356 Oil the Gales of the Atlantic States. 



angles to the mountains and the coast. The dryness of our 

 norih-west wind maybe ascribed not only to its coming from 

 the frozen zone, where cold deprives the air of moisture, but 

 jikcvvlse lo the circumstance above sucrsested, that the air of 

 the ocean is nc,l like that of the Gulf, forced back over our 

 Ijeads to deh)ge us with rain. 



Otiier important applications may be made of our chem- 

 ical knowledge. Thus in the immense capacity of water for 

 heat, especially when vaporized, we see a great magazine 

 of nature provided for mitigating the severity of the winter. 

 To cool this fluid, a much greater quantity of matter must 

 be equally refrigerated. Aqueous vapour is an incessant 

 vehicle for conveying the caloric of warmer climates to 

 colder ones. Mistaking the eifects for the cause, snow is 

 considered as producing cold by the ignorant; but it has 

 been proved that as much heat is given out during the con- 

 densation of aqueous vapour, as would raise twice its weight 

 of glass to a red heat. Water, in condensing from the aeri- 

 form state, will raise ten times its bulk one hundred de- 

 grees. The quantum of caloric which can raise ten bulks 

 one hundred degrees, would raise one bulk one thousand 

 degrees nearly (or to a red heat visible in the day) and this 

 is independent of the caloric of fluidity, w^hich would in- 

 crease the result. 



Further, the quantum of heat which would raise water to 

 lOOO, would elevate an equal bulk of glass to 2000. Hence 

 we may infer, that from every snow, (here is received ttvice 

 as much caloric as would be yielded by a like stratum of 

 red hot powdered glass. 



It is thus that the turbulent wave, which at one moment 

 rocks the mariner's sea-boat, on the border of the torrid 

 zone, transformed into a cloud and borne away towards the 

 arctic, soon after supports the sledge or the snow-shoe of 

 an Esquimaux or Greenlander j successively cooling or 

 warming the surrounding media, by absorbing or giving out 

 the material* cause of heat. 



