WEATHER BUREAU. 57 



storm warnings and for vessel reporting. The portion of the line 

 owned by the Weather Bureau is in good condition, having been 

 I'obuilt during the past year. 



(lost of ri'pnirs, $2,142.37. 

 Receipts, iioiie. 



RIVER AND FLOOD SERVICE. 



As foreshadowed in my Inst annual report, the work in connection 

 witli the issue of Hood warnings has been strengthened during the 

 year and extended to districts not hitherto covered. Two new river 

 districts have been organized in California, one for the Los Angeles 

 River, with headquarters in Los Angeles, Cal., the other for the Eel 

 Eiver, in Humboldt County, with headquarters in Eureka, Cal. The 

 flood-warning service in Alabama has been extended during the year 

 to include the Cahaba River, a tributary of the Alabama in the cen- 

 tral portion of the State. In times of flood the rich agricultural 

 lands along this stream are overflowed, greatly to the detriment of 

 farming interests. It is the purpose of the bureau to anticipate, 

 so far as possible, floods in this stream, in order that the resulting 

 damage may be minimized. 



A rearrangement of the substations in Montana and the establish- 

 ment of three new stations along the Missouri in North Dakota has 

 Ijeen effected. These changes have enabled the bureau to render more 

 efficient service during the spring breakup of the ice in the Missouri 

 throughout the Dakotas. 



A small number of rainfall stations, reporting by mail and tele- 

 graph, have been established during the year in the watershed of 

 the Lake of the Woods in the United States. The reports furnished 

 by these stations are for use of the International Joint Commission, 

 which, it may be remembered, has jurisdiction over all cases involv- 

 ing the use or obstruction or diversion of waters forming the inter- 

 national boundry, or crossing the boundry between the United States 

 and Canada. 



LOSS BY FLOOD IN THE UNITED STATES DURING THE CALENDAR YEAR 1916. 



The aggregate loss by floods, computed as accurately as the cir- 

 cumstances will permit, was $35,907,000. As in former years, a great 

 share of this loss fell upon the agricultural interests. This unusually 

 large loss was due principally to the movement over the east Gulf and 

 South Atlantic States of two tropical storms, during July, 1916. 

 Following these two storms there was an absence of destructive floods 

 in all parts of the country, which lasted until March, 1917. 



HYDKOLOGIC WORK IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. 



Progress in this work has been slow because of the fact that the 

 mountain region of Los Angeles County, Cal., where the work is 

 being done, is practically uninhabited. It has been possible to estab- 

 lish IG rainfall stations in the foothills and at points within the 

 mountains accessible by trail. Four of the stations in this study are 

 equipped with automatically recording rain gages that are visited 

 once a week or oftener. when possible. Twenty-eight rainfall sta- 

 tions are now in operation. 



