CHAPTER IX 

 WEATHER 



There is a good reason why we talk so much about the 

 weather. In no other form do the forces of nature affect 

 us more. Even in this age, when we have harnessed so 

 many of nature's forces to do our bidding, weather still 

 influences our daily actions to a great extent. It is per- 

 fectly natural for us to gaze up at the skies in the morn- 

 ing, or at night, so that we may know what weather to 

 expect on the morrow. 



Climate, or the customary weather, determines largely 

 where man lives, the kind of house he builds, the clothes 

 he wears, the crops he raises, his occupation, his sports 

 and recreations, and even his disposition. 



Weather seems the most changeable thing in this con- 

 stantly changing earth. No two days anywhere are ever 

 exactly alike. Weather "blows hot" and "blows cold" in 

 the same day. Brilliant sunshine often is quickly followed 

 by cloud, by rain or hail and thunder and lightning. 

 Wind, tempest, and calm alternate. Yet sunlight and 

 cloud, wind and calm, sun warmth and chill air, rain and 

 drought, freezing and thawing, are all governed by settled 

 laws. There is a reason for every change. So weather 

 merits not only our daily interest, but our careful study. 



Weather refers to the state of the atmosphere as to tempera- 

 ture, pressure, the quantity of water vapor present, the general 

 appearance of the sky, the direction from which the wind blows, 

 the frost, the dew, the sunshine, the cloudiness, and the amount 

 of rainfall. 



The weather determines and influences types of plant and 

 animal life in any locality. No grower of fruits sets orange trees 

 in a section where he knows cold weather will destroy their life, 

 or plants a vineyard where early frosts are sure to injure the 

 grapes. We have learned in our study of geography that some 

 animals thrive in a very warm region and others in a cold region. 

 The supply of sufficient food has always, in all parts of the earth, 



118 



