The Washington herald., 1913-11-09
LEWIS, OF MARYLAND, FAVORS GOVERNMENT
OWNING TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE LINES
Interesting Sketch Of States
man Whose Program |, Be-
ing Termed One Of So
ciaIism = Postofice Ex-
ample Cited.

days. We can see o tornado approach.
ing. It hangs downward In the atmos-
phere like funnel At sea II turns into
a waterspout.
'"rhe atmosphere OF the tiny whiriigig
In the dusty road, the atmosphere In
the tornado, and the atmosphere in the
cyclone are gyratory or twisting. We
do not realize that such Is the case when
there Is a cyclone because II is so ex-
pansive that its swirl Is not noticeable.
The wind, we think, is blowing one way.
As a matter OF fact It is revolving to-
ward a center"
Are winters nowadays" asked. "any
warmer than formerly? James Madison.
the Episcopal bishop and not the Presi-
dent, living at Williamsburg. Va, near
the sea. who co-operated with Thomas
Jefferson, whose home at Monticello was
near the mountains, in observing the
weather, wrote in 17H that a change in
climate Is taking place very sensibly,
Both heats and cold, he continued,
are becoming much more moderate with
In the memory even OF the uiddle-aged.
SHOWS are less frequent and less deep.
The elderly inform me that the earth
used to be covered with snow about three
months every year."
Weather DOCTORS" DR.. Marvin an
swered, disagree on the subject YOU
have brought into our conversation. The
cutting down Of forests, 1t is said by
some persons, makes a difference In the
climate. Accurate information could only
be obtained by n study OF the figures
covering long period. ! don't mean to
become involved In an unnecessary con-
troversy. but will say that In my opin-
Ion the weather averages about the same
today as was tho case formerly"
Why Weather Men Use Kites.
"You have used kites for a number OF
years in your investigations of the at
mosphere above the earth?' / said.
Yes" DR.. Marvin answered "Ascen.
sions are made almost daily at Mount
Weather, our research station In vir-
ginia, ifty miles from Washington. We
have kites seven feet long and six feet
wide, which weigh but ten pounds apiece.
They are fastened to the finest grade of
tempered plano wire. which Is hardly
thicker than common pin. and sent up
into the air for distances ranging be-
tween one and four miles At the latter
height above the earth the temperature
is 100 degrees below zero.
After n kite has reached a certain al
utude the weight Of the wire begins TO
hold 1t back. We then attach another
kite to take up the slack and finally
may have five or six kites pulling at the
same wire. Our instruments, however,
are carried by the first kite Indeed. a
single instrument dt is the invention Of
DIR. Marvin. but he did not say sol makes
a record Of the wind velocity, the alti-
tude, the temperature and the air press
ure.
Meanwhile similar observations are
being made on the ground. We know,
therefore, that certain conditions below
mean, approximately. that certain condi-
tions prevail overhead. Thus We can tell
with reasonable accuracy what is going
on one, two. three. or four miles above
the earth once We know the temperature.
pressure, wind velocity and so forth on
the surface of the earth. Balloons were
used here and in Europe formerly for al
titudinal observations. They were turned
loose. Maybe they came down and were
recovered and maybe they were lost
Kites are much better"
with your understanding of the air
currents above the earth, do you believe
that an aviator can travel from America
to Europe?'
"A few years ago we would have said
offhand that no man could sail across
the Atlantic in a fourteen-foot boat. But
the trick has been done. One OF these
days, in my opinion, the journey will be