Page 99 - James Rodger Fleming - Fixing the sky

3.3 International Congress on Hail Shooting, 1901

the barrel to act as rifling, giving the discharged gases and smoke a distinct rota-
tion and a whistling sound, said to be effective in agitating the air (figure 3.3).
Stiger erected lines of small huts overlooking his valley, with the funnels of the
hail cannon protruding through their roofs. They were spaced about half a mile
apart and were located along ridgelines. These “hail forts” were staffed by a small
army of officers, artillerists, and signalmen who systematically fired at the clouds.
The huts served the dual function of getting the shooters a bit closer to the clouds
and keeping them and their powder dry so that firing could proceed even in the
pouring rain.
A number of sentries occupied mountain watchtowers during hail season.
Their assignment was to sound a warning so that the artillerists could break up the
ominous calm before a gathering storm. The forward sentry was the town’s tele-
graph operator, who kept a magnetic dip needle in his office. When the instru-
ment behaved erratically, its agitation was taken as an indication of the presence
of great electrical tension in the air. Messages from nearby towns might also warn
of advancing storms. The telegraph operator spread the warning locally by first
hoisting a red flag, which alerted carriage operators and other drivers to keep a
tight rein on their horses in anticipation of the coming barrage. Then he fired a

82 | rain fakerS