NOVEMBER, 1896. MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. 409 SPECIAL CONTRIBUTIONS. A N ENDEAVOR TO DISCOVER ELECTRODYNAMIC RADIATIONS FROM THE SUN. By Prof. JOEN TROWBRIDQE, Director of the Jefferson Physical Laboratory, Cam- bridge, Maass. J. Wilsing a d J. Scheiner, of the Astrophysical Observa- tory a t Potsdam, give in the Astrononbisclte Nnchrirhton, Band 142, No. 3386, a review of the various ways of detecting elec- trical waves, and conclude by a short description of the method they have adopted to detect electro-dynamic radia- tions from the sun. Passing over the elementary account of the various forms of Hertz oscillators, in which, by the way, Lebedew’s apparatus for obtaining short electric waves is de- scribed without reference to Rhigi’s earlier work in the same direction, we come to the form of apparatus which the authors used. It consists essentially of a Wheatstone’s bridge with variable contacts, the resistance of which is modified by elec- trical oscillations. This form of apparatus has been iised hy various investigators, especially by Lodge. In the hands of Wilsing and Scheiner i t was competent to show the existence of electrical oscillations arising from a source many feet dis- tant. Notwithstanding the effects of direct heat radiatims were exclnded, and also the disturbing effect of vihrations, no deflections were observed which could be attrihiited to electro-dynamic radiatians from the sun. It is doubtful if such radiations can he detected by the arrangement adopted by the authors, unless I t is made extraordinarily sensitive. In this condition it would he afected by slight jars and mechanical vibrations. One shonld repair to an isolated mountain peak to carry out such experiments. SUNSTROKE WEATHER OF AUGUST, 1896. By W. F R. PmLLIpq, M. D , iu charge of the Section of Climatology. The abnormal heat that prevailed over the eastern two- thirds of the United States during the last few days of July, and the first twelve days of Angnst, 1896, suggested to the Chief of the Weather Bureau, the propriety of studying the subject of sunstrokes, in so far as it is connected with arid dependent upon meteorologic conditions. With this object in view he directed that the following cir- cular, asking for information, be sent to different hospitals located in the affected region, and also to others from whom useful information might be secured. U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, WEATHER BUREAU, Waelinghn, D. C., A t i g ~t 2 0 , 1536. The large number of casualties reported by the newspaper press as attributed directlyito the effects of thk recent hocspell d b f weather that prevailed extensively over the country, especially the eastern part, has suggested to the Weather Bureau the propriety of studying the subject of sunstroke in so far as i t is connected with and dependent upon the meteorohpgic conditions, in order that the weather forecasts isvucd by the Bureau may, if ‘possible, he:given an.ad11itional general value. With this object in view, the Bureau would request those into whose hands this circnlar,may come to give the information, if any, in their posbession, provided for in the subioined blank as completely as practi- cable, and to return the same in the,addressed franked envelope, here- with inclosed. sufficient value, they will be published for pulAic distribution. Should the results of‘the contemplated investipat,ion be deemed of WILLIS L. MOORE, Chief of Bureau, and Acting &c.relicry of Agriculture. The information obtained seemed to be of such importance that he gave specific instructions to the writer to make com- pilation and study of the same, with the result as herein stated. In this paper and the accompanying statistical tables the term sunstroke is used to include a variety of morbid condi- tions, in accordance with the general practice of physicians, as defined by the following quot,at,ion frnni t,he article on “ Sunstroke,” contributed by Sir Joseph Fnyrer, to the work entitled A Systein of Medicine, edited Iry T. C. Allbutt: Under the designation sunstroke, heat stroke, insolation, etc., a va- riety of morbid conditions, from the simplest to the gravest, are included. However these conditions may he modified