The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-07-13
PREDICTING THE WEATHER.
The Sort Of Mar Needed at Head Of
the Bureau.
New York Evening Post

New York Evening Post.
Business men in New York, whose inter-
ests have led them to keep in touch with
the government Weather Bureau, say that
the recent attempts at forecasting are all
that can be expected from a department
whose chief had so little practical expert
ence in meteorology. Professor" Moore.
they say, was for eighteen years a printer
in the bureau before he had a chance at
official forecasting. Then he was sent
West, and two years later came back to
Washington a full-hedged weather prophet.
to assume charge of the government bu-
reau.
Produce men and other merchants OF the
city depended greatly then as now upon
the weather forecasts; and some OF the
representations that have appeared are
intensely funny. II appears that on one
occasion a local bulletin gave much prom
inence one morning to storm coming
across Florida, headed directly up the
coast for New York. without anything to
stop or defect it," The bureau at WASH
ington, however, did not mention Il, and,
as the succeeding New York bulletin left
il out, local anxiety subsidized. A few hours
later the storm struck the city, and caused
no little damage. The next day irate mer-
bureau and asking him ahoMP about 'I IL"
The conversation ran something like this:
Why did you drop that storm you pre-
Had to-"
What for7"
weather bureau said he hadn't seen
1t. Florida was his territory and none OF
diction."
T chief forecaster of a nation" said
one authority on meteorology to-day, must
have common sense and sound Judgment.
The bureau costs the government a mill
lion dollars a year, and the man who directs
the aXnandifIro z This N ncf hQuA a business
head. 1t is absolutely necessary hat he
be a meteorologist, in order that he may
keep in touch with the work OF his as
sistants and rectify mistakes that cost tbs
government hundreds OF dollars TO correct
after forecasts have once gone past the
chief and been flashed to all points OF the
country5S5O0 is a low estimate TO correct
even a small error. The chief must know all
the geographic conditions OF the country.
like a local weather sharp so that he
can imagine himself In several different
places at once. and, with his map spread
out before him, tell the weather twenty
four hours ahead with his system as true
as an old salt, who reckons by instinct.
Probably no other class OF men runs big
ger risks with the weather. day in and day
out. the year around. than do the Sandy
Hook pilots, and they only bother them
selves with the forecasts from Washington
In September and October, when they look
to see IL the red flags" are flying as they
go out across the bar. One red flag with
a black center reads Look out for a storm
off the coast" and two of them spell tho
word hurricane" These flags they have
reason 10 respect, for experience has taught
them that a storrl, in the equinoctial sea-
son, means trouble and a hurricane some
thing 10 avoid.
AT other times in the year the pilots In
port only go down to the Maritime Ex-
change and study the maps issued each day
by the Weather Bureau. Here they OBJ
serve the direction and velocity OF the
wind as reported from the various stations
all over the country. and then make their
own calculations. why, n is easy enough"
said one of these decD-Sea nrODhefQ eff a
mar knows local wind and weather at all.
Take our region for instance. A kid raised
round here knows which way the wind IL
likely To blow for rain and which way for
fair weather. And that Kid naturally looks
for a cooling shower after a spell OF hot
weather. He knows hot air always rises.
and al night the cool air will come I'm OF
the sea TO ill in under IL. When the boy
grows older, IL he is brought up 10 go 10
sea, he gets TO read the wind and weather
for the conditions ahead OF him. and he
can see signs just as though they were
painted on a fence.
The Bureaus reports help him when
he's ashore, cause he knows II there's a
cloudbank with an eight-mile easterly
wind of Newport and a hve-mile easteriy
wind coming over the Alleghenies. that
he's liable 10 run into q fog Off the Hook.
cause the easterly wind Is the strongest.
A twenty-niic wind coming up the coast
will be detected TO the northwest IL IL
strikes a westerly ffteen-knot breeze OF
Hatteras. When We are out OF sight Of
the lightship W. have no maritime bu-
reau's reports 10 tell US the direction and
velocity OF the wind. so We watch our
barometers. the stars by night and the
clouds by day"
The pilot was sitting at the window look
ing out across the upper bay TO skyline
beyond Jersey City. II was noOntime, yes
terday. and big. i~eecy-white clouds were
bounding into sight from out OF the west.
Then fellows are what we call dark
dcckers, - said he, pointing 10 them. and
If / was going outside this afternoon ia
take my oilskins. When you see them fell
lows come rollin' IN after A hot spell like
this you can take your little umbrel. right
under your arm and look 10 use II. And
you can put ne down for this: When
those fellows up there do break there will
b a nice hard shower"
Two hours later the pilots prediction
struck the city and for one hour the rain
fell IN drenching sheets that swept the
streets and made the arass in fha narL<