6 BULLETIN 698, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
exceeds 30 inches, in 1905, when the total precipitation was 32.3 
inches. The mean annual precipitation in this 12-year period is 24.1 
inches. The third and final period covers the 10 years from 1907 to 
1916, inclusive. Here, again, the annual precipitation has been com- 
paratively low. Only twice in these years has it exceeded 20 inches. © 
The lowest record is 11.2 inches, in 1910, and the highest 27.7 inches, 
in 1915. The mean annual precipitation in the period is 18.7 inches. 
Of course, these records cover far too short a period in which to 
prove the occurrence of cycles in rainfall or other climatic factors. 
DISTRIBUTION OF DAILY AND MONTHLY RAINFALL. 
The figures representing the total annual or seasonal precipitation 
may easily be misleading, especially to a person who is not familiar 
with this section of the country. This is due to the irregular distri- 
bution of summer rainfall in time and extent, to the varying quan-— 
tities deposited by different showers, and to the manner in which it 
falls. The nature and distribution of the raimfall will be better under- 
stood by a study of the data in Table II, containing the records of 
daily precipitation, with monthly totals, throughout the 10 years 
from 1907 to 1916, inclusive. The monthly precipitation and its 
departure from the normal are summarized in Table IV. 
TasBLe II.—Daily and monthly precipitation at Amarillo, Tex., during the 10-year 
_ period from 1907 to 1916, inclusive. 
[Data (in inches) furnished by the observer of the United States Weather Bureau at Amarillo, Tex. 
T. = trace.] 
Date. | Jan. | Feb. | Mar. | Apr. | May. | June. | July. | Aug. | Sept. | Oct. | Nov. 
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