The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-07-26
DROUGHT GIVES
rain MAKERS
COLD HARVEST
Alleged FakirS Win Large
Sum or Lose Nothing,
Scientist Claims.
BIZ Science Service

BIZ Science Service
WASHINGTON, July 26.-With
one Of the most general droughts
ever experienced in the United
States now threatening all kinds Of
crops, It is likely that the rain
maker" will come into his own. tax
ing advantage Of the desperate
straits Of the farmer to I'LL his own
pocket
For the rain-maker really bets on
a sure thing. II he fails, his losses
practically are negligible. but If rain
does follow his efforts he takes full
credit for It, and the cash as well.
Many real scientific experiments
have been made 20 test rain-making
methods, but never have yielded the
slightest evidence that anything
man can do has any effect on start
ing or stopping precipitation.
DR.. David Starr Jordan, president
emeritus Of Stanford university, once
exposed the raln-maker and his
methods, showing how effective they
are. as a means of making easy
money.
He works in this way. He goes To
an ordinarily prosperous farming
region where a long continued
drought threatens heavy losses and
puts up to the farmers proposition
like this:
Charges $4,000
eff rain doesn't come soon you
farmers in this neighborhood may
lose hundreds of thousands of dol
lars. Now with my secret method 1
surely can bring rain. 1t will cost a
lot to do it, so I'll have to charge
you $4,000 for my services. But to
show you that 1 am perfectly fair,
1 will not charge you if 1 fail.
well sign a contract that If I
bring an inch ot rain here within
the next two weeks you will pay me
$4,000, which is much less than
you'll lose If rain doesn't come. In
the inconceivable event that can
not bring rain, you won't have to
pay me anything, so you have every
thing to gain and nothing to lose"
Such a proposition as this looks
perfectly fair and the farmers &C
cept it. The rain-maker then pro-
ceedS to set up his apparatus, which
may resemble a huge cannon point
ing upward. in which he sets of
some explosions. Or he may have
some large caldIons, in which he
brews a mysterious mixture that
gives off lots of impressive smoke.
Just what method he uses is i'm
material, since Il has nothing to do
with the rain. Its sole function is
to impress clients, and this can be
done at a cost of very few dollars.
Forfeit Not Offered
No drought lasts forever, and the
longer it has continued the more
likely rain is to come. So perhaps
it starts a few days after he begins
his manipulation. The rain-maker
announces that he has brought it.,
collects his $4,000, or whatever
figure he has set, and goes on his
way to some other drought-stricken
section.
If the drought does continue, and
the end Of the specified times sees
no precipitation, he packs up and
goes his way without any pay
ment, unless he can get his con-
tract continued. Even if he can not
his only expenditure has been his
time and a few dollars for chemicals.
Since it is merely a matter Of
chance whether or not rain follows
the efforts of the rain-maker, he
probably would win about half the
time. And $4,000 for a couple of
weeks work is good pay, even if he
works only at that price for month
or so a year. To be really fair, he
should offer the farmers a forfeit
of $4,000 if he fails. But no rain
maker ever has been known to do
that.