1874.] The Iowa and Illinois Tornado. 383 
100 feet, however, as the height, to the editor of the ‘‘ Wash- 
ington County Press.” His own delineation formed the 
belief that the height was greater than 50 feet. He could 
easily judge of the distance between the arms, but was 
very liable to be mistaken in estimating the height. The 
error, therefore, will probably not be great if we assume that 
the funnels joined together at the height of 100 feet. This 
would give these arms an inclination of 45°. 
The Direction in and the Velocity with which the Tornado 
Travelled.—F rom its starting-point on South Skunk river 
until it reached North Skunk river, a distance of 10 miles, 
the tornado travelled in an E.N.E. direction. It there 
turned a little south of east and followed the course of that 
mivet for 2 miles. It then went E.N.E. until it came to 
Rock Creek, when it turned a little west of north and 
followed the course of the creek for a short distance. It 
then travelled north-east until it ceased to touch the ground 
3 miles from Keota. After lifting itself from the ground it 
travelled about E.N.E., striking again at Westchester, 
Washington County. From this point until it reached 
Enoch Wright’s, a distance of over g miles, its course was 
nearly straight, varying between N.E. and E.N.E. Its 
course then became very crooked, bending in curves from 
north-east to south-east, and vice versd; but on the whole 
travelling east, until it came within a mile of the confines 
of Washington County, when it made a decided turn to the 
south-east. Here its path lay down the declivity towards 
the well-wooded ravine of Goose Creek. When within half 
a mile of the creek its traces became so feeble that it was 
impossible to track it further. It was at this point, within 
Iz miles of Iowa river, that the crookedness of its path 
reached its maximum within the last half mile of its career, 
before ceasing to touch the ground, as a black funnel 
at A. Davidson’s farm, Highland Township. Within this 
half mile it bent just a little to the south-east, then to the 
north-east, then to the south-east, and again back to the 
north-east, when it disappeared. 
After leaving Crooked Creek, at the commencement of 
its career in Washington County, and until it reached to 
near Goose Creek, the tornado traversed an elevated, well- 
cultivated region, almost totally devoid of trees and water- 
courses. ‘There wasapparently nothing in the configuration 
of the ground over which it passed which could account for 
its changes of direction. ‘These changes, moreover, were 
not generally abrupt, the tornado sweeping in graceful 
curves from one direction to another. It is to be noted, 
