486 Mr. Redfield's Reply to Dr. Hare's 



the gale of August 17th, 1830, than on its north-western side, 

 is opposed by the testimony of Captain Waterman of the 

 Illinois and by the log-book of the ship, as compared with 

 observations made at the same time on the opposite or north- 

 western side of the gale. It was on or near the central line 

 or axis-path of this storm, that only south-easterly and north- 

 westerly winds were successively exhibited ; a fact which ap- 

 pears quite sufficient to settle the main question between me 

 and my opponents. 



Dr. Hare infers that " in no case would the inner portion 

 of the south-eastern and more violent limb" of a gale or hur- 

 ricane " be beyond the cognizance of our merchants and in- 

 surers;" and then says, that "experience shows that every 

 north-easter brings in a crowd of vessels having only to com- 

 plain of the violence, not the direction of the wind" [§ 87]. 

 But do the alleged " crowd of vessels " come from for in the 

 south-eastern offing? The storm of August 17th, 1830, was 

 at New York a strong "north-easter'," and would the Illinois, 

 in the Gulf Stream off Nantucket, have found no cause to 

 complain of the " direction of the wind," if bound to New 

 York or Philadelphia? — this ship having had the wind set 

 in at "south" and veering "first to sotcth-west, then to west 

 and north-west" a "perfect hurricane !" "Experience" has 

 shown, in a multitude of cases, that in these violent gales, 

 while blowing north-easterly on our shores, the wind is found 

 more easterly, southerly, and south-westerly, in proportion to 

 the increased distance from the coast. This produces a dan- 

 gerous cross sea; and "our merchants and insurers" have, 

 unfortunately, been too often cognizant of the destructive ef- 

 fects. 



In [§ 88-91], Dr. Hare has succeeded in showing that 

 a summary passage on the phases of hurricanes in the West 

 Indies, from which he adduces an extract, is not reconcileable 

 with all the local changes in such storms, considered as mo- 

 ving whirlwinds. There are two ways, however, by which 

 this labour might have been lessened or avoided: first, by 

 quoting the next sentence, which suggests qualifications, and 

 second, by referring to the same number of Silliman's Journal 

 [vol. xxv. p. 114-121], where the phases of these gales in the 

 western Atlantic are particularly set forth, together with a key 

 for suiting these explanations to the storms while in West 

 Indian seas, viz. that in the latter region, the direction of the 

 wind, in the corresponding sides and phases of the storms, is 



forth, or in the nature of the case, that requires the wind to be stronger 

 on the " south-western " side of a storm than on the " southeastern " side, 

 but rather the contrary. 



