October 24, 1888.] 



Garden and Forest. 



411 



with Ferns, and for shaded places nothing can be better. The 

 Fern family is very large, but its members are usually con- 

 genial, and harmonize well together. It is an interesting fact 

 that each town has a predominant style of gardening and win- 

 dow-gardening. Every one apparently follows the hrst strik- 

 ing example, and this emphasizes the importance of a good be- 

 ginning. If the local florist makes a tasteful display, or some 

 of the pioneers in planting give object-lessons in simplicity 

 and naturalness of material and arrangement, the town will 

 show this influence for years in attractive streets and lawns. 



In London more good taste is displayed in the arrangement 

 of window gardens than in any city or town I have ever 

 visited. The first thing that attracts attention is the contrast 

 of positive, well-defined colors ; the ne.xt is the plainness of 

 the boxes that contain the plants. These are conspicuous for 

 what they do not show— color ; in fact, they are made to hold 

 the plants, and not to be seen. The plants principally used 

 are the Paris Daisy \ChrysantIiemumfruiescens), Shrubby Cal- 

 ceolaria and some semi-doulile scarlet Geranium. The ar- 

 rangement is quite simple. Usually there is an outer row of 

 the Yellow Calceolaria ; through the centre are, say, three 

 scarlet Geraniums ; the remaining room is filled with the 

 Chrysanthemvmis. For window gardens, as well as for pot 

 plants, the English florists grow the Chrysanthemum to per- 

 fection ; they keep it dwarf and stocky, which is done by cut- 

 ting well back when young, and never advancing the plants to 

 a pot more than six inches in diameter. Occasionally a little 

 Lobelia may be seen in some of their arrangements, but this 

 only tends to intensify the other colors, making each more 

 prominent. 



These boxes are simple and inexpensive, and for effect 

 nothing can surpass them. All the plants are not only 

 adapted to the purposes for which they are used, but suc- 

 ceed admirably in their climate, making a cheerful contrast 

 to the soot-colored houses. The use of these boxes is very 

 general ; in some of the streets nearly every house has its 

 window-garden or box of flowers ; 1 noticed many houses in 

 which every front window had its flower-box. Flowers are not 

 confined to the balconies of the great houses. In the humbler 

 houses of the middle and lower classes the windows are 

 bright with bloom. Only a few plants are seen in any one 

 house, but wherever seen, the Chrysanthemum is the pro- 

 minent plant, and, as there grown, a better need not be looked 

 for. ' C. L. Allen. 



The Rainfall on the Plains. 



'X*0 demonstrate satisfactorily the occurrence of changes in 

 ■'■ climate is one of the difficult problems of meteorology, 

 yet widespread beliefs in the occurrence of such changes have 

 become prevalent in this country, and are firmly held by large 

 numbers of the people. 



Of such generally accepted beliefs is the one prevalent inCon- 

 necticut — that the spring is much later than it was a half cen- 

 tury ago. The older farmers relate that when they were boys 

 it was customary to begin planting corn on the day following 

 General Training day, whereas, now, this stage of the farm 

 work is delayed by the prolonged winters to a much later date. 



A similar popular belief in a climatic change, current west 

 of the Mississippi, is that their rainfall is increasing, and the 

 cause of this increase is attributed to the extension of cultivation. 



The widespread prevalence of this general impression is of 

 itself an interesting and important fact, and claims the most 

 respectful attention. For, if founded in accurate, although not 

 on instrumental, observation, it will have a raison d'etre that 

 will go far to establish its truth. My own inquiries, however, 

 have shown that, in general, the current belief in an increase 

 of rainfall does not rest so much on observation as on a falla- 

 cious argument. Based upon the reports of early explorers, 

 all the country west of the Missouri was believed thirty years 

 ago to be a "Great American Desert," in which agriculture 

 would always be impossible because of the insufficiency of 

 rain. Eastern Kansas was then settled, and yet, for the first 

 ten years, few believed that the frontier of settlement could 

 ever be extended west of Topeka. 



The stream of immigration, however, has pushed westward, 

 and, as yet, no absolute limit has been reached. Holding to 

 the essential truth of their old assumption, the older settlers 

 explain tliis westward advance of agriculture as having been 

 rendered possible by an increase of rainfall gradually produced 

 by the tillage of the soil and the growing of trees. But this 

 argument is fallacious because of its defective premise. The 

 possibilities of the covmtrv for agriculture were underestimated 

 by reason of the lack of the proper experience for forming an 

 opinion. Cultivation has greatly added to the economy of the 



rainfall, and has rendered possible the growing of crops on 

 previously barren ground. Growth of grasses, tree planting, 

 the prevention of disastrous prairie fires and general cultiva- 

 tion — these are the agencies that have wrought a change in the 

 conditions of agriculture in Kansas. 



