THE RAIN MAN.

Temuka Leader, Issue 10284, 14 January 1922, Page 4

THE RAIN MAN.

SURPRISING NEWS FROM CANADA. HATFIELD FUFILS HIS CONTRACT WITH FARMERS. RAIN AT £SOO AN INCH. (From the Children's Newspaper). The surprising news comes from Toronto that Hatfield, the rainmaker who contracted to induce rain to fall at Medicine Hat, has fulfilled his contract and earned £2OOO. No rain fell in Medicine Hat in May or early June, but four inches have fallen since Hatfield set up his towers, and everybody is satisfied. Hatfield is to contract for next year. We have been sceptical of this queer experiment, and we therefore gladly print the following account of Hatfield and his work from facts given in Everybody's Magazine, and we are persuaded to wish somebody would invite Hatfield to bring his towers to England. The Pacific coast insists on calling Hatfield a rain-maker, and Mr Hatfield says they may call him that if thev like, but he will not answer. FIRST SUCCESSFUL EXPERIMENT. Mr Hatfield, who lives in Los Angelos, California, has been steadily persuading obstinate rain-drops to drop for more than fifteen years. His first experiment was conducted on his father's ranch in San Diego County, California, in April, 1902, and Was followed immediately by a light fall of rain when there had been none for weeks. Other tests gave him fifteen successes and one failure. Mr Hatfield has now made over 500 demonstrations and his disappointments have been few. His contracts are always "No rain, no pay," and they have been for amounts ranging "from 50 to 10,000 dollars. The territory he has covered extends from Central Texas to Dawson i City in the Klondike. The ranches 'of the San Joaquin Valley, Cali--1 fornia, negotiated contract renewals for his services for eight consecutive years. In the summer of 1906, Hatfield was called to the Klondike. The miners around Dawson City lacking water for washing their gold-bear-ing gravel, offered him a bonus of 10,000 dollars if he could bring the district a good drought-breaking rain. The test began on June 11, and continued to July 20, during which time over four inches of rain were recorded, the greatest the vicinity had ever experienced during this season. In March, 1912, for 4000 dollars offered by ranches and businessmen, the Rain-man engaged to fill the huge reservoir owned by a co-oper-ative company at Hemet, Riverside, County, California. Less than two .inches had fallen in this valley in 11 months, and the reservoir was nearly dry. Day after day clouds had formed overhead only to drift away without releasing their moisture. Two days after Mr Hatfield began operations, however, there was a rain that yielded nearly two inches. He continued his demonstrations for several days more, and when he removed his towers the rainfall had totalled 11.79 inches. The water in the reservoir rose 22 feet. His greatest success, measured by inches of rainfall was at San Diego in January, 1916. The city and much of the surrounding farm land depend on the great Morena reservoir for water, and the reservoir was nearly empty. It had never contained more than a third, of its capacity since it was built many years before. A contract was made with, Mr Hatfield to fill it to overflowing within a year, the amount offered for accomplishing the feat was 10,000 dollars to be paid by the citv. Hatfield got busy, and within a few days it began to rain. The start was somewhat mild, but soon there came a real downpour; in a day and a night the fall reached the terrible total of over 16 inches, and in less than 27 days the reservoir was filled to a point where the water rushed over the top of the high dam and formed a raging river. In some parts of the district the fall in these 27 days was over 4 0 inches. It was not a case of the country going wet where it had been dry for months, but a genuine flood. What is Mr Hatfield's method then? It is really very simple. "There is no magic in it," he says, "it is only scientific. The problem involved in the production of rain by artificial means resolves itself into localising the ever present air-bore moisture and condensing it to the point of precipitation. To accomplish this I use certain chemicals, the character of which must naturally remain my secret. T work from towers 35 feet high, on which I have great evaporating tanks. The fumes of the chemicals, by means of the heat I use, are mixed with the air, which results in what you may term an overturning of the atmosphere. This first produces cirrus clouds, the fore-runners of rainclouds, and in a short time these cirrus clouds develop into the nimbus or rain-clouds. Yes, it is all verysimple. I do not. bombard the heavens, nor do 1 trust to luck. You can understand that, luck is not going to favour a man 500 times running." In the old days, Hatfield was an agent for sewing machines, but nearly every night he spent delving into the mysteries of the clouds, Ihe air strata, and all the queer habits of the realms above. The problem of inducing rain first troubled his niincl during California's drought years of 1597 to 1900. During these years there was hardly any rain in Southern California, and great suffering resulted. Yot clouds and fogs were common, though for some reason the over-hoped-for rains -were withheld. All this set Hatfield wondering whether it would not be possible to j lend Nature a hand, and the answer 1 he says is yes. ' A HIGH AT'THOKTTV'H I OPINION. LOOKS ON HATFTELD'S WORK AS A SCIENTIFIC JOKK. A gentleman in this district who takes a deep interest in this matter, forwarded the copy of the above article to a high authority as regards weal her matters, and asked for his opinion, Tills is it : "I'nd November. 1 !»2 1 . "In reply to your letter of the Ist inst., 1 have not seen the "Children":! Newspaper for August, containing a report of Hatfield's experiments. lie has b'-en compounding chemicals for a number of years. anil induced some, farmers in Ameica to lielii \e Hint he produces rain. [ can oril l ' -egard it as a scientilie joke, by which only ignorant people can be deluded. A chance rainfall over a wide area, in which he happened to he carrying on his experiments last. year, gave him a new lease of life just, as a few lucky hits in "Old Moore's Almanac" still maintains its reputation as a reliable w-ather forecaster! lam unite aware that rainfall and drought are burning questions in .South Canterbury, but no amount of experiments can .-liter tinclimate.. All our eriorts should he directed to mnlc s ! 1 " a '-Heni Hie in- \ o-u irnf jep v-ith '■(■;■.■)rri to tho rainfall aad its irregularities."