The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1904-07-29

1T is clouding up. 1t must be going
to rain" This is a remark you may
hear constantly, and few people seem
to realize that the one thing is by no
means a consequence of the other.
True. all clouds are composed of water
vapor, but it is absurd to imagine that
because clouds become visible In the
sky they are therefore going to dis
charge their contents upon our heads.
On the contrary, some clouds are
actually prophets of fine weather. Cir
rus, for instance, or curl cloud, as it Is
often picturesquely called, is, as rule,
fine weather harbinger. Cirrus Is
the highest of all clouds. You can tell
that by the fact that its thin, twisty,
fibrous streaks are illuminated by the
last rays of the setting sun long after
the earth below is wrapped in shadow.
Threads and groups of cirrus clouds,
the finer the better. appearing after a
gale, presage a long continuance Of
settled weather. On the other hand,
If after several fine days cirrus appears
in long parallel bands stretching right
across the sky in the form popularity
known as mares tails" there will al
most certainly be change of wind
and probably rain to follow.
Unlike other clouds, cirrus is COM
crystals of ice. You can tell by its
motion what the pace and direction
Of the highest current Of wind. Quiet
ly as it appears to be moving, careful
observation has proved that cirrus
sometimes travels at the rate of mile
in eighteen seconds.
Another form Of cloud which is
usually an accompaniment of fine,
warm weather are those cottonlike,
whitish balls which are scientifically
termed cumulus.
Early in the morning Of fine sum-
mer day cumulus begins to form as a
few soft, scattered specks in the blue
above. These specks grow and enlarge
without, as a rule, travelling very fast,
for they are formed by vapor ascend
ing from the earth in columns. By
early afternoon they often cover the
whole sky, but toward 4 or 5 o'clock
they usually decrease and finally van
ish by sunset. If they behave in this
way you may be almost certain that
the ensuing twenty-four hours will be
fine.
On the other hand, If the cumulus
clouds increase toward sunset, turn
black in their centers and shine at the
edges with an angry light, rain will
follow, or. in very hot weather. thunder.
Thunder is specially foretold by the
cumulus clouds showing rounded,
sharply marked tops with silvery white
edges. Cumulus, which turns very
dark with black, shaggy edges, means
cold rain accompanied by wind.
Cumulus is much the biggest Of any
form Of cloud. A single cloud of this
description with measure six or even
seven miles from its fat, dark base to
it's rounded, glistening summit-that is
to say, its bulk and height far exceed
those of earth's greatest mountains.
The temperature in such cloud as
this has been measured to vary over
$50 degrees is, from so degrees
Fahrenheit at the base to rs degrees
below zero at its summit.
Stratus is still another form Of cloud
which presents no special indication of
rain. 1t is more common at night than
in the day and consists of long, hori
zontal bands Of darkish cloud, which
lie very low and near the earth's sur
face. 1t rises on calm, clear evenings
"a INN, of%o Ho
seen in mountainous districts slowly
creeping up the hillsides. If the sun
rises through layers Of stratus it is
usually a sign of fine, warm day to
come. After sunrise, stratus, as a rule.
rises higher into the air and slowly dis
appears.
In early summer, when the weather is
showery, you may perhaps notice,
through breaks in the rain clouds, an
appearance Of dense white cloudlets
in small, irregular tufts brightly irradi-
ated by sunshine. The children call 1t
mackerel sky. Its real name is GIRO
cumulus, and it is q sure sign of heat
and probably fine weather. Seen In
winter, mackerel sky portends a thaw
e-uo WSt, HuliQ WtdtHeE. II Is Tue next
highest cloud to the cirrus and is some
times called sender cloud
A sure prophet of wind and rain is
GIRO stratus or vane cloud. 1t consists
Of long, thin clouds with torn edges
flying at great height above the earth.
1t is dull in color and irregular in
shape.
The wettest cloud of all is nimbus,
which is seen in its most perfect form
during thunderstorm. 1t is mixture
Of other clouds, a dense black or gray
sheet which often appears to come up
against the wind. Usually when 1t first
appears driving up over the horizon
its edges are fringed and tipped with
rolling masses of cumulus. The most
ominous sign about a nimbus cloud is
when its advancing summit is tipped
with q mass of dense, white, smoky
cloud, which seems to roll over and
over. This is an omen of severe cleo
trical disturbance and q furious souall.