The work of the Central Office of the %Aeather Bureau is divided between several ap propriate divisions, the chiefs of which direct their various branches under the supervision of the bead of the whole service. The Forecast Division receives and charts the telegraphic re poets that are sent in twice daily, and several tunes a day from restricted areas when danger ous conditions arc imminent. It issues all the more important warnings for the whole coun try. To facilitate getting to the public the forecasts in the shortest possible time, dis uses forecasters receive full sets of reports at Boston, Chioago, New Orleans, Denver, San Francisco and Portland, Ore., and simulta neously with the Central Office, make and dis tribute forecasts for definite districts, but these district centres are instructed from Washington aids regard to each of the important warnings disseminated. Certain river centres issue fore casts of the daily stages of the rivers in their = Live s of the Central forecasters at all of the import sat cities issue forecasts for their vicinities and have freedom of expression, provided they first receive from Washington forecast each for his State. In addition to the 200 regular observa nce stations of the bureau there are some 200 sub-stations at lake and sea ports that display flags during the day and lights at night to warn mariners of storms. Special means of distribts. nos are provided so that warnings of frosts, cold waves, floods and marine storms may in each case reach all of those who may profit by thew The River and Flood Division has charge of the work of that part of each local station that collects information as to precipitation and amount of snow and ice on the ground throughout the water-sheds of the principal risers, and the measuring of the height of streams. For this purpose, in addition to 48 full stations, where gauge readings are made, there are over 250 special stations that measure only the height of rivers and 74 that measure • rain f The duties of the Division of Agricultural %necrology is to supervise the work of 3.000 voluntary or co-operating observers, who serve without pay and render reports of temperature, precintation and other miscellaneous meteoro logical and climatic data which are published in the Monthly Weather Review. There is thus being collected a large amount of data that is available for the discussion of climate in its relation to man from either a hygienic or a commercial viewpoint. During the seasons of planting, cultivating and harvesting, weekly re ports of weather conditions and their effects upon various crops and farming operations are included in both the national Weekly Crop Bul letins and in 42 section bulletins. This divi sion controls the distribution of the forecasts and warnings issued by the Forecast. Division.
The Instrument Division is charged with the examination, testing, comparison, installa tion and maintenance of the instrumental equip ment of the bureau.
The Division of Meteorological Records has charge of the compilation of meteorological and climatic statistics and their application to the various needs of commerce, courts of law and individuals.
The Division of Barometry and Aerial Ex ploration has charge of the exploration of the upper air by means of kites, balloons, theodo lites and nephoscopes. It studies the technical problems of air pressure and vapor-tension.
There are also the Publications, Tel and Supplies divisions, the duties of indicated by their respective titles.
The observation instruments consist of standard wet, dry, maximum and minimum thermometers and the mercurial barometer, for measuring temperature and pressure, with wind vane and anemometer for wind direction and velocity. Most stations are also equipped with
self-registering instruments that record con tinuously the fluctuations in pressure and tem perature, velocity and direction of the wind and the Dumber of hours of sunshine. An automatic raingauge also registers the time of beginning and ending of precipitation, together with the amounts that occur.
The telegraphic circuits are so arranged that at any station those reports are taken off that are used in making charts and forecasts at that station. The observation messages take pre cedence over all others and the eBxiency of the telegraph companies is such that within an hour after the observations are taken they all have been received at Washington and other stations.
The press associations receive the foretaste as soon as made and immediately furnish them to the papers to whom they reader service. They are also telegraphed to Chambers of Commerce, or delivered by messenger from the local office of the bureau to the commercial associations and marine agencies, where they are posted on bulletin boards. Before the more important commercial exchanges an observer of the bureau each morning draws the weather chart in different colored chalks, on a glass map of the United States of about 8 by 12 feet. The principal stations of the bureau are equipped with plants for the printing of the daily weather map and forecast cards, which are distributed by messenger and post. The fore casts are also telegraphed to a large number of postmasters, who stamp them on cards that are mailed to surrounding towns.
For a number of years the bureau main tained at Mount Weather, Va., a research station, through the work of which the United States co-operated with other nations in the gaining of useful information of the great ocean of air above us. Up to 1912 the records of the world were broken at this institution, altitudes of four and one-half miles being at tained with kites carrying self-recording in struments and balloons ascending to over 19 miles. The latter was accomplished by send ing instruments and balloons to the far west, where they were liberated, the instruments descending to the earth farther east under para chutes after the balloons had burst. The ex ploration of the upper air made by this in stitution has proved of inestimable value to our aviators during the World War, an elaborate series of observations, or deductions thereupon, covering a period of five years, having been pub lished by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics.
Further Development in Forecasting.—We reasonably may expect that it is but a matter of time and not far in the future, when enough of the observation stations of the bureau will be equipped with kites for windy days and aviators for days of moderate wind, so that there may be secured such a system of simul taneous observations as will enable the fore caster at Washington to construct a weather chart on say the three-mile level, which is about in the centre of storms, so far as their vertical dimensions are concerned. By com paring such a chart with the sea-level chart a much more accurate forecast surely can be made. At the close of the war many thousand air men were free for the development of mail, passenger and light freight transporta tion through the air. Then forecasts of the stability of the air for flight became imperative. The proposed high-level chart will render such forecasts possible. The time may be near at hand when Weather Bureau stations will dis play more warning signals from the tops of their office building and elsewhere for the bene fit of air sailors than are now displayed to ald the sailors of the sea.