THE MONSOON. 
9 
realized at this moment before me, and that I was 
hearing an assault of the Titans. The surf was raised 
by the wind and scattered in thin billows of foam 
over the esplanade, which was completely powdered 
with the white feathery spray. It extended several 
hundred yards from the beach ; fish, upwards of three 
inches long, were found upon the flat roofs of houses 
in the town during the prevalence of the monsoon, 
either blown from the sea by the violence of the 
gales, or taken up in the water-spouts, which are 
very prevalent in this tempestuous season. When 
these burst, whatever they contain is frequently borne 
by the sweeping blast to a considerable distance over- 
land, and deposited in the most uncongenial situa- 
tions, so that now, during the violence of these tro- 
pical storms, fish are found alive on the tops of 
houses ; nor is this any longer a matter of surprise 
to the established resident in India, who sees every 
year a repetition of this singular phenomenon. 
I have mentioned the intense loudness of the thun- 
der, but between its pauses, as the hurricane in- 
creased, the roaring of the surf was scarcely less loud, 
so that there was an unceasing uproar, which to those 
who lived near the beach was most distressing, 
though the sublimity of the scene fully compensated 
for any annoyances which were induced by this fierce 
collision of the elements. During the extreme violence 
of the storm, the heat was occasionally almost beyond 
endurance, particularly after the first day or two, 
when the wind would at intervals entirely subside, 
so that not a breath of air could be felt, and the 
punka afforded but a partial relief to that distress- 
