138 
SKETCH OF THE PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY &C„ 
with the circumstance of their having only been observed within a 
short distance from the shore, induces us to believe that the peculiar 
sensation which they occasion (differing from that caused by the pro¬ 
per hot winds of India) is owing to their meeting the cold and damp 
nocturnal atmosphere of the Peninsula, which absorbs their caloric 
rapidly. Hence the feeling of warmth appears to be limited to a 
short distance from the sea. In the interior of Singapore they do 
not appear to be felt. In the band over which they extend, all the 
hollows having elevations between them and the sea, and even the 
leeward sides of hills near the beach, have the proper land tempera¬ 
ture. The sudden change of sensation in passing from the sheltered 
to the exposed places, as a person may repeatedly do during a morn¬ 
ing’s ride, is very striking. Towards morning the difference be¬ 
tween the temperature of the land, and that of the sea, atmosphere, 
is at its maximum. After sunrise the temperature of both is raised 
and equalized, and the contrast gradually ceases. 