by personal suscept~ilrility, local surror~nclings, and climat.ic influences, they are essentially due to heat and are the result of direct ex osure to the rays of the sun or to a high atniospheric tenilterature in tge shade. To those unacquainted with medical aff’nirs i t may he stated that the general incli~iation ainoiig pathologists is to consider excessive atmospheric heat, n:ltura,l or artificial, as the chief extririsic factor i n the causation of sunstroke, using the term as dwve defined. As to the relative importance of the other atmospheric conditions, they are regarded as auxiliaries that may be more eficieiit a t one-time than a t another, depending upon the physical state of the individunl. The particular degree of heat that can be endured without injury or that may he required to produce snnstroke Iins not been defiiii tely established. Both will depend upon contingencies, which will be mentioned further on. It is generally accepted that the iiijurioiis action of heat is primarily exerted upon the nervous system to disarrange, in one way or another, t,he complex and nice adjustments exist- ing he tween the pliysiologic processes concerned in the pro- duction of heat and the loss of hwt. The nianifest,atJions of the inorhid etfects of heat,, as seen in sunstroke, pay he broadly divided into two categories. I n one there is a fall of the temperature of t,he body below its normal ; the skin is pale and cool aud covered, inore or less, with a clammy pers- pira.tioii. This is the general class-heat eshaustion or pros- tration. The other class is characterizecl hy a rise i n the temperature of the body shove the normal to a state of fever ; the skin is usually red, hot, and dry. .This is the general con- dition to which sonie writers would alone restrict the term sunstroke; i t is prohhly hest described as thermic or heat fever. Between these two categories there is no hard and fast line of deniarc,ation, and cases may l e seen which present some of the cliaract,eristics of each class, or which primarily fa.lling in one category suhsecluently pass over to the other. I n connectiou with the following statistics of sunstroke ca.8es and mortality, i t should be stat,ed that every effort has been made to avoid duplication of facts, and it is believed that whatever errors, if any, have crept in through this ave- nue they are too small to vitiate the general result,. Perhaps the most serious source of doubt will be found siibsisting in the matter of diagnosis; but ~~nssihle error of diagnosis is a defect inherent to all statistics dealing with disease, and which can not be avoided in the present ca.se any more than in the great number of other cases where shtistics are in- voked to throw light upon the relation of health to environ- ment. It must he borne in mind that the meteorologic data, though determined by instruments of precision can not be assumed to represent all the variations of the weather to which the human being may he subjected in the course of the day, even though both may be in the same neighborhood, be- cause meteorologic instruments are exposed under fixed con- ditions, whereas man is continually changing his local sur- roundings, and with each change either of place or occupa- tion, he alters more or less his meteorologic environment and its effects upon him. It is this difference in the circum- stances of exposure that renders it impracticable to state 410 MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. NOVEMBER, 1896 Place. Boston, Mass ............................................ Philadelphia, Pa ........................................ Baltimore, Md ........................................... Washington, D. C ...................................... Worcester, Mass.. Rochester, N. P .............................................................. Buffalo, N Y ............................................ Pittsbnrg, Pa ............................................ Cincinnatl. Ob!o ........................ .................. C!olumhus. Ohio .......................... ............ Chicago. I11 .............................. NewYork. N. Y .......................................... Brooklyn, N. Y .......................................... ............................................................... Muskegon. Mich ............ ................. St. Paul, Minn .......................................... St. Louis Mo.. .. :. ............................................................... New Orleans, La ........................................ Phtenix, Ariz ................................................... Dawn Ort Iowa ............. ............................ Iieokut, rdwa.. .............. ........................... aattandoga, l‘enn ............................................ Total .............................................. Add newspflpers ................................................................ Add special reports.. ............................................................ Total ................................................................. precisely by means of ordinary meteorologic records the atmospheric conditions actually experienced by the living being. The consideration of this, as well as other matters of a more purely physiologic nature, should prepare the reader not to expect to find any attempt made in this paper to give minute details as to the relation between sunstroke and weather. From such soiirces as were accessible to the writer there have been collected 2,038 instances of death during August, 1196, directly attrihuted to sunstroke. This large number of fatal cases was collected a s follows : 1,817 deaths reported by health officials of the cities named in Table 1 ; 207 from newspaper notices aid not included in the foregoing; 14 from special reports. Large as this namber is it must fall far short of the actual number of victims. TABLE I.-shotainng the nurnbsr of deatfbs frons aunatroke during A?rg?csi, 1696, as T e p r U d by tha hcenllh oflcic~b of emtuin cities. Week ended August- 3 8 1 5 2 2 2 9 ” E .~ ~~ ~- ~ ~ 0 64 2 2 66 11 648 €4 1 i !! 5 315 99 0 319 13 7fl I 9P 7 29 0 36 1 1 ........ 2 3 3 ........... 5 10 3 ...... 13 3 .................. 2 ................................... l i E 1 ............ 1 1 ...... 1 1 .................. 1 132 1 ............ 1 3 ...... 6 ..... 9 1 ........... 1 50 1,!?24 2% 2 1,817 W; 14 ‘7.0% 6 I73 3? ll 3lP ; 2 ...... 2 --__-- - The numher of cases of siiiistroke that clid not end fatally must have heen something enormous, but cmly a limited at- tenipt was made to collect statistics of this class, owing to the difficulty of getting satisfactory data. From illformation so far received, there have been collected 841 caws of siiiistrokp treated either in hospitals or in private practice of physicians (see Table 2). Of these 841 cases i t appears that 140, or 16.6 per cent, terminated fatally. If this mortality rate he assumed as an idex of the general mortality rate froin sun- stroke, ohtaining, in general, during this epidemic, then the 3,038 fatali ties would represent the occurrence of 12,277 caws of sunstroke of varying degrees of severity, a i d even this may he far below the truth. Tables 3 and 3 show the number of hospital cases and of deaths due to siinstroke on each clay. It will he seen from these tables that by far the greater part both of hospital cases and of deaths from sunstroke happened upon the 9th, lOth, l l t h , 12th, and 13th of August, and in the region indi- cated in the first paragraph of this paper. The period from August 9 to 13 may, therefore, he regarded as having heen in that region particularly favorable for the operation of the causes producing sunstroke, and i t may perhaps he admissihle to speak of the weather during that period as heiug “ sunstroke weather.” More than 75 per cent of the hospital cases were admitted during August 9-13, and more than 80 per cent of the sunstroke mortality that could be located by weekly pe- riods occurred during the week August 9-15. For convenience of reference the region already indicated of maximum number of recorded cases of sunstroke may be subdivided into a coastal region and an interior region, the area included in each will be sufficiently indicated by the stations selected to represent it, as shown in Tables 2,3, and 4. These tables show that a few sunstrokes occurred in the int,e- rior region on August 3 and in the coastal region on August 4, but that it was not until three or