Rear- Admiral FitzRoy on Meteorological Telegraphy. 405 



nity, though not so well for distant places, maybe very useful as well 

 as interesting; while to an unprovided or otherwise uninformed 

 person, an idea of the kind of weather thought probable cannot be 

 otherwise than acceptable, provided that he is in no way bound to act 

 in accordance with any such views against his own judgment. 



Like the storm-signals, such notices should be merely cautionary 

 — to denote anticipated disturbance somewhere over these islands — 

 without being in the least degree compulsory, or interfering arbitra- 

 rily with the movements of vessels or individuals. 



Certain it is, that although our conclusions may be incorrect, our 

 judgment erroneous, the laws of nature and the signs afforded to man 

 are invariably true. Accurate interpretation is the real deficiency. 



Seamen know well the marked characteristics of the two great 

 divisions of wind in all parts of the world, and do not care to calcu- 

 late the intermediate changes or combinations to two or three points. 

 They want to know the quarter whence a gale may be expected, 

 whether northerly or southerly. 



Every seaman will admit that, however useful, and therefore 

 desirable, it would be to know exactly the hour of a storm's com- 

 mencement, as our acquaintance with meteorology does not enable 

 such times to be fixed, the next best thing is to have limits assigned 

 for extra vigilance and due precaution, which limits are clearly stated 

 in all the printed popular instructions to be from the time of hoisting 

 the signal until two or three days afterwards . 



But, say some, and justly, are ships to remain waiting to avoid a 

 gale that, after all, may not happen ? Are fishermen and coasters to 

 wait idle and miss their opportunities ? By no means. All that the 

 cautionary signals imply is: — "Look out." "Be on your guard." 

 " Notice your glasses and the signs of the weather." " The atmo- 

 sphere is much disturbed." 



Many remarkable cases have occurred which show the value of 

 such warnings or cautionary notices. Some have been published in 

 newspapers, and need not be repeated ; others have been communi- 

 cated only by private letters ; and one or two of them may be men- 

 tioned now as instances. 



Admiral Evans wrote that on one evening, after a warning had 

 been given at Liverpool, such a sudden (though brief) storm swept 

 over the Mersey as would have done much harm had not the harbour- 

 master made due preparations because of the signal. 



A gentleman intending to cross the Irish Channel with an invalid 

 lady was warned to wait, though the weather then looked beautiful in 

 London. That night it blew a " hurricane " on the west of Ireland, 

 and a gale in the Irish Sea which lasted the following day. 



Three ships of war were lying in Plymouth Sound ready to sail 

 for the West Indies. They waited two days, being cautioned, and 

 then put to sea in the intervening lull (as it happened) between two 

 gales, the first of which was blowing while they w r ere detained ; and 

 the second was a violent cyclone that crossed France, the Netherlands, 

 and Denmark, of which the northern semicircle swept our south and 

 south-eastern coasts, but was just avoidedhj Her Majesty's squadron, 



