26 THE CLIMATOLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES. 



On November 4, 1870, the first weather bulletin was 

 issued. On that day twenty-four stations sent simulta- 

 neous reports to the office in Washington and the bulle- 

 tins were prepared and sent to more than twenty cities. 

 There are now nearly five hundred stations scattered over 

 the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the 

 Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. These are classed 

 as those of the first order, second order, cotton region, 

 mountain, river and seacoast stations. The main office at 

 Washington keeps a continuous record by means of self-reg- 

 istering instruments. Stations of the second order like 

 Boston and other principal points take six observations 

 and send three telegraphic reports to Washington daily 

 and one monthly by mail. Other stations take five obser- 

 vations and send three reports daily ; still others take only 

 one observation daily. The river stations report the height 

 of the water at various points on the great rivers as indi- 

 cated on a gauge which is placed on the bank and extends 

 from the extreme low water line to the danger line ; thus, 

 the central office is kept informed of the condition of the 

 great rivers and their tributaries, and is able to give no- 

 tice of any probable rise or of any approaching flood in 

 the river valleys, and river commerce is quite dependent 

 on these reports. The cotton region stations, numbering 

 between 100 and 200, take one observation, daily at five 

 p. M. The seacoast stations take various observations, in- 

 cluding the character of the waves, or the approach of 

 swells which indicate the presence of a storm at sea and 

 are often forerunners of cyclones coming up the coast. 

 These stations also work in connection with the life-sav- 

 4ng stations and are connected by a coast telegraph Hue and 

 with the central office. 



Storm signals were first displayed on October 24, 1871, 

 a red flag with a square black centre by day, and a red 



