The Detroit times., 1912-09-28
TEMPERATURE THUS FAR IN
1925 759 DEGREES UNDER
NORMAL, BUT DON'T WORRY
Nearly All the Deficiency Piled
Up During First Three Months,
Mr.. Conger Explains
CLIMATE NOT CHANGING
Short Memories Responsible for
Some Erroneous Ideas, Says
Local Weather Forecaster

Because the weather bulletin indi-
Gates that the year 1912 has 30 far
lacked 75s degrees, or nearly three
degrees day, OF being normal. OBJ
server Norman b. Conger was asked
why this was thus.
/ Because" replied Mr.. Conger. "the
weather has not been warmer"
1t sounded like the pronouncement
OF palmist or a phrenologist. but Mr.
Conser retrieved himself by explain
ing:
Please don't scare people into
thinking that the weather Is colder
than 1t ought to be, for 1t isn't No
body ought to get out his winter finn-
nels or start the furnace on the
strength OF that 759 degrees de-
AGENCY. Since April the weather
has been about normal. II has aver
aged considerably less than one DO
gree from normal.
THE year got q cold start, that IS
| all. In the frat three months we ran
up deficiency OF, TAO degrees. April
and May were nearly normal-in fact,
slightly above. June was below. July
was normal within fraction OF de-
gree. August was q little colder tnan
normal. Thus far, September 10 above
Remember the first week OF hot
weather? That put the month amend.
But from April 1-about Ito days
the deficiency has been only 10 de-
grees, or a very small fraction OF
degree day.
I'VE hear people say that the
climate is changing. They say the
winters are warmer. thu summers are
colder. They remember when they
went skating on Thanksgiving, and
declare that nowadays there never 10
skating on that holiday. But the
records of the weather department do
not bear out this opinion. They
show that the average temperature
Of the past 10 years, for instance, has
been about the average temperature
for any other group Of 10 years. Peo-
ple don't remember accurately, that's
| all.
People talk about the effect OF the
removal OF the forests on, the rainfall
In about 1885 or 1886, Bella Hubbard.
who was a student and who kept OBJ
servations Of the weather, said that
the annual rainfall was about SO
inches. Nowadays 1t averages 32.16
inches The site of Detroit was a
forest In Bella Hubbard's days. Has
the removal OF the trees made any
difference?
and why should It? Why should
| a growth of trees extending 80 on SO
feet into the air have any influence
on moisture which Is precipitatcd
from a height of 1000 feet? Our
GxtIH ~
and the Pacific ocean. What influence
could trees in Michigan have on
| them?
When the path Of q warm gulf
storm Is DETECTED to the south OF US.
winds blow in from the north and We
have cold weather. When we are In
the path Of the gulf storms, We have
warm weather. Early this year, the
etorms went to the sousn, and We had
unusual cold.
And the people who lament the
passing OF heavy SHOWS In winter, for
get that 1t Is the local condition that
has changed, not the climate. They
remember when there was good
sleighing for weeks. But. they don't
reflect on how long that sleighing
would have lasted IL thousands OF
vehicles had passed over the roads
and had worn down the snow. Now
adays a Detroit snowstorm has to
struggle for maintenance against
thousands OF wagons and against the
ID. p. w. What chance has the snow
fof withstanding such odds7
$50 II anyone tells you that the
climate Is changing, just refer him to
the records of the weather depart
ment. He will he surprised, but he
will get the facts"