four days later that the number in either region began to assume portentous propor- tions. The last cases may be virtually said to have occurred on Aiigiist 15. The weather during the interval, August 3-15, was characterized by intense heat, which became evident in the interior region on the 4th and in the coa,stal region on the 5th. In both regions the temperature rose from 3c or 4O to loo or 1 3 O above the normal during the hottest part of the period. which was from the 8th to the 10th in the inte- rior, and from the 9th to the 12th on the coast; i t then fell during the following two days in both regions to about t.he norma,l. In both regions the absolute atmospheric humidity was considerably above the average and varied with the tem- perature, though less rapidly. On the other hand, the rela- tive humidity was suhject to frequent flnct.uations both a,bove aiid lrelow the average. The atmospheric pressure was above the averrige during the entire period. There does not appear to have heen anything characteristic about the winds, or the c1earn(?ss of the atmosphere from what is usual during pro- tracted spell8 of fair and somewhat rainless weather. At,tent,iori has I)een called to the interval from Augnst 9 to 12 as the specia.1 period of ~unstroke occurrence, and as being what the writer has ventured to call “sunstrolie weatlicr.” Takiug this period as affording a promising field for studying the causal rela,t,ions of meteorologic concli tions and sunstroke i t would appear that: The daily mean temperatures were high- est during this period, being from loo to 1 3 O above the normal in hoth regions, or, the average temperat,ure for each of these twenty-four hours equaled or esceeded the normal tempera- ture of the hottest hour of an average August day. The ab- solute humidity was greatest in both regiona during these four days, and the relative humidity was above the average in the in t,erior, hat considerably helow the average in the coasta,l region. There does not appear to he any other noticeable or characteristic meteorologic feat,ure during this period. [ AR the taldes of mean temperature and maximum tem- peratme seem t.0 be more important than those of hnmidity, wind, and rainfall, therefore, these latter are reluctantly omit,ted from the present publication.-ED.] From t,he givem tables i t must be concluded : (a ) That the number of sunstrokes follows more closely t,he excess of the temperature above the normal (see Tables 5 and 6) than it does that of any other meteorologic condi- t,ion : (h ) That the number of sunstrokes does not appear to BUS- tain any definite relation t.o the relatire hiimidity, the mrtxi- miim fatalities having occur‘reci in one region with a relative humidity al)ove t.he average, and in the other region with a rrlat,ive humidity decidedly below the average. (c ) That although the ahsolute humidity was greatest dur- ing t,he maximum of sunst,rokes, yet it does not a.ppear t,hat t,he variations influenced the ~iumber of cases. If i t be t’aken in to consideration that the maximiim quan- tity of aqueous vapor in a giveii spnce is limited by the tem- perature of the vapor, and that the relative humidity is rea.lly not a simple metwrolngic element, hut an expression of a ratio that depends on both the aqueous vapor and the temper- ature, it, would seem that the statistics herein collected con- firm the proposition t,hat sunstroke is ultimately due to ex- cessive atmospheric temperatmure. I n other Words, sunstroke will not occur unless the atmospheric temperature be mwh greater than that to which the individual is accustomed, no matter what may he the slate of the other nieteorologic ele- ments. The important point to be determined from our statis- NOVEMBER, 1896. MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. 41 1 -~ Place. ~~ Manchester, N. H ,. Rochester: N: Y. Boston Mass New H;ven,Conn NewTork,N.Y .................... Brooklyn N P NewBru&wick,N.J.. Philndelphia.Pa Washington, D.C Albany N Y Coastal group ................ Pittsburg, Pa Cincinnati,Oliio ............... Cleveland,Ohio. Detroit Micli Holland, Micii. ............... Chicago Ill ....................... Springfihd,Ill. Loulsvllle, Ky ................ Cairo Ill Handbal Mo ...................... Columbii, Yo.. Kansas City, Mo. Des Molnes, Iowa.. ........... St. Paul, Minn ................. Columbus. Ohio. Interiorgroup ............. - Raleigh. N. C Charleston, 9. C.. Mobile, Ala Dallas. Tax ........................ Pslertine, Tex. ........ 1 _- Grand total ....... 1 ~ .. ~ ~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ TABLE 2.-TlU daily number of eases of sunatrokd admitlled lo cmtuin hoyitule or in tho pracliee of eerluin plbyaieima from Auguel1 lo 2Q, iwlueive, 1896, logelher with the remlling mrlalily. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 0 1 1 f L I 3 1 4 1 5 - ~ - ~__ ~~~ - ~ ~ ............................................ 1 ...................................... 1 .... 4 5 .............................. 2 ............ ............................................. 4 8 ........................................ 2 2 3 3 9 6 12 15 49 78 ............................. 3 4 8 5 11 26 ................... 1 ........ 1 .... 3 ....................... 1 9 11 13 8 ?L 30 ..................... 1 1 2 3 0 5 1 __ - .- __-____ 2 6 22 22 39 31 97 164 ................. ___ =========== ...................................... 1 ............ 3 3 2 4 2 8 4 9 7 ..................................... 1 ....... .................................... 4 4 1 .............................................. 1 1 1 ............ 1 ................ 2 1 1 1 6 3 1 1 ........................ 1 .................... 1 2 1 .... 3 1 .... 2 ........ ........................................... 1 ............ 1 ........ 3 ................ ......................... I ........ 3 ........ 1 ................ 1 ........ .................................................... ................................ ___-___--__ 6 7 4 9 8 16 17 16 11 ............................................... 1 ............................................... ..................................................... 1 ........... 1 .......... ... ....I ................... ....I.. ...... .... G 10 9 31 30 6G 48 '112 16G ___--___-__ _ - - - - - - - __ _ -.I1 I 1 I _________. .- - qo. of eaths __ - Authority (hospital or physician). 1 3 8 a 62 2 16 ...... za 1 ...... 2 6 2 4 ...... ...... ...... ...... ...... ...... 1 1 1 ...... ...... Elliot Hospital. Albany Hospital. Homeopathic Hospital. Boston City Hospital. New Haven Hospital. Hudson Street. Roouevelt, and New Tork hos- St. Jolrn's, St. Mary'% and Brooklyn hospitals. Doctors Williamson and Smith. St. Agnes, Epi6copal. Nedico-Chirurgical, and Hairneinaun 1io.ipitals. United States Government Hospital for Insane Garfield, Providence, and Reedman'shospitals: pi t a1 Y. S. S. Huspital. United States Marine Hospltal, St. Mary's and St. Francis' Hospital. St.Alexis', St. Jolm's,and Huron Street huspitals. United States Marine Hospital. Dr. Henry Kremeis. St. Luke's, Nercy, and Michael Reese hospitals. City uhmiciau. Wabarlr EnlD Hosvital. Cincinnati hospitals. c:ity HuipitaI. Dr. W. F. Grinsted. Drs. R. H. Uodiu. S. Q. Smith, P. L. Kabler. Dr. W. A. Norris. Drs. W. 8. Wheeler, L. A. Berzer. c'. L Hall. Dr. F. L. Wells. C'ity aiid C'uuuty Hujapital. ...... ...... ...... ...... 1 140 _- . P 11 IC 27 -. ~ I6 - 4 3 6 ~ __~ 2 3 4 5 .......... 4 1 .... 6 5 1 .... 5 9 - _____ I 1 August, 1Y96. Coastal group.. ................................. (Massachusetts Cuiinwticut Rhode Island, New ' Tork. Pann&lvania. Maryland, District ol('o1umbiii. aud Virginia). Iuterior group .................................. (Ohio Kentucky Tennessee ludiana llliiois, Yichi~an.Wircousin. Minuel Rota Iowa Yin~ouri.aiidokialioina~. Total: C o a s h arid Interior groups.. ........... Newspaper clippings, health officer*' re- laorts, special reports. ph sicians and oth- er? (The information y h i i which this table is ctmyiled i5 far fruni complete J ~- 1 1 3 - 17 -F 1 3 Place. 4 5 9 11 14 15 16 0 7ti 71 74 75 i 8 78 I8 Y! e.3 YO 7H r C -., 'A. 0 75 74 7Y 2: 4 - I C 76 86 n0 SO w w) 76 71 __ 0 74 74 73 73 78 i 9 70 ilj w Iw H2 74 74 I" ~ Coaalicl rrgiorc. 0 Albany. N. T .................. .......... ?? Boston, Mass . ........................... 71 ............................ 71 New York N. T .............................. 