16 Eleventh Memoir on the Law of Storms in India, [No. 157. 



Extract of a letter from Capt. Durham, of the Barque Col. Burney 

 to his owners dated, 28th December, 1843. 



Messrs. Apcar and Co. 



Dear Sirs, — I beg to report the arrival of the Col. Burney here 

 yesterday, after a passage of 33 days from Rangoon. I have lost main 

 and mizen-masts by the deck during a heavy gale in Lat. 6° N., 

 Long. 85° E., the vessel was thrown on her beam-ends; to save ship 

 and cargo I cut away my masts, when she righted with 7 feet water 

 in the hold. Your obedient servant, 



(Signed,) R. B. Durham. 



Report from Kayts, Ceylon , forwarded by Capt Biden. 



My Dear Captain Biden. — You will no doubt have heard of the 

 gale we have lately experienced down here ; and as it was evidently 

 one of the rotatory description I send you an account of it, supposing 

 that any information on this subject will be interesting. It appears to 

 have travelled in a W. S. Westerly direction, the Southern portion of 

 the circle passing over Kayts, Delft island and Paumbum: At Manar, 

 although the weather had a wild appearance, it was not felt at all. I 

 was myself at Paumbum at the time, where I noted the changes closely ; 

 but at the other places, the variations may not be so correct : still they 

 are sufficiently so to trace the track of the gale. To begin then with 

 my windward station, Kayts. 



It commenced here from the N. W. about noon on the 1st; increas- 

 ing in violence till 6 p. m. of the 2d, between which and midnight 

 it blew with great fury, accompanied by a very heavy fall of rain. 

 On the morning of the 3d it shifted to W. S. W. strong, and by noon 

 moderated at South. 



At Delft island on the 1st the wind which had been moderate all 

 day at N. W. freshened towards evening from the same quarter, and 

 gradually veered round to between W. N. W. and W. by S ; at which by 

 6 a m. on the 2d it was blowing a heavy gale. This continued all that 

 day and night till 11.30 a. m. on the 3d when the wind suddenly 



