No. 14. [From The Times, December 25, 1883.] 



THE SUNSETS OF AUTUMN, 1883. OBSERVED 

 AT SEA IN THE CABLE-SHIP "DACIA" 1 



So many letters have appeared in The Times describing 

 recent sunsets that they now form a valuable repertory of 

 observations, among which I hope the following may be 

 fortunate enough to find a place. 



During the months of October and November I was cruising 

 among the Canary Islands and in the waters between them and 

 the south-west coast of Spain. These months are considered 

 to be the rainy season of the islands, and this year it was a 

 reality. Consequently on many days the sunset was obscured 

 by clouds, and on many more by the high land which 

 lies to the westward of nearly all the anchorages in the group. 

 Occasionally, however, it was unobscured by either cloud or 

 land, and then its brilliancy was such as to defy description. 

 On the 27th October especially, when the ship was approaching 

 the island of Lanzarote from the westward, the sun set almost 

 immediately behind the Peak of Teneriffe, which, though 115 

 miles distant, was as clearly and sharply defined as if it had 

 been only ten miles off. I will not attempt to describe the 

 colours of the sky, except to say that they graduated from a 

 delicate violet near the zenith to a deep and intense scarlet on 

 the horizon. Looking towards the west, and therefore towards 

 the shaded sides of the waves, the sea looked dark against the 

 illuminated sky; turning towards the east, the reverse was 

 the case the sea was blood red and the sky pale. 



Leaving the islands and approaching the coast of Africa, 

 the weather was bright and clear, and every successive evening 

 showed a more brilliant sunset. It is well known that the 

 prevailing wind in these regions the north-east trade wind 

 blowing over the sandy deserts of Africa, carries much of the 

 dust out to sea, and there are many instances of it having 

 1 See Contents, p. xxxviii. 



