42 



greater than at the fort, where meteorological observations 

 are kept, under the direction of Dr. McGrraw, to whom I am 

 indebted for a copy of observations kept in 1872, '73 and 

 '74 to 1st of August, 1875. The mean temperature of the 

 thermometer in the summer is less than seventy-live degrees. 

 In the warm season, it is a delightful climate, amid tine 

 mountain scenery, a portion of which resembles towers, 

 domes and precipices of more than one thousand feet in 

 height, perpendicular. In 1872, the amount of rain fall 

 there was 12.16 inches, of which more than half fell in the 

 months of July and August. In 1873, it was 17.65 

 inches, more than half of which fell in June, July 

 and August. In 1874, it was 20.11 inches, more than half 

 of which fell during the months last named. For the past 

 seven months of 1875 the rain fall was 18.38 inches, fifteen 

 of which fell in July and pjobably an equal amount fell in 

 August, about the middle of which we left that region, 

 amid rains and floods, which made the Limpia unfordable. 

 These summer rains make plenty of grass and good crops. 

 The annual rain is increasing in that region. 



The usual annual rain fall at El Paso is about 8 inches. 

 Last year it was more. At Fort Griffin, there is an aver- 

 age annual rain fall of about 20 inches. It is about the 

 same at Fort Richardson, at Jacksboro. In the north east- 

 ern part of the State the annual rain fall is about 30 inches. 

 In the southeastern portion about 40 inches. At Ringold 

 Barracks, a few miles above Brownsville, the average 

 annual rain fall is less than 20 inches. At Fort Duncan, 

 Eagle Pass, about 20 inches. At Fort Clark, average about 

 25 inches. At San Antonio, a little less than 30 inches. 

 At Austin, the average rain fall for the last five years has 

 been about 35 inches, showing an increase from the preced- 

 ing five years, when it was about 33 inches, and the 

 preceding five years still farther back, it was a little less 

 than 30 inches. This is from observations kept by Prof. 

 Van Nostrand, principal of Deaf and Dumb Asylum, at 

 Austin. 



The increased rain fall in the western part of the State 

 may be partly owing to increased area of land in cultiva- 

 tion, and also to increased growth of the mesquite and 

 other trees in the prairies. What were prairitjs fifteen 

 years ago are many of them no longer such, but covered 

 with a thick growth of mesquite (algorobia), elm (ulmus 

 crassifolia), and other trees. This may be seen on the road 



