1917] METEOROLOGY. 19 



expecting finer conditions merely because the unsettled weather has lasted go 

 long; and similarly that during fine weather the chances of continued drought 

 become greater the longer the fine weather lasts, at any rate for spells of a 

 length commonly met with. What happens when the length of the spell reaches 

 a quite abnormal value must remain doubtful, but it seems reasonable to sup- 

 pose the probability reaches a constant value." 



Monthly Weather Review {JJ. S. Mo. Weather Rev., U {1916), Nos. 7, pp. 

 S81-Jf29, pis. 8, figs. 4; 8, pp. IfSl-JfOS, pis. 29, figs. 18).— In addition to weather 

 forecasts, river and flood observations, and seismological reports for July and 

 August, f916; lists of additions to the Weather Bureau Library and of recent 

 papers on meteorology and seismology ; notes on the weather of the months ; 

 solar and sljy radiation measurements at Washington, D. C, during July and 

 August, 1916 ; condensed climatological summaries ; and the usual climatological 

 tables and charts, these numbers contain the following articles : 



No. 7. — Initial Investigations in the Upper Air of Australia, by G. Taylor 

 (abs.) ; Classification of the Hydrometeors, by G. Hellmann ; The Variability 

 of Temperature, by A. Angot ; Weather Forecasting in the United States ; The 

 Persistence of Wet and Dry Weather, by E. V. Newnham (abs.) (see p. 18) ; 

 New South Wales Rainfall (illus.), by D. J. Mares; "Act of God" defined; 

 Hurricane of July 5, 1916, at Pensacola, Fla., by W. P. Reed, jr. ; Hurricane 

 of July 5-6, 1916, at Mobile, Ala., by A. Ashenberger; The Tropical Hurricane 

 of July 5, 1916, in Louisiana, by I. M. Cline ; South Carolina Hurricane 

 of July 13-14, 1916 (illus.), by J. H. Scott; A Method of Forecasting the 

 Maximum Summer Level in Lalje Tahoe from One to Four Months in Advance, 

 by H. F. Alciatore (see p. 18) ; and Annual Rise in the Columbia River, by F, D. 

 Young (abs.). 



No. 8. — High Haze over the Southwestern United States during July to 

 September, 1916, by H. H. Kimball ; Atmospheric Refraction at Mount Hamilton, 

 Cal. (illus.) ; On the Abnormal Propagation of Sound Waves in the Atmosphere 

 (illus.), by S. Fujiwhara (abs.); Auroras Observed during August, 1916; 

 Distribution of Precipitation in China during the Typhoons of the Summer of 

 1911 (illus.), by Co-Ching Chu ; Radiation Equilibrium and Atmospheric Radia- 

 tion, by R. Emden (abs.) ; A Tornado in Utah, by A. W. Stevens; The Govern- 

 ment Safety-first Train, 1916 (illus.), by R. H. Finch; Graphical Method of 

 Showing the Daily Weather, by E. T. Quayle (abs.) ; Tower Cloud at San Juan. 

 P. R., by F. E. Hartwell ; Extensions of U. S. Weather Bureau Service ; and 

 The North Carolina Earthqualce of August 26, 1916, by R. H. Finch. 



The fertilizing' value of rain and snow, F. T. Shutt {Canada Expt. Farms 

 Rpts. 1915, pp. 160-162). — The data for the eighth year of this investigation 

 (E. S. R., 33, p. 716), are reported. These are taken to indicate that "the 

 amount of soluble nitrogen compounds that may serve as food for crops as 

 furnished annually by the rain and snow is not large and can not be regarded 

 as an important factor in adding to the soil's store of nitrogen. . . . Since 

 this nitrogen is furnished in an immediately available form, chiefly during 

 the growing season, the precipitation does act as a fertilizing agent of some 

 value." 



Meteorological observations at the Massachusetts Agricultural Experi- 

 ment Station, J. E. Ostbandeb and J. S. Sims {Massachusetts Sta. Met. Buls. 

 SS3, SS4 {1916), pp. 4 each). — Summaries of observations at Amherst, Mass., 

 on pressure, temperature, humidity, precipitation, wind, sunshine, cloudiness, 

 and casual phenomena during September and October, 1916, are presented. 

 The data are briefly discussed in general notes on the weather of each month. 



