354. Mr. Redfield's Rej^y to Dr. Hare, 



suits*; while Mr. Espy and Dr. Hare have each in turn ad- 

 vanced his theory of tornadoes and storms, founded on a priori 

 reasoning or speculation, and on alleged deductions from 

 phsenomena observed. Hence, perhaps, originates this fourth 

 attempt, from one or other of these sources, to discredit the 

 results of my principal inquiries; being, however, the first 

 from Dr. Hare. 



Moreover, I have sometimes ventured to offer summary 

 sketches of other results or conclusions which seemed to follow 

 from the above-mentioned and other developments, which came 

 under notice in pursuing my meteorological inquiriesf- These 

 sketches or conclusions were given, partly as notijicationss and 

 partly because I was not willing it should appear in after years, 

 that such results or conclusions as I have noticed had been 

 overlooked in conducting my examinations. These inceptive 

 statements seem to have occasioned many of the strictures 

 and criticistns which I am now to notice. 



Dr. Hare says, that my " idea that tornadoes and hurri- 

 canes are all whirlwinds, involves some improbabilities," and 

 that it requires, that " during every hurricane there should 

 be blasts of nearly equal force coinciding with every tangent 

 which can be applied to a circle," and that " thirty-two ships, 

 equidistant from the axis of gyration and from each other, 

 should each have the wind from a different point of the com- 

 pass with nearly equal force." The only modification he ad- 

 mits, " is that resulting from the progressive motion which 

 tends to increase the velocity of the wind " on one side, " and 

 to diminish it upon the other." 



I could never have imagined that any "idea" of mine ne- 

 cessarily involved the conditions here specified ; and if the 

 fact be such, Dr. Hare would have rendered some service by 

 making it manifest. The modification admitted by him, vi- 

 tally important as it is, shows only one of the conditions which 

 would doubtless prevent any such perfect symmetry of results 

 as he demands ; to say nothing of the practical error of sup- 

 posing that the course of the wind in a whirlwind must coin- 

 cide with the tangents of a circle. He alleges also, "that as 

 respects any one station, the chances would be extremely un- 

 favourable that the same hurricane should twice proceed 

 from the same quarter." If by this is meant that the changes 

 , of wind at any one station in the same gale are not likely to 



* See Silliman's American Journal of Science, vol. xli. (July 1841) 

 p. G9-77- Journ. Frank. Instit., vol. iii., third series, p. 40-49; also 

 this Journal for January 1841, p. 20-29. 



t See Silliman's Journal, xxxiii. 50-65; also various incidental re- 

 marks and statements in other papers. 



