Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-05-06
The Weather Bureau Makes Good.


In the current issue of leading
magazine there appears a criticism of
the United States weather bureau by
a writer of popular fiction whose
object it appears is to weave an in
tcreSting story about a few facts or
fancies. The weather bureaus an
Swer to this attack is to be found
on another page of todays issue of
The Argus. The sweeping general
charges made by this writer are not
only manifestly unjust, so far as the
weather bureau is concerned, but
they are also a remection upon the
management of the leading newspa-
pers of the country which give so
much of their valuable space to the
weather forecasts and warnings, and
upon the educators at institutions at
which meteorology is taught.
1t is true that weather forecasts
are not verified in every instance and
it is not likely that projections will
ever be attained. At the present
cent of the predictions are justified.
Unannounced storms of marked Sc
verify are of such rare occurrence
that their coming never fails to at
tract attention to the bureaus fail
ure. Any deviation in its action on
the part of we'll developed atmos-
pheric disturbance from the schedule
lDfI do. |, 81
discussed and remembered.
The magazine referred to lays
great stress upon theNfact that the
weather bureau costs the people OF
the United States about $I,600,0O0
yearly and the question is asked
does the weather bureau make
gOOd?" The movements of vessels
| engaged in our ocean and lake traf-
| tic depend largely upon the forecasts
of wind direction and velocity ISSUED
| by the national weather service, ship
! ping amounting in value to moro
than S3G 100000 being at times de
Iaincd in Atlantic ports alone as {
| Hardly cold wave of marked sever
| ity sweeps across the country bu
that saving of more than the an
nual cost of the bureau results from
the information issued in advance o
the low temperatures. During tn,
cold months dealers in pCriShabl,
goods and transportation companie
are guided in making their ship
ments by the advices given out from
the weather Office. Truck, fruit, to
bacco and cranberry growers Deepen,
for the protection of their crops upO
the warnings issued in advance O
dangerous weather conditions. Wit
the rapid extension of the rural tele
phone system it is now possible 70
practically every farmer to obtai
free of charge from his local telC
phone exchange the forecast for tn
following day, and at an hour whc
the maps and cards are just maxim
their appearance on the streets G
the city in which the weather oflic
is located. During the prevalence c
any local observatory in such rapi
succession that its line is almost cor
stantly in use. On the occasion c
the Hood of 1897 in the lower Miss
issippi valley movable property est
mated to be worth 9I5, 100000 wa
, transferred to places of safety as
l result of the warnings sent out
advance of the high water, and til
5 saving effected by the same NEAR
5 during the flood of 1903 is though
: to have been even greater. In otht
g words, the value of the food for
casts in those two instances repr
sents an amount sufficient to mail
tain the weather bureau for near
20 years.
Does the weather bureau NAL
good - The question is ridiculou
/ Would a private individual regard {
:, investment that yielded such return
It as being profitable? We are inclin,
s to think he would.