THE WEATHER PROPHECIES (?) OF VENNOR. 629 
Would it not seem that if he Avez anything about the weather, he would not 
only be able to tell for every day in the year, but for every locality—say for every 
square of fifty or a hundred miles—and able to tell it every time. What would 
the public think of a doctor who was only able to treat a few of the most difficult 
complaints and quite ignorant of the human system and the great majority of the 
ordinary diseases which afflict the human race? Able to treat severe cases one 
day and unable to treat them the next? It would seem that if a doctor was able 
to treat phthisis and typhoid fever, he would know a little about measles and be 
able to treat patients for boils and colds. It would seem queer if a person 
regarded as a scholar knew only a few ‘‘big words” and was quite ignorant of 
the ordinary words used in every day life, and only knew these ‘‘ big words” at 
times. What would we think of a person who pretended to be a teacher of 
geography and could only impart information in regard to a few of the largest 
rivers and mountains of the world, and knew nothing about the geography of 
every-day life ?—would not know in which direction to travel to reach Chicago, 
St. Louis or New York? It is impossible to imagine such a teacher holding any 
rank in society or commanding any influence among his fellow men. 
What would the captains of the ocean steamers think of a man who pretended 
to tell them what kind of weather they would have every voyage? ‘To be sure, 
a person might make a study of voyages and the months of the year and venture 
a guess, but even then he would be no wiser than the captains and their crews. 
No captain would be foolish enough to put faith in such forecasting of his voyage, 
for he knows very well that, though the voyages of the same seasons may resem- 
ble each other, they are not wholly alike. But if he could have daily commu- 
nications from all about him while on the voyage, and from day to day, or at 
times, receive information for three or four days in advance, he would have 
something that would be of advantage to him. But this, at least at present, is 
impossible to have on the sea, but its equivalent we do have on the land. We 
have stations all over the country. The information is collected at a central 
point and then distributed over the whole country for the benefit of all. This 
‘information can only be gathered from day to day—it cannot be gathered in 
advance; still oftentimes we have the weather for three or four days ahead quite 
well defined or indicated. This does not always happen and cannot be depended 
upon, neither can dependence be placed in the idea that it will repeat itself; for 
it never wholly does so. It may in part, but if we cannot have it complete, what 
use is there in a mere similarity in parts? The dissimilarity of other parts will 
change the face of the whole. ‘This fact is evident every day. We often times 
have a weather map similar for different days, but the dissimilarity makes quite 
another thing of the weather of the United States as a whole. 
Because it was reported that Mr. Vennor ‘‘ prophesied’’ that we were to 
have an immense snow storm generally over the United States on the 22d of De- 
cember, the storms that have passed over the country from the 16th to the end of 
December are credited to him. ‘The storm of the 17th was telegraphed over the 