All tlie change that has taken place may have been effected 

 without an increase in rainfall of a single inch. The evidence 

 of a change in the amount of rainfall cannot be concluded 

 from changes in agricultural possibilities that have been 

 brought about by an indefinite number of interacting causes, 

 but must be based on direct and trustworthy observation. 



The observational data available as evidence on the subject 

 are very meagre, but confiicting views as to the conclusions to 

 bederivedfromthem have been abundant. Duringthepastyear 

 especially there has been an active revival of interest in the 

 question, and a galaxy of eminent writers has taken part in 

 the discussion. 



Llpon the negative side of the question relatively litfle has 

 been written, and for the reason, no doubt, that the burden of 

 proof rests with those who believe in the increased rainfall. 



Ex-Senator Dorsey, in the North American Review, says : 

 " Nothing is more idle than the talk that can be heard on all 

 sides respecting the rainfall increasing within what is known 

 as the arid region. The rainfall has been accurately recorded 

 as far back as 1847 at Fort Riley, Kansas; Fort Bent, Colorado; 

 Santa Fe, New Mexico ; Fort Bridger, Wyoming, and Salt Lake 

 City. These records show that fliere has been no increase 

 whatever in the past forty years. 



" I challenge those who persist in claiming that what is now 

 known as the arid region will sooner or later become produc- 

 tive by the natural rainfall to show a single instance anywhere 

 on the surface of the earth where such a result has been at- 

 tained. There has been no such climatic change on this or 

 any other continent." 



The five stations quoted by ex-Senator Dorsey as exhibiting 

 no rainfall, are, however, with exception of Fort Riley, and 

 perhaps Fort Bent, quite outside of the district over which 

 the increase is generally believed to have taken place, and 

 so are not pertinent evidence in the case. The observations at 

 Fort Riley extend back to 1854 (not 1847), and exhibit an in- 

 crease of two inches in the average annual rainfall of recent 

 years over that of the first decade. 



A similar conclusion to that of Mr. Dorsey has been pre- 

 sented by the eminent geographer, Mr. Gannett, in a recent 

 article in Science, which has already received notice in the 

 columns of this journal. He divides the observations from 

 each of twenty-six stations (mainly in Kansas and Nebraska) 

 into two equal terms, and adds the yearly rainfalls in each 

 term separately. These two sums show no appreciable dif- 

 ference, whereupon he concludes that the observations show 

 no increase of rainfall. This method pursued by Mr. Gannett 

 might easily fail to show an increase of rainfall even if one ex- 

 isted. One-half the stations have short series of from three to 

 twelve years in length, while the remaining are from twelve to 

 twenty-eight years. If there has been an increase of rainfall 

 it is to be discovered by separating the observafions so that 

 each portion shall cover different periods of time. Thus, if it 

 is desired to ascertain whether the rainfall has been greater 

 during the past ten years than during the period from 1840 to 

 1850, observations taken recently must be compared with those 

 taken during the earlier period. 



It is difficult to see how the mixture given by Mr. Gannett 

 can possibly throw any light on the subject. 



Mr. Charles Francis Adams, in the New York Nation, and 

 General Greely in Science, are each disposed to believe that the 

 rainfall has increased, but do not give any reasons that can 

 properly form the basis of an argument. General Morrow, in 

 an address on October 5th, 1887, at the Sidney Fair, advocated 

 the popular view of an increase of rain due to cultivation, 

 with the following argument: "I have always thought that 

 there was an abundance of moisture in the clouds of the inte- 

 rior section of the country, but that conditions favorable to its 

 precipitation in the form of rain and dew were wanting. The 

 eartli and the sky are reciprocal in their relations. They give 

 to and take from each other. A parched desert having noth- 

 ing to give in return receives no moisture from the passing 

 clouds." 



This is an attractive, poetical view, but it can be considered 

 as a valuable argument upon the question only after it has 

 been shown to have a rational, physical foundation. 



The most valualjle contribution of the year, in my opinion, 

 is that by Professor Harrington, in the American Meteorological 

 Journal for December, 1887. A careful comparison of the 

 rainfall charts, based on the recent Signal Service observations, 

 with the charts contained in Blodgett's "Climatology of the 



