30 Fifteenth Memoir on the Law of Storms. [Jan. 



Vessel standing from 3£ knots to the E. S. E. to 8 knots to the N. E. 

 b. E. 



Mth April— -2 A. m. wind W. S. W. ; Bar. 29.58; Simp. 29.60 ; 

 Ther. 81|-° ; daylight fresh gale, S. W. by S. 8 a. m. South ; 9, S. West- 

 erly. Course from N. E. to N. \ E., 8 to 9 knots. At 8 a.m. set the 

 main topgallantsail. Noon fresh gales ; Lat. 10° 20' N. ; Long. 75° 5' 

 E. p. m. ship running 11 and 12 knots to the N. N. W. ; wind S. b. 

 W. ^ W. ; strong gales, thick weather and furious squalls. 



18th April. — To noon, ship running as before, 1 1 and 12 knots to the 

 N. N. W. and N. W. b. N. ; 2 a. m. in maintop gallant sail ; by day- 

 light passed the Mermaid with ensign inverted ; threatening weather and 

 all the glasses falling ; but their register lost. Noon, gale increasing ; wind 

 marked S. E. at 1 1 a. m. Noon Lat. ascertained from Capt. McGregor's 

 log 14° 10' N. ; Long. 72° 59' East. Gale increasing to an extraordinary 

 degree, maintopsail blew away ; kept the ship before it. p. m. cut the 

 foresail from the yard ; foretopsail blew away ; at 0.30 p. m. ship 

 broaching to, cut away the mizenmast and kept her before it. Blowing 

 a hurricane, maintopmast blew away, foremast bending* to its force ; 

 1 p. m. foremast went and a furious gust blew away the mainmast near 

 the deck. The quarter boat blew away, the large cutter flying across 

 the poop. The violence of the wind indescribable, every thing exposed 

 to its fury being blown away. The poop ports having blown in the 

 violence of the wind blew down the Cuddy bulkheads, destroying the 

 Barometers and every thing in all the cabins ; a very high sea on, cover- 

 ing the ship with spray. The ship labouring excessively and every 

 thing on all the decks adrift and destroyed, cargo as well as stores, as 

 far as could be seen ; crew unable to stand on their legs or to hear one 

 another, and exposed to great danger from the stunning force of the wind. 

 The fore and main and mizen masts got under the ship's bottom, at the 

 same time, endangering the rudder ; all violently tearing off the copper. 



At 2 p. m. the wind, which had been for the last half hour inde- 

 scribably furious, fell suddenly calm ; but the Sympiesometer indicated 

 no favourable change, continuing as low as 28.08. During the calm 

 got the whole of the wreak cut clear away; ship covered with 



acquatic birds, thousands of them dying on deck. 4 p. m. the hurricane 

 that had died away at E. S. E. commenced with equal violence at 



* This is a remarkable indication of the extreme fury of the wind. It would appear 

 from what follows that both (sound) masts were blown out of the ship while scudding 12 

 knots ! The expressions usel are those of the log'* 



