56 ' SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL, 63 



The late Dr. C. H. Alden, Asst. Surgeon General, U. S. A., who 

 passed his later years, and died of tuberculosis, in Pasadena, Cali- 

 fornia, says : 



The climate of Southern California is not a dry one, as some suppose. As this 

 region lies along the coast, and its most frequented portions are nowhere very- 

 distant from the water, the climate cannot be dry. The humidity lessens as one 

 goes inland, but is always considerable, except in the uninhabited desert. The 

 fogs which, in the absence of much rain, are a large factor in sustaining 

 vegetation, penetrate many miles from the sea and add to the humidity. 

 The fact that the hitmidity is not favorable for pulmonary tuberculosis 

 which is at all advanced is evidently not appreciated as it should be. 

 [Italics, author's.] 



Even as far as Redlands, over fifty miles from the coast, according 

 to General Alden, who lived there for two winters, " fogs come up 

 from the sea during the spring, but they are shorn of most of their 

 moisture." Nevertheless, Redlands, from its comparative dryness, 

 is a favorite place in winter for patients with pulmonary tuberculosis 

 and they no doubt do better there than at Los Angeles, Pasadena, or 

 at resorts directly on the coast. General Alden's conclusion is that 

 while the mild temperatures and continuous sunshine of this region 

 are favorable for the aged and the feeble from many causes, need- 

 ing an out-door life, the warmth and moisture are unfavorable for 

 cases of pulmonary tuberculosis that are at all advanced. 



In June, 1902, the author traveled through the mountains and vis- 

 ited the principal resorts throughout California. The sea air with its 

 frequent accompaniment of fog seemed to him too strong or fresh 

 for tuberculous patients. North of Santa Barbara or Monterey the 

 sea air is certainly cold and harsh during most of the year and, 

 wherever it penetrates, tuberculous patients feel worse. This is par- 

 ticularly true of the neighborhood of San Francisco. From the 

 summit of Mt. Tamalpais, elevation 2,375 ^^et, on almost any sum- 

 mer afternoon fog can be seen driving in from the Pacific and 

 spreading over San Francisco Bay. As the sun descends the tem- 

 perature of the air drops, so that saturation is reached. Fog results. 

 Now on the southern California coast the cold, ocean atmospheric 

 currents contain much less actual moisture than the warm, clear air 

 on shore and the resultant mixture will now contain less water than 

 the warm air did before and hence it is claimed with reason that 

 notwithstanding the dripping roofs and wet pavements, there is less 

 absolute moisture in the air than before the fog appeared. 



We did not find the California fog either so cold or chilling as we 

 have observed it on the extreme eastern coast of Maine ; nor is it so 



