OCTOBEB 9, 1908] 



SCIENCE 



463 



of realizing that he is taking part in the 

 unravelling of the mysteries of the weather ; 

 and I do not think that any establishment, 

 or section of an establishment, that depends 

 upon science can be regarded as really alive 

 unless it feels itself in active touch with 

 that speculation which results in the ad- 

 vancement of knowledge. I do not hesitate 

 to apply to other meteorological establish- 

 ments, and indeed to all scientific institu- 

 tions that claim an interest in meteorology, 

 the same criterion of life that I apply to 

 my own office. It is contained in the an- 

 swer to the question. How do you show 

 your interest in the advancement of our 

 knowledge of the atmosphere? The reply 

 that such and such volumes of data and 

 mean values measure the contribution to 

 the stock of knowledge leaves me rather 

 cold and unimpressed. 



But to return to the endeavor after the 

 delicate adjustment between speculation 

 and routine, which will reduce the waste of 

 such an institution to a minimum; experi- 

 ence very soon teaches certain rules. 



I have said elsewhere that the peculiarity 

 of meteorological work is that an investiga- 

 tor is always dependent upon other people's 

 observations; his own are only applicable 

 in so far as they are compared with those 

 of others. Up to the present time, I have 

 never known any one take up an investiga- 

 tion that involved a reference to accumu- 

 lated data, without his being hampered and 

 harassed by uncertainties that might have 

 been resolved if they had been taken in 

 time. I shall give you an example pres- 

 ently, but, in the meantime, experience of 

 that kind is so universal that it has now 

 become with us a primary rule that any 

 data collected shall forthwith be critically 

 examined and so far dealt with as to make 

 sure that they are available for scientific 

 purposes— that is, for the purposes of com- 

 parison. A second rule is that as public 

 evidence of the completion of this most im- 



portant task there shall be at least a line of 

 summary in a published report, or a point 

 on a published map, as a primary represen- 

 tation of the results. Such publication is 

 not to be regarded as the ultimate applica- 

 tion of the observations, but it is evidence 

 that the observations are there, and are 

 ready for use. 



You will find, if you inquire, that at the 

 office we have been gradually lining up 

 these troops of meteorological data into due 

 order, with all their buttons on, until, from 

 the commencement of this year, any one who 

 wishes to do so can hold a general review of 

 the whole meteorological army, in printed 

 order— first order stations, second order 

 stations, rainfall stations, sunshine and 

 wind stations, sea temperatures and other 

 marine observations— on his own study 

 table, within six months of the date of the 

 observations, upon paying to his Majesty's 

 Stationery Office the modest sum of four 

 shillings and sixpence. For all the publica- 

 tions except one the interval between ob- 

 servation and publication is only six weeks, 

 and as that one has overtaken four years of 

 arrears within the last four years, I trust 

 that by the end of this year six weeks will 

 be the full measure of the interval between 

 observation and publication in all depart- 

 ments. This satisfactory state of afliairs 

 you owe to the indefatigable care and skill 

 of Captain Hepworth, Mr. Lempfert and 

 Mr. R. H. Curtis, and the members of 

 the staff of the office who work under 

 their superintendence. I need say little 

 about corresponding work in connection 

 with the Daily Weather Report, in which 

 Mr. Brodie is my chief assistant, although 

 it has received and is receiving a great deal 

 of attention. The promptitude with which 

 the daily work is dealt with hardly needs 

 remark from me, though I know the diffi- 

 culties of it as well as any one. If I spend 

 only one long sentence in mentioning that 

 on July 1, 1908, the morning hour of ob- 



