EXAMINATION OF REID'S STORMS. 269 



wind, then from the S. E., was more moderate ; but floods 

 of rain still deluged the ruins of the town, and the popula- 

 tion, who were now destitute of any shelter. At 8, A. M., 

 strong breezes blew from the E. S. E. ; after that hour the 

 dense cloud began to break up, and at 10, the sun for a few 

 moments darted its rays over a prospect of wretchedness 

 more replete with real misery and sickening to the heart, 

 than the field of battle after a sanguinary contest." 



The centre of this storm appears to have passed a little 

 to the N. of Barbadoes, and over the southern extremity of 

 St. Lucia. 



On the evening of the 10th, no unusual appearance had 

 been observed at St. Lucia ; but as early as 4 or 5 o'clock 

 next morning, the garrison, stationed near the northern 

 extremity of the island, began to be alarmed ; some hut 

 barracks blew down, and the wind was then nearly N. 



The storm was at its greatest height between 8 and 10 

 o'clock in the morning; but from that time the wind grad- 

 ually veered round to the E., diminishing in force and 

 dwindling, as it were, to nothing in the S. E., and it was 

 succeeded by a beautiful evening, with scarcely a breath of 

 wind. 



At the southern extremity of the island, the most violent 

 part of the storm is reported to have been from the S. W. 

 At St. Vincent, the garrison was at Fort Charlotte, near the 

 S. W. point of the island ; and there the wind first set in 

 from N. W., veering to W. and to S. W., raising the water 

 in Kingston Bay so as to flood the streets ; and it unroofed 

 several of the buildings in the fort, and blew down others ; 

 but at Martinique, (as will be seen from the following re- 

 port printed in the " London Shipping List " for 1831,) the 

 wind was easterly during the gale. 



"Paris, September 15, 1831. The Martial arrived at 

 Havre from Martinique ; sailed on the 15th of August. On 

 the llth of August, a gale at E. was experienced there 