74 Philadelplha, Pa.. .................. Washingtun, I). C .................. Chicago, I11 ... ................... I , Yt. Louis Mo . ........................... 8" Cincinnati, Ohio.. .............................. 78 Charleshn, S. C ............................... Lu Jacksonville Fla.. ........................... .' 8.6 New Orleans: La .............................. tt! Denver, Colo ................................... , , Los Angeles, Cal ............................... 70 I C Iibtesim wgioir. 3mdho.n region. Weeslrrn region. _____ I - tical tables is the atmospheric temperature that will produce sunstroke. Referring ngaiii to these talBles, i t will be observed that, for instance, in the city of Boston a number of people were prostrated and some killed by sunstroke when tlie mean tempertiture of the day rose to &!O, or 1 3 O :hove the August normal ; but there were thuusniids o f people livingthere a t the same time that were unhurt hy this high temp~rature as far as can be told ; i t is, therefore, evident that ~utiie people c a ~i with- etand a higher temperature than others ; in other words there is a personal equation to be taken into consideration. Again, i t will be seen that while a tiienn teniperature of 8 Y w m fatal or iiijiirious to a large tiutnlm- o f people i n Bostoti, yet the samr degree CJf heat is the custoiiinry Augnst temperature which tlie inhabitants o f New Orleans eiidure without mn- stroke UP any particular inconvenience. Evidently there must enter iiitu the case anothtjr factor, namely, the nccoti1- modation of the individual to average physical environment, or the cliiiintic eqnation, mid i t is apparent therefrom that 4 12 MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. NOVEMBER, 1896 TABLE G -T h cltprkrs of tli.5 daily man tSqeratur8 from the noi*mal al cmtain slntwns from August 3 lo 18 inctuaive, 1896. _- -~ Place. 1 3 4 5 6 c 8 9 I 10 11 13 14 15 18 16 17 ____ 0 0 +1 $! TF __.__ +:I $; -4 $d 1; $2 -6 -1 -6 +1 -7 +4 +c +2 +? 0 +a 0 0 i 13 $;! 10 +I2 +s +13 +10 0 0 si t; +3 -t- 3 +5 +4 +2 - +: 0 -7 -1 -5 -2 -3 - - -6 -- 5 +I +I Albany, N. T ................................... Bostou, Mass ................................. New maren Conti.. ........................... New York N. T ................................ Woshingtou, D. C .. ............................. Chioaeo. 1 1 1 .. .................................. s t . Louis. nro .................................. Ciucinuati, Ohio.. ............................. Charieston, S.C.. ............................... Jauksunville. Ha.. ............................ New Orlenoa, La.. ............................. Denver, C'olo.. .................................. Lou Angeles, C'al.. ............................. Philadelpdia, Pa ................................ Boston Mass ......................... :fl .................... w ................... 82 Iw New T h k , N. T .. Philadelphia, P a .. Waqhirigtou, 11. C ................... C'liicngo, I l l .. ......................... +l5 +l4 -2 - 78 C'inciuuati. Ohio ..................... St. Louis, Mo. ....................... .................... .................... New Orleans: L a .. ................... + 2 +2 an C'harlestnn. R. C .. Jackaonvllle Fla __ __ ~ ____ - terion iiiay be i n other cases. In the light of the data here presented for August, 1896, the al)ove rule appears t(J be an empirical one ; hit i t is hased (i n p1ausil)le hypotheses, and can be readily applied ; especially is i t oiir that adapts itself easily and naturally to every climate, ancl therefore em- bodies a t least a part of what we have called the cliinatic eclnatiun. As enunciatecl above, i t has the merit of express- ing ti relation $vi th coiisidertible prrcisioa, that may lw ex- pressed in other words as follows: Tlie liability to sunstroke increases i n proportion as the niean trmperature of the day approaches t h r iior mal m ax i UI 11111 teiii pera t 11 re fur t h n t d ay . In addition to the iufluence of heat, the statistics furnished by the hospitals and physiciaiis eiialile us to deteriniue apl~roxiiiiately the general iiiflueiice of personal 1ialJi ts, and of natj~mality and other peculiarities. instance, of the 841 cases collected in T:ible 4, the hirtory (Jf 465 :is t:i the use of alcoliolic drinks is given a s follows : Using to exress.. .......... 