36 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. 



In addition to the preceding table it may be repeated here, that 

 according to Dr. Childs' tables the amount of rainfall during: the 

 year ending November 30th, 1877, was 40.62 inches; for the year 

 ending November 30th, 1S7S, was 53.S7 inches. The average for 

 the ten years ending November 30th, 1878, was 42.86 inches. 



In order to exhibit the areas of certain quantities of rainfall to 

 the eye, I have constructed the following rain charts for the State. 

 The first chart gives the average rainfall during the ten years ending 

 November 30th, 1868. The second gives the average rainfall for the 

 ten years ending November 30th, 1S7S. In constructing these 

 charts I have availed myself of all the Smithsonian Reports, the 

 Signal Office Reports, and my own observations of fifteen years. 

 It will be seen that my results are very different from those hitherto 

 obtained by an exclusive dependence on the Smithsonian Reports. 

 By comparing these two maps it will be seen that there is a con- 

 stant increase of rainfall in the State. 



Chart No. 1. — This chart gives the areas where a certain aver- 

 age amount of rainfall occurred from 1859 to 1869. The rainfall 

 during the years nearest to 1S59 had less, and the years nearest to 

 1S69 had more than that indicated on the chart. In other words, 

 the amount of rainfall towards 1S69 approximated already closely 

 to that of the next period. These facts, however, cannot be ex- 

 hibited on the diagram. 



From the Missouri River in Eastern Nebraska to a line running 

 across the State from north to south, from above Dakota City and 

 near to Sioux City on the Iowa side, the average rainfall during 

 these ten years was thirty inches. From this line to another that 

 starts near the mouth of the Bow River in Cedar County, and 

 which runs a little west of south to near Kearney Junction, and 

 then southeasterly to a point on the State line half way between 

 the Blue and Republican rivers, the rainfall for the same time was 

 twenty-six inches. The next line west of this starts a little above 

 the mouth of the Niobrara, and crosses the State diagonally to a 

 point a little east of North Platte. The space enclosed between 

 this line and the preceding received a rainfall during this period 

 that averaged twenty inches. The next line west of the last starts 

 about longitude 101 , runs southwest until it strikes the Niobrara, 

 and then southerly until it reaches the south line of the State oppo- 

 site Big Springs. An average yearly rainfall of sixteen inches fell 

 here during this same period. West of this line the average rain- 



