﻿METEOROLOGICAL 
  CONDITIONS 
  AND 
  THE 
  CHINCH-BUG. 
  

  

  183 
  

  

  of 
  eastern 
  Kansas, 
  in 
  which 
  section 
  Lawrence 
  may 
  be 
  fairly 
  considered 
  as 
  a 
  

   representative 
  station. 
  

  

  One 
  feature 
  consists 
  in 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  only 
  about 
  one-ninth 
  of 
  the 
  annual 
  

   precipitation 
  occurs 
  in 
  the 
  winter 
  months. 
  In 
  the 
  Eastern 
  States 
  the 
  amount 
  

   of 
  rain, 
  including 
  melted 
  snow, 
  is 
  nearly 
  as 
  large 
  in 
  winter 
  as 
  in 
  each 
  of 
  the 
  

   other 
  seasons. 
  In 
  Kansas, 
  which 
  has 
  less 
  rain 
  in 
  winter 
  than 
  any 
  States 
  in 
  the 
  

   Union 
  except 
  Minnesota 
  and 
  Nebraska, 
  the 
  apparent 
  deficiency 
  is 
  abundantly 
  

   made 
  good 
  by 
  a 
  more 
  copious 
  supply 
  of 
  rain 
  in 
  spring, 
  summer 
  and 
  autumn 
  

   than 
  is 
  received 
  by 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  other 
  States. 
  

  

  The 
  distribution 
  of 
  rain 
  through 
  the 
  months 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  is 
  highly 
  conducive 
  

   to 
  agricultural 
  prosperity. 
  Beginning 
  with 
  January, 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  average 
  

   precipitation 
  is 
  reduced 
  to 
  its 
  minimum, 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  constant 
  increase 
  in 
  the 
  

   average 
  for 
  each 
  month 
  until 
  June, 
  when 
  the 
  rainfall 
  reaches 
  its 
  maximum 
  

   and 
  begins 
  to 
  decline, 
  each 
  succeeding 
  month 
  showing 
  a 
  decrease 
  in 
  the 
  av- 
  

   erage 
  amount 
  until 
  the 
  minimum 
  is 
  again 
  reached, 
  in 
  January. 
  It 
  is 
  rarely 
  

   the 
  case 
  that 
  the 
  monthly 
  rainfall 
  during 
  the 
  growing 
  season 
  departs 
  from 
  the 
  

   normal 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  extent 
  as 
  to 
  seriously 
  injure 
  the 
  staple 
  crops. 
  

  

  During 
  these 
  24 
  years 
  of 
  observation, 
  there 
  have 
  been 
  only 
  two 
  drouths 
  ex- 
  • 
  

   tending 
  over 
  the 
  entire 
  State 
  of 
  Kansas. 
  These 
  were 
  in 
  1874 
  and 
  1890. 
  

  

  This 
  table 
  also 
  indicates 
  the 
  existence 
  of 
  a 
  rainfall 
  cycle 
  of 
  about 
  seven 
  

   years 
  in 
  duration, 
  each 
  septennial 
  period 
  including 
  two 
  or 
  more 
  consecutive 
  

   years 
  of 
  precipitation 
  above 
  the 
  average, 
  and 
  a 
  similar 
  series 
  of 
  years 
  of 
  pre- 
  

   cipitation 
  below 
  the 
  average. 
  Thus 
  the 
  years 
  1868-1869, 
  1876-1878, 
  1883- 
  

   1885, 
  and 
  1888-1891 
  exhibit 
  an 
  excess 
  of 
  rain, 
  while 
  the 
  intervening 
  periods 
  

   exhibit 
  a 
  deficiency. 
  It 
  will 
  be 
  observed, 
  however, 
  that 
  the 
  drouth 
  of 
  June 
  

   and 
  July, 
  1890, 
  occurred 
  in 
  a 
  year 
  when 
  total 
  rainfall 
  was 
  above 
  the 
  average. 
  

   The 
  failure 
  of 
  the 
  corn 
  crop 
  of 
  1890 
  was 
  caused 
  by 
  a 
  rain 
  deficiency 
  in 
  mid- 
  

   summer. 
  

  

  TABLE 
  XIV. 
  Rainfall 
  for 
  24 
  years 
  at 
  Lawrence, 
  Kas. 
  

  

  