140 cases, or 30 per cent [Jsing motler:ttely. ......... 2:W " 60 " Using nut nt it11 ............ 95 '' 211 " -- -- Total.. .............. 4IR " 100 " History uiilrnown. ........ 3iti the temperature likely to came sunstroke varies with tho cli- mate o f the locality ; heiiw, each particular locality has foi its native or acclininted inhaI)itant a special local sunstroke temperature or mnge of temperature. As a provisional index to the " sulistroke temperature" vf each cliniate the author proposes the use of the average or nor- mal maximum daily temperature during the ~varni season of the year, and as a working hypothesis derived therefrom, sub- mi ts the following proposition : Sunstroke becomes iirimiiiriit during the siiuinier nic~ntlis, when the ineaii temperature of any one day, or of several consecutive days, I~ecomes equal, or nearly equal, to the iioriiial iiinxiiiium tenilierature for the saiiir period. The following talinlar statement shows the result of tlir app1ic:ition of this proposition to rceveral of the large cities in the coastal regioti. 1. The number of sunstroke cases admitted into the lios- pitrtls of the respective cities from the 3d to 18th of August, incliisive. The respective coluniiis show : 3. Tlie iiorxiial maximum temperature for August. 3. The consecutive dates on which the niean daily teniyra- ture for August, 1596, equaled or exceeded the ~iormal masi- iuiiui for August. 4. The nuui)~er of sunstroke cases admitted to hosl~itals during these consecutive dates. 5. The percentage of the cases adniitted on these days rrla- tivu to the total number of caws between August :;-Is, iii- clusive. I - I Station. Total ................ S-11 If the 140 deaths that occurred in these S4l cases be simi- larly classified, the reunlting figures are : Using to excess.. .......... 4 1 dentlis, or (;c) per cent. Using in04 lernt el y "'2 l d 31, " Using not :ill 7 " 11) " .......... .............. - - 'L Total ............... 74) 100 " History uiikiiuwn .......... 71) !I ' * "" 1 30 Totd ............ .:. 1-11) If these facts teach anything i t i H that the use of alcoholic Leverages in hot weather is to I N reprolmted most strenuonsly. Ta1)le 4 shows some iiitere~tiiig facts as to the iiationalities that contriliuted to thcee 841 cases, lmt i t would not be safe to argue much as to the relative liability of any natioriality to sunstroke unless we could first compare these Iiunibers FVashington ........................................... F I 111 thrse sp?cial cases, thert~fore, the nppronch of the i i i ~n i i daily temperature to the nornittl niaxiiiiiiiii trmperature \vas an excellrnt criterion of im~ieiiding danger, and i t remains for accumulated statistics to show how trnstwortliy this cri- NOVEMBER, 1896. MONTHLY WEATHER REVIEW. 413 m 5 l a " with the general distribution of population by nationalities One itetn gathered from the reports, but not shown by thiE table, is that only 15 of these cases were colored people, and the mortality among them was 2. As to sex, 100 cases were females. So far as occupation was concerned all walks of life were represented, but the greater number of cases occurred among those engaged in occupations apparently requiring physical rather than intellectual effort. TABLE 4.-Ths 841 eases of siinstroh reported from Aoepitds or pivatc practice, arranged according tc, nativity ant1 fatality ' 37 44 a4 5 0 5 3 5 0 0 0 0 United States ................ Ireland ....................... German .................... En l a d ...................... It%. ......................... France ...................... Canada ....................... Norway and Sweden Russia ....................... Poland ...................... Scotland ..................... Switzerland ................ ........ ~ 3u) 253 123 32 14 10 8 I! 5 3 Austria. ..................... 6 Denmark ..................... 2 Belgium ...................... 1 South America. .............. 2 Spain. ........................ 1 Holland ..................... 1 Australla .................... 1 Armenia. .................... 1 Greece.. ...................... 1 Unknown.. ................ 15 Total. .................. 811 - HOW THE CHINOOK CAME IN 1896. By A. B. COE, Voluntary Observer (dated I