1850.] Nineteenth Memoir on the Law of Storms. 353 



The Ship Victoria, Capt. Potter, from Calcutta bound to the 

 Mauritius, 

 Was in about 8° S. Lat. Long, about 80° East when a severe gale 

 commenced p. m. on the 15th January (apparently from the westward). 

 At midnight increasing. At 9 i a. m. a hurricane ; lost foretopmast, 

 and main mast, pumps crushed,* 1200 bags of rice thrown overboard, 

 and much other damage done. Barometer about noon 29.47 ; 29.37, 

 "Wind veered from West a. m. to N. W. at noon and to N. N. W. and 

 North. Bar. 29.38 and 29.30. By midnight Bar. had risen to 29.60 

 and 29.52; and on the 17th weather gradually moderated. 



The above is all (that is essential to our purpose) to be deduced 

 from a long account in the newspapers, which, though detailing at length 

 the appearances of the weather and the ship's disasters, does not give po- 

 sitions, wind, courses or distances, or any other data of use to us. We 

 are thus reduced to suppose that she may have been not far from 10° 

 south ; and 80° east when close to, but in the rear of the centre, 

 but this is but very vague guessing. The ship being subsequently lost 

 before she returned to Calcutta I was unable to procure her Loo*. 

 Abridged Extract from the Log of the Ship Admiral Moorsom, 

 Capt. T. McGill, from England to Colombo. Reduced to Civil 

 Time. Forwarded by Capt. Twynham. 



The Admiral Moorsom was at noon, 15th January, in Lat. 1 1° 2' S., 

 (Long, not given but about 79° east,) running to the N. b. E. with the 

 wind at S. E. and squally, with close threatening weather, the rate of run 

 is not given. 8 p. m. wind gradually veering from S. S. E. to S. S. W. 

 at midnight, being exactly south at 10. Increasing fast throughout. 



16th Jan. — At midnight the sky became very black and lowering with con- 

 stant heavy rain. The Barometer which had been gradually falling all the 

 evening now fell with alarming rapidity,f and the wind had increased to a very 

 heavy gale: kept the ship right before the wind which (a. m.) had veered to 

 S. W. Sea very high. 1 a. m. hove to, all sails blown away. 2 a. m. wind 

 W. S. W. 3, West; violent hurricane from 3 to 5; 4. a. m. wind W. N. W. 

 Sprung bowsprit and lost foretopmast. 5 a. m. wind N. W.; 6, N. W. b. W. ; 7, 

 wind N. N. W. 8, N. b. W. 9, North. 10, N. b. E. and at 12, N. E. much 

 abated ; by the evening moderate breeze at E. S. E. 



* The second instance of this most dangerous accident : See remarks in Fourth 

 Memoir, Journ. Vol. x. 



f See remark at the close of the Log. 



