Futility Closet

In 1915 San Diego hired "rainmaker" Charles Hatfield to relieve a four-year drought. After he set to work with his 23 secret chemicals, the skies opened and torrential rains caused some of the most extreme flooding in the city's history. In this week's podcast we'll discuss the effects of "Hatfield's flood" and ponder how to assign the credit or blame. We'll also puzzle over why a flagrant housebreaker doesn't get prosecuted. Sources for our feature on "moisture accelerator" Charles Hatfield: Garry Jenkins, The Wizard of Sun City, 2005. Cynthia Barnett, Rain: A Natural and Cultural History, 2015. "Hatfield Made the Sky Fall (and Fall)," Kingman [Ariz.] Daily Miner, Nov. 14, 1978. "Hatfield Again Gambling Upon Making of Rain," Berkeley [Calif.] Daily Gazette, Jan. 29, 1926. "Rainmaker Wins Bet With Farmers," Ellensburg [Wash.] Daily Record, July 28, 1921. "With the Rainmaker," Dawson [Yukon] Daily News, July 4, 1905. "Rainstorms at $50 Each," St. John [New Brunswick] Daily Sun, March 8, 1904. This week's firs