48 
The sea-breeze regularly begins in the 
afternoon, at one or two o’clock, blowing 
pretty steadily until sun-set, when it dies 
awayjgradually, and at sun-rise it is again 
perceptible, though weakly. 
When If say its influence is only felt 
ten miles inland, 1 do not wish to be un- 
derstuod that it does not extend further: 
I mean only its powerful refreshing pro- 
perties, which it loses in proportion to 
the distance from the sea, and in an in- 
verse ratio to its strength, which is not 
great. In general, it arrives at thirty 
miles distance from the sea, in the even- 
ing, and is then only agreeable by the 
ventilation it effectuates. 
In the country above the Ghauts, as in 
Mysore, the east wind prevails also in 
the afternoon, but from a period much 
earlier, or cotemporaneous with the sea- 
breeze on the coast, which renders it 
clear that this inland breeze either does 
not extend further than to the Ghauts, or 
really originates there; a point which 
deserves to be ascertained, as another 
phenomenon depends upon this circum- 
stance. 
Should the sea-breeze fail, as some- 
times happens, the land-wind decreases 
gradually until it dies away in the begin- 
ning of the night, which, en account of 
its calmiess, is dismal to a degree: next 
morning, a little motion of the air is 
vgain perceptible, but at the usual time 
the wind sets in as strong and hot as the 
day before. Every thing we put our 
hands upon is then distressing to the 
touch, which must be the case when the 
temperature of the body is inferior to 
that of the atmosphere. This we ex- 
perienced for almost a fortnight in the 
year 1799, in the Northern Circars, 
when the thermometer, at eight o’clock 
in the night, stood at 1082, and at noon 
at 112°. Shades, vlobes, tumblers, then 
very often crack and break to pieces, and 
the wooden furniture warps and shrinks 
s0 much, that even the nails fall out of 
doors and tables, &c. In their greatest 
intensity, however, I have never seen the 
thermometer rise higher than 115°, viz. 
in the coolest part of the house, though 
some say they have observed it at 130°. 
The Ghauts, and the hills at no great 
distance from them, are then seen lighted 
all night by spontaneous fires, and often 
in a very picturesque manner, 
‘Yhese illuminauons appear, in general, 
about the middle of the mountains, and 
seldom or never extend to the top or 
bottom of them, ‘They take place espe- 
Proceedings of Learned Socteties. 
- F, _—— = 
[Feb. 1, 
cially on those hills on which the bam- 
boos grow very thick, which has proba- 
bly led the natives to explain this pha 
nomenon so rationally, by ascribing it to 
the friction of these bushes against each 
other, 
Lieutenant Kater, of his Majesty’s 
12th regiment, thinks that the corky bark 
of the adenantheru pavonina, is often 
spontaneously inflamed, as he has fre- 
quently found, on his surveys, its bark 
converted into charcoal, and several of 
these trees burnt down to the roots, al- 
though they were notin the vicinity of 
any other trees. 
In Europe, I know these spontaneous 
ignitions have been much discredited ; 
and I doubt not, but should these few 
sheets ever be published, many oljec- © 
tions will be raised against what I have 
related: but I have endeavoured to state 
facts only, which a luxuriant imagination 
might have painted in more striking 
colours, but I am sure not with stricter 
adherence to truth. 2 
The lJand-winds are noted for the dry- 
ness which they generally produce on 
the face of the country, as well as on 
that of the animal creation. This sen- 
sation is particularly felt in the eyelids, 
which become in some measure quite 
stiff and painful. This is owing to the 
immediate volatilization of all humids 
that irrigate our organs, and which, in 
this particular one, probably gives rise 
to inflammations of. the eyes, so frequent 
at this time of the year.* 
The continuance of this wind causes 
pain in the bones, and a general lassie 
tude, in all that live; and in some, paras 
lytic or hemiplectic affections. Its sud- 
den approach has, besides, the dreadful 
effect ot destroying men and animals in- 
stantaneously. 
It is very common to see large kites 
or crows, as they. fly, drop down dead ; 
and smaller birds I have known to die, 
or take refuge in houses, in such num- 
bers, that a very numerous family has 
used nothing else for their daily meals 
than these victims of the inclemency of 
the season and their inhospitality. Ty po- 
pulous places it is also. not very uncom. 
* The eye-flies, so often supposed to oce 
casion it, produce a transient and sharp pain 
in the eye, but never, I believe, a lasting in« 
flammation, It is generally thought infec- 
tious, and may beso by the interference of 
the eyeeflies carrying the contagious matter 
from an affected eye to a sound one. ¢ 
. mon 
