Page:The National Geographic Magazine Vol 16 1905.djvu/63

Rh have been made daily throughout the year, besides special warnings of gales, cold waves, frosts, heavy snows, floods, etc., which have been issued for the benefit of commercial and agricultural interests. Forecasts are issued, moreover, for the first three days out of steamers bound for European ports. The river and flood service had several opportunities to demonstrate its usefulness and growing efficiency, and owing to the advices and warnings of the Bureau the dangers of the great ice gorges in the Susquehanna, Allegheny, and Ohio rivers were much minimized.

The national weather and crop bulletins were issued from 143 section centers. Besides the extensive distribution of the forecast cards, over 5,000 railroad stations have been supplied with bulletins, and the Bureau has availed itself extensively of the rural free delivery and the rural telephone system, so that forecasts are quickly disseminated throughout a large territory at a minimum of expense.

The main building of the Weather Bureau Observatory at Mount Weather, Va., has been completed, and the phys- ical laboratory to be erected in another year is being planned. When the equip- ment is ready apparatus will be utilized to explore the atmosphere to altitudes of from 3 to 10 miles.

During the year arrangements were perfected for a generous increase in the number of daily telegraphic weather re- ports, and the Secretary reports several submarine cables laid. The Weather Bureau has now t 58 stations completely equipped, while 130 steel towers with improved equipment for displaying storm warnings are now installed along the shores of the Great I^akes and the Atlantic and Pacific seacoasts.

Besides safeguarding the live-stock industry at home, the department is fostering the foreign trade. The total export of animal products in the past fiscal year exceeded $223,000,000. The total inspections for export were — for cattle, 790,496 ; for sheep, 534,850 ; and for horses, 3,293. There was a great increase in the number of cattle and sheep exported, but a considerable re- duction in the number of horses. The loss on cattle in transit to British ports was but 0.17 per cent, and on sheep 0.94 per cent. Clearances of vessels carrying live stock numbered 774. The inspection of import animals calls for the utmost vigilance in order to pre- vent the introduction of animal diseases. Importations of pure-bred animals were light, but a very large number were imported from Mexico for breeding purposes.

Inspection of animals and their products was maintained at 51 establishments in cities. Of ante-mortem inspections about 65,000,000 were made and of postmortem 40,000,000, an increase in both cases over the previous year. The micro- scopic inspection of pork is restricted to that destined for countries requiring it, and the number of carcasses inspected in 1904 was 313,445, of which 2,643 were found to be trichinous.

Preliminary steps have been taken to conduct feeding and breeding experiments in several states looking to the development of breeds of animals suitable to our conditions of climate and soils and capable of meeting the demands of commerce at home and abroad.

The spread over several of the mountain states of a cattle mange required vigorous intervention by the department. It was necessary to detail a large force of experts to supervise the dipping of the herds in order to eradicate the parasite. Cooperation with most of the states has been arranged, and the rest promise to secure state legislation to compel all flock and herd masters to clean their stock.