The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1913-04-17
v. |. MOORE RESIGNS
AFTER LONG SERVICE
As Chief OF the United States Weather
Bureau. His Own Story

Willis Luther More, chief of the
! United States Weather Bureau, after
eighteen years of service In that ca
pacity, has resigned. His resigna-
ton has been accepted by President
| Wilson. After June /, when MIR.
Moore will leave his desk to his sue
cessor the American public will have
to accustom itself to new name
signed to the daily and weekly wealth
er reports which are scattered literal
! ly by hundreds of thousands through
out the country.
MOORE'S STORY OF HIMSELF
| Called before the House Committee
on Agriculture in 1910 to explain his
| puzzling position on the Weeks bill
for the creation of the Appalachian
| Forest Reserve, Mr.. Moore was asked
to tell something about his education
and experience, both of which has
been called into question. From his
reply and from his autobiography in
Who's Who" it may be gathered
that:
| Willis l.. Moore was born at Soraa
ton, Pa, on the 18th of January, in
1856 When he was eight years old
he joined his father with Grants
army at City Point, and sold papers
to the troops in the field At the age
of thirteen he was thrown upon his
own resources. Il found employ
men, -" he said, "in a newspaper of .
fee After | became a journeyman
mechanic. and was twenty-one years
of age / employed private tutors in
mathematics, the English language,
French and German. | came into the
meteorological service as mechanic.
had the advantage of one of the
best scientific libraries in the country,
the largest meteorological library and
the most complete in the Country, and
| had the association of some of the
brightest minds meteorologically In
t.the world, who would aid me in &C
quiring a modicum of education, at
least, so that my study has been large
ly an Independent one"
Entering the Signal Corps, which is
now the Weather Bureau, Moore rose
through successive grades to that of
local forecast official at Chicago,
where he was from 1891 to 1894. 1t
was during this period that he got
the title of Professor" title which
has been called into question by men
of more strict academic training than
MIR. Moore. This title was given him
as result of examination held by the
order of the Secretary of Agriculture.
Moore had .twenty-tbree competitors,
but he won the professorship, so that
from 1894 to 1895 he was technically
Professor of meteorology." The fol-
lowing year he was made chief of the
Weather Bureau. He has been for sew
eral years president of the National
Geographic Society, vice president of
the Washington Academy of Scientists,
and member of the board of managers
of the Aero Club of Washington. He
is the author of a hook of descrip-
tive meteorology and has lectured and
written widely on this subject. He
is a member in Washington of the
Cosmos and Chevy Chase Clubs.
KNEW WHICH WAY WIND BLEW
Although President Wilson did not
state and probably will not state his
reasons for calling upon Chief Moore
to relinquish his management of the
weather, everybody in Washington
knows that Mr.. Wilson wanted Mr.
Moore to go because he had been run
ming his Bureau with more political
thar scientific skill. Willis Moore's
enemies have always criticised him
because he was not a scientific man,
although he posed as one, and al
though the work of such bureau
the Weather Bureau is necessarily
scientific rather than anything else.
But for years evidence has been ac-
cumulating to show that Mr.. Moore
has paid more attention to his own
preservation in Office than to the
scientific work of his office.
HIS WORST BEST GUESS
from a purely popular point OF
view the most serious mistake that
Willis Moore ever made was his ia
nous mis-predicton of the Inaugural
ton blizzard of 1909. Having opti-
unsteady forcasted a beautiful day
for the incoming Mr.. Taft and the out
going Mr.. Roosevelt, it was of course
a terrific blow to have the storm turn
In its course and break in full fury
ND Washington. The only thing
Moore could do was to blame IL on
the weather and try 10 let it go at
that. But for the man who is gener-
ally supposed to know more about the
weather than the weather does itself