Evening star., 1924-05-04
"Rainmaker" Hatfield and His Work in California

! OF Italy gave columns of space TO
Doctor" Hatfield One OF them said
a movement was on foot to persuade
the government to give the doctor"
one million iira for his secret.
The largest sum ever received b.
the cloud-coaxer was $4,000, which
was paid him in 1906 BY the gold
miners around Dawson City, Alaska.
long drouth had dried up many OF
the streams and the miners had no
water with which to S!uice the ore
in their customary operations. The
ra!nmaker made the long journey at
his own expense and took the con-
tract on a mo rain, no pay basis.
These incidents are only few Of
more than 500 demonstrations Hat
field says he has given on two CONT
nents with nearly 100 per cent ia
vorable results.
II don't claim to be infaliioIe and
don't claim the title 'rsinmaker.'
said Hatfield. 81 don't make rain in
any sense; I merely assist nature
with the chemicals, which are my
secret. There is always moisture in
the air. I focus it, so to speak; that
| is. condense IL to the point OF pre-
cipitation over a given territory.
There's no magic in my work. 1t is
even simpler than the US eof cleo
tricity, which is still mystery to
the scientists.
81 first got my idea of possible con-
troll over air moisture twenty five years
ago during a three-year drouth in
southern California, which became so
| bad that cattle owners drove their
! herds out of the state TO find grazing
land. 1 began to study reteorology
ard allied subjects and later to make
experiments quietly. My first expert
ment was on my fathers ranch, in
San Diego County, in 1902, and the
| first rain in several months followed.
| Then followed sixteen tests, all but one
successful, and then my first contract,
| in Los Angeles. I got $50 for bringing
one inch Of rain within five days. Two
days later two more inches fell, break
| ing drouth of many months duration.
| MY terms? They never vary. One
thousand dollars per inch of rainfall,
with a guaranteed minimum Of what
ever they wish. l can always guar
antee a minimum, but don't assure a
| maximum.
| X = :: =
| CTILL there are many doubters and
~ the rainmaker, as lie is termed in
California, despite his disclaimer, has
been the object of many editorial
broadsides as a conscious or deluded
faker Some of the scoffers point to
his method as gambling on a sure
thing.
Hatfield said one, stakes a few
dollars for lumber and so-called chem
icals and makes a proposition that
he will bring rain for one to five
thousand dollars by a certain date.
But, don't you sec that in giving
himself the usual leeway of three or
four weeks he is the beneficiary OF
a jug-handled proposition: If rain
comes along in the natural course
he say he did it and collects. If it
doesn't, he is out only small sum
and recoups on the next bunch of
suckers that he can persuade to fall
for his claims. What could be sweet
er in the way of an easy-money
scheme? I'd like to think up some
thing of the kind myself. When
people are desperate they will fall
for any charlatan If he offers them
relief"
Hatfields champions point to the
fact that for eight consecutive years
rain followed his experiments in the
San Joaquin Valley In California and