58 PHILOSOPHY OF STORMS. 



cloud; but, eventually, a larger and darker cloud would 

 descend, and result in forming the visible spout, as above 

 mentioned." 



One spout passed within sixty yards of the ship, and, 

 after having been visible more than twenty minutes, at the 

 distance of about three hundred yards, its lower part be- 

 came smaller, and then gradually rose, until entirely lost in 

 the cloud, part of which still hung over them. Soon after 

 this, several severe flashes of lightning struck near the ship, 

 and the rain began to fall in large arid very cold drops, per- 

 fectly fresh- 



85. I come now to a most important part of this investi- 

 gation, the north east storms of the Atlantic States. It is 

 well known, since the days of Franklin, that these storms 

 commence in the south west, and travel towards the north 

 east with a velocity which varies at different times and 

 places, and that the wind always blows from some eastern 

 point at the commencement of the storm. 



Mr. Redfield, of New York, has collected a great many 

 highly interesting facts connected with these storms, of 

 which some of the most important shall now be detailed. 



" When a storm commences within the torrid zone, it trav- 

 els west of north until it reaches lat. 30, when it has be- 

 come nearly north ; it then gradually deflects more and more 

 east of north, until about lat. 40, it is moving about north 

 east. 1 That these storms are probably nearly round, vary- 

 ing in diameter, and more slow in their advance along the 

 coast, in proportion to their size, and also slower in low lat- 

 itudes than in high." I have found that, on their north 

 western side, the wind sets in more northerly and changes 

 round during the storm by north, and on the south east side 

 of the storm the wind sets in at the commencement more 

 easterly and south easterly, and changes round by the 

 south, on the coast of the United States. 



1 Perhaps to the east, or south of east. 



