The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1902-11-06
CLIMATE DOESN'T CHANGE.
THE "OLDEST INHABlTANT" CON
TRADlCTED BY RECORDS.

Which Close Observers Are Aware
OF For Persons to Have Deluaions
About the Weather.
There is nothing so untrustworthy
as unaided human recollection once
remarked the late John G. Nicolay.
who helped to write the Lincoln
memoirs; he referred particularly to
historic controversies, and intended
to discredit those observations which
had not been put in black and white
at the time of the occurrence OF the
event. but instead had been allowed
to grow. A forcible illustration OF t1ls
truth is found in popular estimates OF
the weather. 1t was only last year
that we had a summer so hot as TO
break the records of the Weather
Bureau, and yet this summer the
countrymen hereabout are saying that
''the climate is changing" and speci-
fcally charging that the summers are
not what they used to be-"
This is q psychological phenomenon
similar to that one which accounts for
that peculiar brand Of pie that
mother used to make" Whatever
the pies, the climate remains the
same, as will be proved by the truth
ful records OF scientific appliances.
There are periods during which it
varies; tines when cold or rain or
heat prevails to larger extent than
the normal But when the whole is
summed up, covering a reasonably
long period of time, it is found that
the frost-iine is just where it used to
be, and the cold or hot or the rainy
periods are TO more or less frequent
than when grandfather was boy.
Thomas Jefferson %as victim to
the popular Gelu:icn, and writing in
I'LL, said; a change Of climate is
taking place very sensihly. Both
heats and colds are becoming more
moderate within the memory of even
the ElidGle-aged. Shows are less fire.
cuent and less deep. They do not
often lie below the mountains more
than one, two or three days, and very
rarely a week. The SHOWS are re-
menlbered to have been formerly fire.
ouent, deep, and Of long continuance.
The elderly inform me that the earth
used to be covered about three months
in every year"
But in those days there vas no
Weather Bureau, and the "elderly
were free to give their recollection
without the danger Of an official OBJ
servaticn being quoted. In Europe
accurate records have been kept OF
dates of the opening Of navigation
of streams at certain points for sew
eral centuries, and it is shown that,
covering a long period Of years, there
has been nc apprcciable change. The
first twenty years OF record, compar-
ed with the totals Of the last twenty
years, gives the same result.
Observations made by gecloglsts
convince them, and Professor Moore
of the Weather Bureau, that in our
lake regions no changes OF climate
have taken place fer several thousand
wears. Ossian Guthrie, the noted civil
engineer. says that "the same variety
of trees now growing in the lake
regions were growing soon after the
glacial epoch"
Tie records of the Weather Bureau
show that the maximum of heat re-
corded in the United States was in
Colorado, at Mammoth Tank, sta
ton in the desert, where in 1887, the
thermometer recorded, in the shade,
l2S degrees Fahrenheit. Again IN
1884. 124 degrees was reached in the
same place. Taking 1t all together,
the hottest place in the United tSates
is CALIFORNIA; Death Valley The
name is supposed 20 come from a
tragedy which occurred there in the
SOS, when a party of immigrants en-
tered the valley, ard every one died
of thirst. The valley is the bed OF
former salt lake. and it is below
the level of the sea. Streams flow
into it, but the burning sands and
alkali lick them up Large boraX de-
rosits are found there. The valley is
seventy-fve miles long and in places
only six miles wide at the bottom.
In 1891 the Weather Bureau sent an
observer to remain there and take
observations all summer. When he
returned, he said he would take per
dition straight" next time. He was
there 153 days. On the hottest day
the maximum was 120 and the mini
mum 80 degrees, making an average
for the day of 1856, which is rather
trying weather.
Professor Moore advises people not
to stand in doorways or at open win
dows during severe electric storms.
The neighborhood of trees and lire
places are to be avoided. On the
other hand, he says it will do little
or no good to wrap up in feather
bed. Alarm. in case of lightning, is
quite suncraucus Remember that
one who lives to see the lightning
flash need not concern himself about
the possibility Of harm from that
fash. Also recollect that heaven has
more thunders to alarm than thunder
bolts to punish. 1t serves also to
calm the spirits to think that even
though struck by lightning. the conse-
| cuences are not always fatal; even If
stunned, and apparently dead. the vic
tim may be re9uscitatcd. Professor
| Moore says not tc cease efforts at ar
tifcial respiration ard stimulation for
an hour. lightning stuns, but does
| moi often kill.-Ncw York Post.
| The Last of the S1ufTiere Bird.
| An urtoward result Of the recent
| volcanic eruption in st. Vincent Will