348 



CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



Taking into consideration the formation of the coast, 

 which, as I mentioned before, forms a plateau stretching 

 out into the ocean to a distance of about ten miles from the 

 coast, and thereby creates a shallow strip of water with a 

 depth of about 100 fathoms, while it then glides rapidly 

 into a depth of nearly 2,000 fathoms, it is apparent that 

 this marginal plateau will be the scene of this eddy current. 



It now remains to prove that the average direction of the 

 wind along the coast of California, as well as northwest of 

 our coast, is in harmony with the direction of the currents, 

 as indicated on my charts. 



H. Mohn's charts, as well as Attlmayr's, concur with 

 Maury's in giving to the winds which blow over the area of 

 the Kuro Siwo, an average direction corresponding to its 

 course, as we adopted it. They all vary in regard to the 

 direction of the wind next to the western coast of the 

 United States. We have to recur therefore to the observa- 

 tions made at coast stations of the Signal Service, United 

 States Army. Undoubtedly we can judge from these re- 

 ports with some accuracy the prevailing character of the 

 wind for the 50 or 100 miles of ocean surface adjacent to the 

 stations. 



The following table, derived from Appendix 51 of the An- 

 nual Eeport of the Chief Signal Officer for the year 1885, 

 gives the desired information. It is computed from the com- 

 mencement of observations at each station to and including 

 December, 1884: 



Stations. 



Tatoosh Island, Wash 



Canby, Fort Wash 



Cape Mendocino, Cal 

 San Francisco, Cal.. . 



Los Angeles, Cal 



San Diego, Cal 



Dec 



E 



SE 

 NW 



N 



NE 

 NE 



