G6 ANNUAL UKi'ORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



cluiinl)tvs of coninierce, etc., in the liir^or cities of the coiintiv. Much 

 dissatisfaction prevails wlienever it is ini])eratively necessary, from 

 lack of funds and t raincMJ ('uii)loyees. (o cmtMil this service. 



The enoi-nious deM'lopnient of motor trailic and truckin*; has cre- 

 ated an ur<rent demand upon the Bureau for -weather reports and 

 statements of road conditions for vicinities surrounding each of its 

 pi-iiicil)al stations. This has been met as far as possible, but the 

 lli<rlnvay \\'eathei- Service, as it is called, falls far short of supplying 

 the motoring i)ublic with the aid and .service to which it is entitled. 



A new enterprise in the form of weather and rain insurance im- 

 poses other important obligations of preparedness upon the Bureau 

 to sui)i)ly facts and data this undei'taking requires. This is not a 

 burden at the present time, but is doul)tless destined to crystallize into 

 an activity which in the aggregate for the country will entail a very 

 material added expenditure of time and effort. 



Obviously meteorohjgy can not be limited by either national or 

 even continental boundai-ies. Its logical field must embrace the entire 

 globe. Every success attained in great storm warnings and forecasts 

 simply increases the confidence of those served and benefited, awakens 

 greater expectations, and imi)o.ses added ol)ligatioiis upon the fore- 

 casters. The greatest hope in meeting this situation comes through 

 the collection of numerous reports from the vast ocean expanses and 

 international exchange of observations. A circumpolar service of 

 this character, but of small extent, which existed before the war, has 

 not yet been restored, but hapi^ily agencies are at work which give 

 promise that the future Avill ultimately bring about the realization of 

 a daily weather map, first of the Northern Hemisphere and, possibly, 

 later of the world. In the meantime, every effort is now being 

 directed to the restoration of the meteorological reports of the oceans. 



In general terms, the Weather Bureau is suffering from the rav- 

 ages of the Avar and the consequences of an enormous change in 

 economic conditions. Its work is conducted under strained condi- 

 tions by a faithful personnel, largely discouraged by the slow and 

 inadequate adjustment of Federal occupations to existing conditions 

 of life. The rehabilitation of the service is now a most urgent need. 



Comments are submitted in the following regarding the principal 

 features of the work : 



FORECAST SERVICE. 



No material changes have been made in the regular forecast service 

 of the Bureau, which was somewhat fully described in the annual 

 report for last year. The Bureau can not adequately nioct the de- 

 mands for forecasting with the funds at present available. Some of 

 the special service rendered, during the year just closed, illustrates 

 the nature of these demands. 



SPECIAL FORECASTS AND WARNINGS. 



Army and Navy balloon race. — ^This race was confined to officers 

 of the xVrmy and Navy, three balloons being entered from each of 

 these branches of the service. It was scheduled to start at 6 p m. 

 September 25, 1919, and complete arrangements were made to furnish 



