LABORS OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE. 171 



evidence in my possession, not yet published, that torna- 

 does or land spouts, in this latitude, have nearly one uni- 

 form direction, towards E. N. E. These facts, in connex- 

 ion with the known uniformity of nature, in other depart- 

 ments of science, render it highly probable that other storms, 

 and even common rains and snows, are governed in their 

 motions by some uniform laws. 



The state of Pennsylvania, acting through the intelli- 

 gence of her legislature, has granted to the committee the 

 means to investigate those storms which may come within 

 her borders. It is confidently hoped, that in a few years, 

 from this aid alone, much Ifght will be thrown on all those 

 storms, of such moderate size, that, in passing through the 

 state, their borders are within the reach of our observers. 



The great interests of navigation and commerce, however, 

 require a much more extensive system of simultaneous ob- 

 servations, than the one now about to be organized in this 

 state. Many storms, and those of the most interesting and 

 important kind, are quite too large to be embraced within 

 the bounds of a single state, and of course, neither the 

 shape, nor size, nor velocity of such storms, can be ascer- 

 tained by observations in Pennsylvania alone, however 

 carefully those observations may be made. 



Besides, even if it should be discovered, in a few years, 

 that the same season in different years, will exhibit storms 

 of similar character in Pennsylvania, it would be unsafe 

 for the mariner, in a different latitude, to infer that he 

 would ' meet with precisely similar phenomena, on the 

 occurrence of a storm at sea. 



The great interests of navigation and commerce, then, 

 seem to require, that a much wider range of observations 

 should be established, than the territory of Pennsylvania 

 can furnish. 



The great north east winter storms which traverse our 

 continent, will require for their complete investigation, a 



