16 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
from the lumber yards, and any loose objects Jthat would float, were 
washed into the Mississippi river. Damages to property alone are es- 
timated to reach near 40,000 dollars. The deposits of mud in many 
business houses was from three to four feet, and from a sanitary stand- 
point the situation was rendered serious. Business was stopped for 
more than a week. At a few places in the track of the storm the hail 
was of such size, and was driven with such force by the wind as to 
break siding on residences. 
July, 1908, will be remembered as one of the most favorable har- 
vest months on record, the average temperature and precipitation being 
slightly below the normal with an excess of sunshine. The average 
daily deficiency in temperature was 0.4°, and the average total de- 
ficiency in rainfall was .78 inch. The first eight days of the month 
were unseasonably cool with minimum temperatures down to 42° at 
several stations in the northwestern counties on the 7th and 8th. The 
warmest periods of the month were from the 10th to the 13th and 28th 
to 30th, when the maximum temperatures were generally above 90°. 
The temperature during the remainder of the month was about normal. 
Rain fell at some station in the State every day during the month, but 
after the 7th the showers were so widely scattered and the intervals 
between showers were so great that there was an average for the 
month of but eighty days with rain. The heavy and frequent rains 
which began on April 21st continued, until July 7th, but since then the 
only period of general rains was on the 16th and 17th, and the amounts 
of precipitation in that period were generally small except over the 
Missouri divide and the northern counties, where the amounts at 
many stations ranged from 1.00 to 5.00 inches. There were a few 
severe wind and hailstorms, but not as many as is usual during July. 
The worst storm of which we have a record occurred in Ida county on 
the afternoon of the 26th, causing considerable damage in the vicinity 
of Arthur, at which place the storm track was about five rods wide. 
It struck the town about 1 p. m. and lasted but a few seconds, but 
blew down many sheds and other light buildings, windmills and trees. 
The character of the storm approached that of a tornado, but there 
was no funnel-shaped cloud observed. Heavy hail fell in many local- 
ities during the passage of the storm across the county and did serious 
damage to crops. 
A severe hailstorm occurred in the vicinity of Woodburn, Clarke 
county, on the 17th, resulting in some damage. After the first week 
of the month the weather was ideal for haying, harvesting and the 
growth of corn. The moderately high temperatures, excess of sunshine, 
and the long intervals between showers enabled farmers to secure 
the large crop of hay in the best of condition. 
Small grain harvest began during the second week of the month 
and was nearly completed, and thrashing operations were in full prog- 
ress before the close of the month. The yield and quality of wheat 
especially winter wlieat, was good. The yield of oats ranged from 
poor in southern counties to fair to good in central and northern 
