Transcriber’s Note:
The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.
In the minds of most people a very silly notion prevails aboutthe weather and the weather man. They have a general impressionthat the weather knows no laws—that it is lawless and reckless,fickle and changeable; that the weather man is a sort of conjurer,and by some mysterious gift he is able to prophesy things that mostpeople know nothing about. Nothing could be further from thetruth.
After you have carried out the simple experiments described,and have read this text, whether you have a scientific trend ofmind or not, you will at least learn that the weather is a science,like electricity, chemistry, or medicine; that its laws are uniform,constant, and unchanging, and there is really nothing mysteriousabout it. The weather man is a scientist and by means of instruments,which indicate certain things, he comes to definite conclusions.He is not a prophet; he does not prophesy; he forecasts.
If you are interested in having a Weather Bureau station ofyour own, you will find it one of the most interesting things youever acquired in your life. You will soon gain a knowledge of asubject that most people are quite ignorant of, and if you desireto stand for leadership among your boy friends, it may be achievedby knowing about those things that to most boys, and in factto adults, assume a mysterious and magical aspect.
A Weather Bureau station at your home will give you a sourceof pleasure, fun, and insight into a science that is intensely interesting,easy to understand, fascinating and worth while knowing.The importance of the subject cannot be overestimated. It hasan influence on the whole world; it affects our health; it affectsour comfort; it means success or failure in farming; it has animmense influence upon transportation. When ready to moveperishable goods, the transporter must have indications of whatthe weather is going to be.
The weather observer is the guardian angel of the ships at sea;some men have doubts as to whether medicine itself has savedmore human lives than the study of the weather and the practiceof weather observing. It is not unusual for those who live along4the coast to see ships hovering into cover long before a stormapproaches, for the wonderful weather bureau system operatedby the United States Government gives warnings and dangersignals all over the country. Statistics show that losses havebeen reduced seventy-five to eighty per cent through this system.The marine warnings are so perfect, so prompt, and so efficient