JUNE 27, 1884.] 
Water-waves from Krakatoa. 
You published, in May, a couple 
of interesting communications on 
atmospheric waves from Krakatoa. 
As the effect through the water was 
still more marked and more sharply 
defined at very great distances, I 
have made for publication, by au- 
thority of the superintendent of the 
U.S. coast and geodetic survey, re- 
duced photographic copies of the 
records of the self-registering tide- 
gauges at Kadiak, Alaska, and at 
Saucelito, near San Francisco. These 
copies cover the period from 0h. Aug. 
27, to Oh. Aug. 30, or the seventy-two 
hours during which the tide-gauges 
show, in a very marked manner, the 
effect of the Krakatoa earthquake 
upon the masses of water in the 
North Pacific Ocean. 
It is interesting to notice that the 
impact of the earthquake was appar- 
ently felt earlier and in a greater 
degree at San Francisco than at Ka- 
diak; although the former is 1,478 
geographical miles more distant, in 
a direct line, from Krakatoa. 
The observations at Honolulu, 
where the U.S. coast and geodetic 
survey has a self-registering tide- 
gauge, are expected to arrive shortly, 
and will he!p to throw more light on 
this interesting point. 
All this suggests inquiry into the 
path which the great wave pursued. 
According to the accepted theory of 
wayve-transmission in deep waters, 
the time is shortest in the most pro- 
found depths, and therefore the tidal 
register at Honolulu is Jooked for 
with great interest. There are evi- 
dently several pathways through the 
great congeries of islands north-east 
of Krakatoa, and two to the south 
of Australia,—one between Aus- 
tralia and New Zealand, thence 
through the Pacific; and the other 
east of New Zealand, and northward 
through the Pacific. (See opposite 
map. ) 
if it had been possible to maintain 
the tide-gauge at Mazatlan, it would 
have afforded very valuable informa- 
tion as to the most probable direc- 
tion taken by the great earthquake- 
wave. 
The dates upon the records are 
given for local mean solar time, ‘ civil 
account’ at each gauge. The tem- 
peratures recorded are of the water 
at the time indicated. The geo- 
graphical positions are as follows: — 
Krakatoa . lat. 6° 09.5’ S., long. 105° 27’ 
= Th. 01m. 48s. E. 
Saucelito . lat. 87° 51’ N., long. 122° 29/ 
= 8h. 09m. 56s. W. 
Kadiak . . lat. 57° 5 ~N., long. 152° 20 
= 10/. 09m. 20s. W. 
C. O. BOUTELLE, 
Asst. in charge 
U. 8. C. and G. survey, 
Washington, D.C., June 10. 
of office. 
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