The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1910-05-15

mediately east from Port Townsend.
1t i, low in altitude and there Is moth
ing of consequence to interfere with
the unobstructed passage of the rain
clouds with extremely slight loss OF
their precious freight while passing
over the rich and beautiful island.
A SINGULAR CLIMATE
A compilation of the u. s. Weather
bureau records from the Coupevllle,
WILDLY island, station and covering
a series of years. has proved that
WILDLY island has the most equable
climate in America. 1t not only
shows uI with the least rainfall re-
corded in the Puget Sound district,
but it is remarkable for the mildness
of it's winters and the refreshing cool
ness of its summers.
This compilation shows that the
average wettest month in a year re-
cords 1903 inches of rainfall, while
the dryest month registers three
fourths of an inch OF rainfall. Norm
ally, the wettest month is December
and the dryest July SO that the moist
ure is pretty we'll distributed through
out the year. On an average for
series OF years the annual rainfall was
only % 40 inches, which is less than
is recorded for forty different states
of the Union, and neatly every large
city in America experiences greater
precipitation annually-New York for
instance, average 44.0 inches, Boston
As, Washington 435, Philadelphia
and Cincinnati nearly 40, st. Louis
ALL, Atlanta so, Chicago 8.8.
SO the luxuriance of the vegetation
ILL ,rth M
for not by the pIofusion of rainfall,
but by it's favorable distribution, its
gentle soaking rather than drenching
and flooding character - and of
course, by the fertility of the soil
and the long growing seasons
The statistical weather table referred
to also shows that the temperature of
WILDLY island is exceptionally moder
temperature for the series was 49.7
degrees; the average coolest month
was January with mean temperature
of 1915 degrees, while the hottest
month was August, with tempera-
ture of 61.3 degrees.
Taking an average for seven years,
the last fIosts in the spring came on
April IL. and the average first kill
Der %, giving the average growing
season OF nearly six and half months.
Under such favoring climatic con-
ditions it is little wonder that Whid-
by Island has attracted so much at
tention as an ideal locality for a
summer nome, farm, orchard, gar
den, or dairy.
This particular region Of the won
derful Puget Sound country is no less
attractive in many other respects,
as it's rich soil and delightful climate
might suggest. 1t is a region of
splendid scenic wealth, sandy beaches
and coves, fine camping out places,
much game on sea and land, and a
beautiful interior country.
1t is much more difficult to account
for the variance in rainfall and in
snow fall in different Puget Sound
localities than for rainfall, but there
is seldom any snow at all i'll the Puget
Sound region, except on the high alti
tudes of the mainland, and there is
rarely any on the islands. Some
times there is, for instance, 4-inch
fall of loose, moist snow at Belling-
BAN and noue in Seattle. Next time
there would be, perhaps, 6-inch fall
in Seattle and none in Bellingham,
which is ninety six miles further
north SO 1T is a hard matter to figure
out the snowfall proposition, except
ON the general theory of cold and
warm strata Of air when rainclOuds
come. The rainfall situation, how
ever, is a different matter, and we
think we can account for it's uniform
variance III different localities on