280 MONSOONS AND TYPHOONS. [Cnuar. XV. 
times for weeks together, rises in the morning, runs 
his course, and sets again in a clear and cloudless 
sky. 
The prevailing winds blow from the south-west 
from the end of April to the middle of September ; 
during the remaining portion of the year they are 
northerly and easterly: thus forming what are called 
the south-west and north-east monsoons. These 
monsoons blow with great regularity in the south 
of China, but are more variable towards the north. 
Tn the latitude of Chusan or Shanghae, although 
the monsoons prevail, the wind, not unfrequently, 
blows from other quarters. In the end of thesummer 
season, that is, from July to October, the country 
is frequently visited by those dreadful gales called by 
foreigners typhoons., The name is a corruption of 
the Chinese word Ta-fung or “ great wind.” These 
storms commit the most fearful ravages both by 
land and sea. The barometer gives warning some 
hours before the gale commences, and, therefore, 
foreign ships can always send down their masts 
and yards, and, if possible, remove to a safe an- 
chorage. Where that is not to be had, they have 
the dreadful alternative of standing out to sea. 
The Chinese, without the aid of the barometer, can 
always tell when the Ta-fung is coming on by the 
following signs. The wind, which blows from the 
south-west in the typhoon season, changes and 
blows from the north or north-east, becoming gusty 
and gradually increasing in strength, the sky 
_ lowers and looks wild, the sea rolls in upon the beach 
