622 A Sixth Memoir on the Law of Storms in India. [No. 127. 



of them. The winds marked in these ships' logs* both place the 

 centre to the N. E. b E. of them, and as we have no cross bearing 

 by which to lay down the distance of it, we can only do so by judg- 

 ing of the force of the wind, and its veering ; which with the ship 

 farthest to the Eastward, the Ganges, (for we have not the log of 

 the Coutts for this day, though we know she was in company with 

 the Ganges) was not quick ; the wind having remained about N. W. 

 by N. from midnight. Allowing then for the ship's drift, and for 

 the increasing violence of the storm on the 22d, I have placed the 

 centre at noon this day in latitude 17° 36' N. longitude 118° E. 



For the 22d, we find, that to midnight on the 21st, and to 5 a. m., 

 on the 22d, and with the Ganges and Coutts, the wind held steady to 

 the N. W. when it drew round to West and S. W. at noon. The log 

 of the Bombay Castle shews nearly the same veering, but that of the 

 Camden, marks the wind at West at 1 a. m. ; and the Bombay Castle, 

 from her coming up to N. N. W. at 3 a. m., appears to have had the 

 wind also not far from West at this time, though both ships' logs 

 agree nearly enough at noon ; when the Camden seems to have had it 

 S. W. by S., and Bombay about S. W., Ganges about S. W. and 

 Coutts S. S. W. as far as can be judged from their logs. The drift of 

 these two last vessels is laid down for the twenty-four hours between 

 noon, 21st and 22d in the Ganges' log, which is most carefully kept,t 

 as S. E. by E. \ E. fifty miles. 



* I may notice here in strong corroboration of many of my remarks in these 

 memoirs, the difficulty of analysing a storm from the direction of the wind considered 

 as a tangent line to the supposed circle of it, and the ship's position as the point at 

 which the tangent touches the circle. Thus we have, in the logs of the Camden and 

 Bombay Castle, within three miles of each other, the wind marked as follows : for the 

 21st Camden at 2 a.m. N. N. W., Bombay Castle at 3, N. N. W. Camden at 

 3, N. W. by N. Camden at 9, N. W. by W. ; at 11 N. W. Bombay Castle at noon 

 N. W. by N. and at 1 p.m. N. W. by N. Camden at 1 p.m. W. N. W. Bombay 

 Castle (hove to) at 6, wind N. W. and so forth. It is clear that these variations arise j 

 partly from carelessness, and partly from errors in judgment in such severe weather. I 

 I shall perhaps be told here that I am looking for mathematical exactness where none j 

 can exist. I am, I own, seeking for all the exactness which can be obtained, and I t 

 desire that all our evidence should be fairly brought forward on this most important 

 question, that it may be impartially weighed by all as well as by ourselves, and that we 

 may not be said to have assumed any thing without giving our grounds for so doing. 



f With the exception of the direction of the wind which is very frequently omitted I 

 either in the log, or by the copyist. 



