The Washington herald., 1909-05-30

much thought on the relation Of climate
/ and weather 10 health. will meet at Old
Point. Va, this week. lie growing
/ acquaintance with the value of climates
/ in the treatment OF disease is marked in
every community. Nearly every reader
has some friend or acquaintance who
has made a journey TO some region known
20 be helpful in the cure Of tuberculosis
/ or throat trouble.
Meteorologists figure that the average
temperature Of the world is about IS de-
grees, with a majority Of the earth's
! population living In regions warmer than
the average. Before the nineteenth cen
tury the population in the cooler tenn
perate zones was comparatively small.
but has doubled many times since then.
The scientists claim that the hairless skin
OF the human being proves that he orig
mated IN a warm climate. seeming 10 lose
sight OF the fact that the monkeys OF
the torrid zone have always had the hair
covering.
Climatologists declare that there Is
nothing true IN the theory that our fore
fathers were healthier than We are be-
cause there were oId-fashIoned winters
and summers then They say that the
decline OF national health must be traced
10 other sources. that there has been no
change IN the average winter or sum-
mer. Since the systematic preservation
OF temperature and rainfall records there
has been no appreciabie change any
where. Some winters are colder than
others and some summers dryer than
others, but they average about the same
es they did in the earlier days 70 which
the old folk delight 10 bark back.
This Is true IN North America as well
as in every other part OF the earth. IN
the Bible one reads Of how Abraham.
Isaac, and Jacob had to fight for water
ing places for their herds. In that same
region to-day the struggle stin goes on
The meteOrologist declares that enIight-
ened man may adjust his ways 10 a
given climate but that the climate VIII
never adjust its ways 20 him a most
interesting and unique way OF settling
the question of whether the climate OF a
country changes OF not was hit upon by
French Cllmatologist. He tabulated the
dates Of the wine-Eaking seasons IN
France back 70 the fourteenth century
and In all the go years he found no ma
terial change in the climate as shown by
those dates. He did find that the wealth
er Is inclined 10 move IN cycles. some
years being a little behind the average
date and others a little ahead OF f.
These backward and forward years
seemed 10 occur in such sequence as 10
indicate cycles in the weather BY some
these cycles were placed at eleven years
and by others az thirty-five years. II II
can be established that these cycles do
occur il wiz be a big feather in the cap
OF the long-range forecaster.
The work OF the Gin atoiogical Asso-
citation is IN entire harmony with that OF
the Weather Bureau. Some one has said
that the weather for 3s5 days makes the
climate OF a place. The climatoIogists
get their weather data from the Weather
Bureau ard thereby determine the eli
mate No other country approaches the
thoroU ghness with which Uncle Sam
studies the weather. Spending q million
and a halT dollars a year 20 be weather
wise, he Is learning many secrets Of the
atmosphere that have never been known
HIS station at Mount Weather. on the
Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, has
been equipped wifk every sort Of ins;ru-
meut human ingenuity can devise 20 pull
down the secrets OF the upper air Grown
men fly kites there in way that would
make the heart Of the small boy green
with envy.
Not long ago a box-shaped kite, carry
ing kit of Instruments, was sent up into
the air .. III feet-a little over four miles. !
One Of the instruments II contained was
a self-TecOrding thermometer. 1t showed
a temperature OF degrees below zero at
that elevation, although II was not at all
cold on the mountain. Another instru-
ment was made Of a single hair from
woman's head ALI the oil had been
taken from the hair, and one end was
tied 10 a stationary striD, while the other
had a little fountain pen attached to Il. |
This pen was filed with nonfreezing Ink,
and marked the expansion and contrac-
ton Of the hair as humidity increased
and decreased. Still another instrument
registered the direction Of the wind. and
another the velocity with which Il moved. !
In studying the temperatures Of the at
mosphere, the weather station must have
thermometers which viii register 100 de- |
grees above freezing and 100 degrees be- |
the magnetic laboratory must have rooms
in which the temperature does not vary
more than one-te- n OF q degree the
whole year round.
Many OF the instruments through which !
the weather men are trying 10 gain new |
information about the atmosphere and /
its changes are so delicate that iron Of
~ I'D -,
would adversely affect their precision. |
One house had TO be built without wln- /
dows. Another had to be constructed /
without iron or steel. not even except |
ing nails. Even the warehouses cannot
wear iron shoes when the experiments /
are going on.
The Weather Bureau has a most exten- /
sive service, a sort Of press association /
OF its own 1t gets its reports from $500 /
land stations. 1,2J0 ocean vessels and
forty foreign stations. some Of them as 4
far away as Asia From these II gets
its reports upon which the daily fore
casts are made Sometimes storm viii /
refuse TO follow the beaten path ard /
then the weather man misses his guess.
But il is said that about s. Der cent OF i
the winds. rains, and storms follow in
the even tenor OF their way. behaving
after established principles. and doing
just as the weather man expects them 10.
In these cases the forecaster hits the
bull's-eye in his predictions In the
other csses-weil. that 4th Of March fare
back is good example Of what happens.
Although rainmaking b. powder was
discredited in this country some fifteen
years ago, New Zealand tried II again
last year. but with no better success than |,
the efforts here. When q
s figured out what power l. takes TO nro-