Democratic Sentinel, Volume 16, Number 19, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 May 1892 — WHAT OF THE WEATHER. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

WHAT OF THE WEATHER.

; <r • HOW THE OUESTION IS ANSWERED IN ADVANCE. Night Scenes at the Signal Office—Curious Cipher Dispatches—Halting the Forecasts—How the Reports and Weather Haps Are Prepared and Distributed. Circle Sam’s Prophet*.

UNCLE SAM employs three professional prophets, I sayb u Washington I _ cor respondent. Their occupation is sqmewhat like tliat of the African rainmakers. They foretell the weather, |l|9 predicting wet and dry spells, hot waves WBMsjand cold waves, ]2rerfloods and gales. So 3W&3 .long as their predio11*1*1111111 pt— tions turn out oor-m-«Hv* rect nobod y pays HW |much attention. If [ J- they make a mistake U 1 howls of derision

and indignation arise. People have no use for prophets who exhibit fallibility like ordinary mortals. Prophesying about the weather is always an anxious business. It is very different from running an oracle after the Delphic pattern, dispensing ambiguous replies to fool questions. If the rainmaker of the Congo promises a shower and jt failß to arrive he is discredited as a fraud. It is much the same way in the Signal Office at \Vashington. The weather reports, which como by telegraph to the Oflleo at 9 o’clock every night, are curiosities in themselves. Here is an actual specimen, illustrating the style: Boston, Murch 14.—Bashful barmaid damnable bony hirsute pirate. It is wonderful what a lot this means. “Bashful” signiflos that the barometer is 30.12 and the temperature 30 degrees Fahrenheit. “Barmaid” tells that the wind is from the north and that fifty-two hundredths of an inch of rain lias fallen during the last twenty-four hours. “Damnable” says that the velocity of the wind is twenty-two miles an hour and that the highest temporature during the day was 42 degrees. “Bony” declares that the sky is covered with cirrus clouds. “Hirsute” makes it known that the observations were made at 8 p. m.; that the dew point is 80 and that the local prediction is for fair weather. “Pirate” communicates the fact that the highest wind velocity during the day was fifty-two miles an hour, Eaoh letter in every word means something, and in this way it is possible to condense a deal of information within a brief space, each observer having his own key to the cipher for making up dispatches. These dispatches begin to pour in at 9 o’clock in the evening from 150 signal stations all over the country. As fast as they arrivo they are translated by an expert into ordinary English. He reads them aloud in a sing-song tone, while four skilled men at desks close by jot down the information they convoy on as many butline maps of the United States. On each map the 150 signal stations are indicated by as many small ciroles, in which the facts noted arc penciled with symbols and figures. One operator records the condition of the olouds and the direction of the wind at every point. If it is clear at Chicago, for example, he leaves that qirele unmarked. Supposing that it is cloudy, he marks lines across it. If partly cloudy, he shades only one-half of the circle. Rain is indicated by the letter “R,” snow by the letter “S.” The point from which the wind blows is shown by an arrow. By equally simple means the second operator records changes of temperature, and the third puts down barometric changes. The fourth registers the temperature and barometer at the time the observations wore made, the velocity of the wind and the amount of rainfall during the past twenty-four hours. These maps, when finished, present a oomplete picture of the meteorological conditions at 8 p. m. all over the United States. Upon their showing the prophet —only one of the three i» on duty at any given time—bases his* predictions. Meanwhile, however, other things have been going on. , Two swift compositors, sitting on tall stools at oases, near by, set up in tabular form the data given In the dispatches as fast as the- translator reads them off. Instead of single letters they have type words and figures in their boxes, decimals to indicate barometer heights, etc. Thus they are enabled to do the work with surprising rapidity, and so accurately is it performed that no reading of proofs is necessary. The table made in this way is to be printed in the righthand lower corner of the weather map' published for the next day. At the same time still another expert sits in front of a brass plate exactly the size of a weather map of the United States. The plate, is perforated with 150 square holes, corresponding in position. to the signal stations. They are not labeled in any way, but he knows them all by location perfectly, so that when thp translator of the dispatches calls off Sacramento or Minneapolis, he fits a little slug of lead into the right bole without a moment’s hesitation. The slug bears an arrow crossing a circle, and the way in which it is set to point indicates the direction of the wind. If you will look at a weather map you will see these arrows scattered all ’over it’, and will also notice that the circle through which each passes shows the state of the weather at that station. Supposlrg'that it was clear at the hour of .observation, the circle will'be white; if rainy, it will be black. The usefulness of this brass plate will be presently seen. t Ihi 1 rjphot Get* In Hl* Work. At this stage of the performance, when the contents of the 159 dispatches have all been noted on the maps, recorded upon the brass plate, and set up in type, the prophet steps in. He has been keeping an eye upon the situation all the while, but now the time has come for him to analyze the present situation and forecast the future for one day, two days, three days ahead. No wonder that he passes his hand through his hair, while his eyes assume a glassy look, premonitory of a prophetic duck fit, as he feels the afflatus of inspiration coming upon him. Turning to a clerk at his side, he begins to dictate in a low voice, saying: “For New England, fair weather, westerly winds, followed by increasing cloudiness and probably light snows.” And so on until the prospect for the entire country has been declared in detail. The clerk writes the forecasts with a stylus in manifold, one copy being handed at once to the printers, who set it up in type. All the words necessary for the purpose are cast entire in separate types, so that it is quick work; but the case containing them has no less than 1,050 boxes, and that is a good many for the compositors to keep in mind. The other copies of the manifold are passed over to clerks, who telegraph the predictions to the press associations and to observers in different parts A the country. The copy in type is to be printed in the left-hand lower corner of the weather map. Before uttering his predictions the prophet has drawn lines of equal temperature and barometric pressure—vou

may see tnem on any weather ohart—» upon the map which has been already prepared with data noted down respecting these matters. Also, he draws a line circumscribing the area ip which rain is falling. The map Is then laid on the brass plate, the iype slugs in which have been duly inked, and a sort of press is shut down upon it, transferring all the arrows and circles to the map. Thus prepared, the map goes to Another room, where the lines and arrows are transferred by rapid processes to A lithographio stone. Copies from the forecasts and tables of figures set up by the compositors are likewise added upon the stone, and plain maps of tho United States are used to print the result upon, producing in this manner the completed weather charts. Predictions and weather oharts are issued every twelvo hours. Maj. Dunwoody is senior phrophet; the two oth rs are Prof. H. A. Hazen and Lieut. Glassford. Tho Major makes a better average of accuracy In the forecasts than either of the others, although he relies muoh loss than thoy upon rules. Inspiration goes a long way in the business of phrophocy. Incidentally, it is worth saying that the most important office of the signal servioels not to mako predictions, but to study meteorology, for the benefit of farmers chiefly. The advantage to them of being able to obtain the fullest information respecting climatic conditions in any locality, so that they can know where to settle and what orops to expect suocess with, is obviously incalculable.