NATURAL HISTORY. 59 



About 28 or 30 degrees on this side of the line the 

 vest winds are equally constant, and for this reason 

 the vessels returning from the West Indies to Europe 

 do not pursue the same route as in going out. 



The winds which hlow continually for some months 

 are generally followed by contrary winds, and mariners 

 are obliged to wait for that which is favourable to 

 them ; when these winds change, a calm or dangerous 

 tempest ensues for several days, and sometimes for a 

 month. 



These general winds, occasioned by the rarefaction 

 of the atmosphere, combine differently by different 

 causes in different climates. In part of the Atlantic 

 Sea, under the temperate zone, the north wind blows 

 almost constantly during the months of October, No- 

 vember, December, and January, which is the reason 

 why these months are the most favourable to embark 

 from Europe to India, in order to pass the line by the 

 favour of these winds ; and it is known, that ships 

 which quit Europe in the month of March do not ar- 

 rive sooner at Brazil than those which sail in the 

 month of October. The North wind almost continually 

 reigns during winter in Nova Zembla, and the other 

 northern coasts. The south wind blows during the 

 month of July to Cape Verd, when the rainy season, 

 or winter of these climates sets in : at the Cape of 

 Good Hope the north-west wind blows during the 

 month of September : at Patna, in India, this north- 

 west wind blows during the months of November, De- 

 cember, and January, and produces heavy rains ; but 

 the east wind blows during the other nine months. 



In the kingdom of Guzarat, and on the coasts of 

 the neighbouring sea, the north winds blow from 

 March till September; and during the other rnonthi 



