Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-25

from Maine to California and found nothing which
could lead to the view of progressive change in
any one direction. There was, however, evidence
OF Slight variations of temperature occurring with
the same characteristics and with considerable
uniformity over large areas. These variations
showed the characteristics of irregular waves,
representing slightly warmer and slightly cooler
periods; but during these fluctuations the tempera-
ture differed by only degree or two on one side
the other OF the average temperature. Obviously
these fluctuations too slight to be of any general
practical interest, and in any case they do not
give any evidence of a continuous change toward a
warmer or toward a cooler climate. Schott found
that these waves of higher and lower temperature
followed one another at intervals of about twenty
two years on the Atlantic coast. In the interior
States the intervals between the higher and lower
temperatures are shorter, being about seven years.
Man Can't Alter the Weather
THE idea that the agency of man in cutting down
forests and in cutivating soil has resulted
change in the climate of the United States finds
no support in the recorded instrumental data.
Further the records of the closing of rivers, such
as the Hudson, to navigation during the last hun
bred years show that the dates nowadays
average no later than formerly.
If a list carefully compiled of heavy snow
storms, of droughts, of floods, of severe cold, of
mild winters, of heavy rains, and of other similar
meteorological phenomena for of the older sec
lions of the country beginning with the date of the
first white settlements and extending down to the
present day, should doubtless have the follow
ing situation: If the list divided into two
parts each division containing equal number of
years it would be found speaking in general terms
that for every mild winter in the first division there
would be mild winter in the second; for every
long-continued drought in the first group of years
there would be a long continued drought in the
second; for every "old-fashioned" winter in the
first series there would be an old fashioned" win
ter in the second. And through the list. In
other words, weather phenomena and climate do
not seem to have changed from the time of the
landing of the earliest Pilgrims the nhosptable
shores of New England down to the hour when the
last Italian or Jewish immigrant landed at New
York from the steerage of Atlantic liner
Memories Not Trustworthy
THE question naturally suggests itself, Why is
the popular belief in change in climate so
widespread and SO firmly fixed in the minds of our
people when instrumental records all go to show
that this popular belief is erroneous? 1t is not
altogether easy to answer this question satisfac-
torily; but several possible explanations of the at
tude of the public may be given The trouble
arises chiefly from the fact that place absolute
trust in our memories and attempt to judge such
subtle things as climatic changes the basis of
these memories, which are, at best, short, defect
i've, and in the highest degree Enthusiastically.
If we trust memories likely to
member few seasons which for one reason or
another made a special impression on US and we