868 he first
made predictions for ports. On September II,
| 1888 he printed the weather map for the day,
and it has not been discontinued since that
| time. 1t is thus seen that to France is due the
credit OF first issuing permanent set of daily
maps with forecasts. In 1869 General A. j. Myor
presented TO the secretary Of war scheme OF
| weather warnings suitable for execution by the
signal corps. Prof l. A. Lapham, of Mil
| waukee, Wis, sought to secure for the great
| lakes the benefit of weather forecasts by cX-
tending the service over that region, and So
| liCited the cooperation Of the Chicago board
Of trade. He drew up n petition TO the Chicago
| Academy of Science, but one of its most clear.
| II,1I,, Dali aniI tln
| petition should go to congress, and that the
weather predictions should be for the whole Coun.
| try and not for any small section thereof The
| Endorsement OF the national board OF trade was
| secured Mr. Paine obtained the approval and
support Of the secretary of war, and happily,
| procured the passage of a Joint resolution by
| congress, which was approved Feb 0, 1870 Thus
| the service Of foreCastng weather conditions
was formelly authorized by the government Of
| the United States and intrustcd to the signal
| corps Of the War department. Of which Briga-
| dier General Albert j. Myer was in command.
| Congress in 1890 passed an act which not only
| made permanent the organization, but also pro.
| vided for the absolute transfer Of the meteor
| ologcal work from the signal corps OF the war
department to the department Of agriculture.
| Professor Moore the present efficient chief Of
| the weather bureau, has met the practical wants
| Of the public by an increase in the facilities
| for distribution Of forecasts by improvements
| in the local daily weather map, in the unihCa
tion of the form of the local publications in
| the different states, by several important sci
| entihc Investigations, including the relations Of
| the sun to the earth through magnetism, the
| exploration of the lower strata OF the atmos.
| phere by means Of kite ascensons and the higher
| strata by cloud observations in cooperation with
| the international commission during 1861
The discovery of the laws affecting the seasonal
| cbapuas would certainly be Of such benefit to
mankind in the complex civilization upon which
modern life is entering, to justify the expense
and the patient labor involved in such contri-
button from each generation TO its successor,
The weather bureau has contributed to meteor.
ology several standard memoirs, besides a null
titude OF minor papers Of every kind. The
rynamic problem Of the motions of the atmos-
phcre is kept steadily in view, and advances
are being made from time to time in this most
| important subject.