REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 179 



The service is at present in successful operation on 50 vessels ply- 

 ing the Atlantic Ocean from New York to West Indian and south- 

 ern ports, and the Gulf and Atlantic between New Orleans and the 

 West Indies, and it is now reasonably certain that no hurricanes 

 will reach our southern coasts unannounced. 



A similar service has been partly inaugurated on the Pacific 

 Ocean, where cooperating vessels make daily weather reports to the 

 Weather Bureau officials at San Francisco and Portland, while sta- 

 tions in Alaska and the Aleutian Islands make daily reports of 

 weather conditions by wireless. 



There is also under consideration the extension of the field of ob- 

 servations to the north Atlantic steamship routes by means of radio- 

 telegraphy, which will make possible the issue of warnings concern- 

 ing weather, winds, and storms over that region for the benefit of 

 shipping. 



A still more ambitious project, growing out of the deliberations 

 of the International Radiotelegraphic Conference, held in London, 

 England, last June and July, has in view the taking of meteorologi- 

 cal observations by all trans- Atlantic steamers, those taken east of 

 the fortieth meridian to be forwarded direct to some point in 

 Europe (London or Paris), and those taken west of that line to be 

 sent to Washington. It has also been recommended that five vessels 

 be equipped for the exclusive purpose of taking observations in the 

 West Indian waters during the hurricane season from June to 

 November, at which time the certainty of receiving daily reports will 

 be particularly valuable in insuring the safety of vessels at sea. 



STORMS OF TROPICAL ORIGIN. 



Of the severe storms of tropical origin that visited the eastern 

 and southern coasts of the United States during the last 16 years, 

 warnings were in all cases issued in advance of their arrival. Prob- 

 ably the most destructive was the Galveston hurricane of September, 

 1900, when 6,000 lives were lost, and damage to the extent of 

 $30,000,000 inflicted. In 1909 and 1910 severe hurricanes visited the 

 Florida Peninsula, but owing to the accurate and timely warnings 

 of the Weather Bureau comparatively little damage resulted. Hun- 

 dreds of employees of the Florida East Coast Eailway at work in 

 exposed locations along the keys at that time, as well as barges and 

 other movable property, were removed to places of safety as a result 

 of warnings given by the Weather Bureau. 



COLD- WAVE WARNINGS. 



The warnings of those sudden and destructive temperature changes 

 known as cold waves are probably next in importance to the storm 

 and hurricane warnings. These warnings are issued from 24 to 36 



