574 Researches on the Gale and Hurricane [July, 



Ath June. — Westerly winds, strong gales, vessel under courses, steer- 

 ing Eastward. During the night increasing gale, ship labouring very 

 much ; daylight the same, and weather very threatening, with a heavy 

 sea on; prepared every thing for bad weather; noon, hard gales. No 

 observation. Lat. by acct. 16° 5& N. long. 82° 58' E. 



5th June. — p. m. hard gales with drizzling rain, increasing at mid- 

 night to a hurricane from the Westward. Daylight, and till noon, scud- 

 ding under bare poles and laboring very much. No observation ; lat. 17° 

 22' N. long. 83° 44' E. by account. 



6th June. — Towards sunset hurricane abating a little; at midnight 

 moderating ; daylight under the foresail ; noon more moderate, set the 

 topsails. No observation. Lat. by acct. 18° 19'. N. long. 84° 29' E. 

 On the ^th the weather fine. 



It is clear that this vessel, being on the south side of the vortex made 

 a fair wind of the hurricane ; but the latitudes and longitudes must be 

 wholly erroneous, since, though scudding before a hurricane from the 

 Westward they give a NE. course made good along the shore ! Captain 

 Elson, of Chittagong, to whose politeness I am indebted for this log 

 and that of the " Louisa" and " John William Dare," informs me 

 that the last only is to be depended upon, as the Chittagong vessels are 

 rarely provided with good instruments or able navigators. I have how- 

 ever felt myself bound to mark the track as here given, though I think 

 it probable that on the 5th she was at least two degrees further to the 

 Eastward, and I have therefore marked also her probable position. 



The following very interesting remarks I received on the arrival of 

 the " Mobile" from the Mauritius. It will be recollected that this ship 

 was one of the outward-bound ; having left her pilot on the 23rd May. 

 I regret much that no latitudes and longitudes accompanied the first 

 letter, so that I could only mark this vessel's drift approximatively on 

 the chart as it was going to press ; for this cause too this vessel is 

 omitted upon the diagrams of the gale. 



No. 21 — Extract from the log of the ship "Mobile" on a voyage from 

 Calcutta to Mauritius, forwarded by Captain Ogilvy. 

 For several days prior to the 2nd June the weather was for the sea- 

 son of the year remarkably fine, and the wind instead of SW. was 

 veering round the compass. We had reached the latitude of 15° N. 

 long. 84° E. in seven days from the Pilot. On the morning of the 

 2nd the swell increased considerably from the South, and at noon the 

 mercury in the barometer, which had remained for some days steady at 

 29° 90', was affected, and commenced falling fast. At this time (noon) 

 we had a moderate breeze from the NNW. and the appearance of the 



