The Washington times., 1923-05-18
BY ELIAS B. c'FARMER'D DUNN
written for Cosmopolitan News

SeFvfce.)
! NEW YORK. May 1S.--InteVest IN
the weather seems never to have
been greater than today. This arises
from the Importance that has been
attached to various Observances per
tanning 10 sudden change in eli
matte conditions.
A Washington scientist asserts the
sun is cheating the public out of
four degrees of heat that was fo"-
merly provided. Therefore, many
people have concluded that what
would seem to be an, unusually cool
spell at this season of the year is
thereby accounted for. That the dis
coVery is being Immediately demon
strated.
Granting the correctness of that
discovery, it will be some millions of
years hence before any tabulationn
upon the result will. be available.
Crop Damage Slight.
The one really tangible cause for
worry in connection with this recent
season Of low temperatures through
out most of the country is in the
thought of destruction of crops and
the entailed tendency toward lesser
production and higher prices--to the
consumer. But the fact is, that the
freezing temperature in the Central
and Middle Atlantic States was OF
such short duration only slight dam
age resulted
In the northern section OF the
States from Montana eastward t.
Maine, the weather was colder, regis
tering from six to twelve degrees
below freezing, but the crops are
later and harder in those States
The Southern States felt the cool
ness, but no great damage was done
Statistics prove that in every
year, for the past fifty years there
has been cool--if not a cold
wave that has spread over the
country between the eighth and
twelfth Of May. This in turn has
been followed by unusually high
temperatures for the month. begin.
ming in the western States about
the sixteenth and reaching the
twenty-first to the ,twenty-eighth iH
the Atlantic States.
Traces Cold Wave.
The average OF last killing frosts
Of spring occur in the southern
coast States, from Texas to Florida
about February Is; in the northern
tier of the southern States about
March Is to%April /; in the south
ern section OF the northern States
about April 10 and in the extreme
northern States from May l to
May Is.
Frosts occurring before those
dates, unless attended by rain or
snow, are likely to cause consider
able damage in the late corn belt.
The recent cool wave was, as usual,
the result of an area of low pres
sure first observed over the ex.
tensive irrigated lands Of the south
west. It moved northeastward, fol-
lowed by an area of high pressure
from the northwest. The latter
moved southwark over the Rocky
mountain States and following the
track Of the low area, spread
over all States to the Atlantic coast.
The movement of these areas not
only caused tornadoes in Texas but
severe local storms, cloudburSts and
floods. Severe local storms and
entailed disasters have been of
frequent occurrence since the ex-
tensive spread of irrigation in the
southwest.
Believes Climate Is Changing.
! 1t is true that some freakish
weather, such as droughts, heat
waves, violent storms and floods,
have prevailed over the country at
intervals during the past few years,
but the most notable feature has
been the relatively moderate win.
ters, save on one or two occasions,
during the past forty years.
The climate is changing. It has
become quite impossible to deter.
mine when one season ends and an
other begins. They blend one into
another quite imperceptibly. This
condition is also due in large
measure to the advent of irrigation
in the Southwest and West.
Irrigation has been carried for.
ward intensively and extensively in
the Southwest for great many
years until now millions of acres
of land that was arid desert is kept
moist and made to bloom. While
the land that was once waste has
been made productive the method
employed has helped to change ma.
lures program. The combination of
moisture and extreme heat in that
part of the country has made a new
breeding place for storms and in