SEA KOUTES, CALM BELTS, AND VARIABLE WINDS. 33^' 



stationary nodes, about wliicli they linger near tkree months at a 

 time ; and that they pass from one of thek tropics to the other in a 

 little less than another three months. Thus he would observe the 

 whole system of belts to go north from the latter part of May till 

 some time in August. Then they would stop and remain nearly 

 stationary till ^vinter, in December ; when again they would com- 

 mence to move rapidly over the ocean, and do^vn towards the south, 

 until the last of February or the first of March ; then again they 

 would become stationary, and remain about this, their southern 

 tropic, till May again. Ha\iQg completed his physical examination 

 of the equatorial calms and wuids, if the supposed observer should 

 now tm-n his telescope towards the poles of our earth, he would ob- 

 serve a zone of calms bordering the north-east trade-winds on the 

 north (§ 210), and another bordermg the south-east trade-winds on 

 the south (§ 213). These calm zones also would be observed to vi- 

 brate up and down with the trade- wind zones, partaking (§ 296) of 

 then- motions, and following the declination of the sun. On the 

 polar side of each of these two calm zones tSere would be a broad 

 band extending up into the polar regions, the prevailing v/mds 

 within which are the opposites of the trade-winds, viz., south-west 

 in the northern and north-west in the southern hemisphere. The 

 equatorial edge of these calm belts is near the tropics, and their 

 average breadth is 10^ or 12°. On one side of these belts (§ 210) 

 the wind blows perpetually towards the equator ; on the other, its 

 prevailmg direction is towards the poles. They are called (§ 210) 

 the " horse latitudes " by seamen. 



655. Along the polar borders of these two calm belts (§ 296) 

 Eainy seasons of the "^^G have auothcr rcgiou of precipitation, though, 

 tropical calm belts, generally the rams here are not so constant as they 

 are in the equatorial calms. The precipitation near the tropical 

 calms is nevertheless sufficient to mark the seasons ; for whenever 

 these calm zones, as they go from north to south with the sun, 

 leave a given parallel, the rainy season of that parallel, if it be in 

 winter, is said to commence. Hence we may explain the rainy 

 season m Chili at the south, and m California at the north. 



656. We can now understand why the calm belts of Cancer and 

 Their position. Capricom occupy a medial position between the 



trades and the counter trades ; why, on one side of it, the prevailing 

 direction of the wmd should be polarward, on the other towards the 

 equator ; and we also discover the influences which determme their 

 geographical position ; for :— 



z 2 



