1854.] A Twenty-third Memoir on the Laiv of Storms. 517 



fs, water; gale increasing to a hurricane; 10 a. m. 16 fs. water. Vessel 

 on her beam ends and settling down ; cut away topmasts and lost heads of 

 the lower masts with them ; sea rising in pyramids ; 11 a. m. had drifted into 

 12 fs. Anchored, and finally brought up in 9 fs. with two anchors. 2 P. M. 

 wind veered to S. S. W. blowing with equal force, tearing the furled sails 

 from the gaskets. 4 p. M. Bar. began to rise, but gale unabated. ; 8 p. M. 

 wind going round to the westward ; midnight gale moderated at W. S. W. 

 Bar. at 4 a. m. 29.69; at 5h. 29.65; at 6h. 2950; at 7h. 29.40: at 8h. 

 29 37; at lOh. 29.30; at 4 p. m. 29.45; at 7 p. m. 29.60; at 8h. 29.75; at 

 midnight 29.80. 



23rd Oct. — Towards morning a great deal of lightning to the S. W. Po- 

 sition about Lat. 20° 44' N. ; Long. 87° 20' East ; winds variable from West 

 to N. N. W. Bar. at 4 a. m. 29.90. 



Abridged Log, Tables, and Remarks of Mr. Branch Pilot, S. Ransom, 

 Commanding H. C. _P. V. Tayoy, in the Eastern Channel. 



We are indebted, and very greatly so, to Mr. Ransom for the fol- 

 lowing interesting documents, of which I arrange the extracts useful 

 to our purpose in a somewhat different form than that in which 

 they reached me ; and I abridge them also at times to economise 

 details. The remarks given are most valuable, and cannot be read 

 with too much attention. 



From the 6th of Oct. 1852 up to the 17th — We had one delightful spell of 

 fine weather (the Tavoy being stationed in the Eastern Channel); pleasant 

 southerly breezes and a high Barometer ; the 18th showed a decided change 

 in the state of affairs, and drew my attention to it immediately, a. m. calm^ 

 sultry, Ther. higher than usual, noon squalls from North to East with excess 

 sive heavy rain, wind unsteady, and much sharp thunder and lightning. This 

 same suspicious weather continued to increase daily up to the 20th, before 

 the glasses became affected by it ; after that the enclosed table will shew you 

 the gradual decline of them, and although the total depression was not great, 

 still the weather was for 24 hours very severe and the sea tremendously 

 high, breaking, and confused, coming principally from the S. S. E. to S. E. 

 until the wind got to the W. S. W. when it was a pyramidical mass of waves 

 running one against the other,* the weight of rain in the frequent fierce 

 squalls was beyond any thing I ever witnessed ; it was a sheet of falling water 

 "en masse." Occupying the Floating Light station (Eastern Channel) and 

 being at anchor, I had little else to do but to prepare my bark for the 

 * The wind against the track. 



