PORTER'S JOURNAL. 
31 
searching, and as I have not, after an experience of several years, 
discovered any bad effects from it, and have from that or some 
other cause been so fortunate as to have healthy crews, I am 
determined not to discontinue that mode of fumigation, until I 
am convinced by facts that the practice is prejudicial. 
Being now in the latitude of 4° north, we begin to experience 
slight variations in the trade winds, hauling from the N.E. to 
E. by S. and in intervals heavy showers of rain, of a few minutes 
continuance ; but we were not able to catch any water, although 
our rain awning was kept spread for the purpose. We also had 
some distant lightning to the southward, and sometimes the rain 
was accompanied by a little increase of wind, but more frequently 
calms ; but little change was perceived in the temperature of the 
air ; and the clouds continued to hover over and obscure the sun. 
We have not seen, since we left the Cape de Verds, any appear¬ 
ance of that weed, commonly known in America by the name of 
the gulf-weed ; nor have we perceived any other kind of weed 
floating on the surface of the sea, or any birds that could lead us 
to suppose we were in the neighbourhood of such places as they 
generally resort to. The only fish that came near the vessel 
were a few porpoises, and of them we did not succeed in strik¬ 
ing any. 
On the 8th, in lat. 3° north, we began to experience the S.E. 
trade winds; and a considerable change took place in the tem¬ 
perature of the air, as the thermometer fell to 82°. In the 
afternoon we saw several of those birds called sheerwaters ; 
but as they are to be met with, at times, in every part of the 
Atlantic, I did not consider their appearance as a certain indica¬ 
tion of the vicinity of land, although by our calculation we sup¬ 
pose ourselves to be only about 40 leagues from Penedro d,e St. 
Pedro. I this day caused the crew to be paid in cash for the 
amount due them for the stoppages of provisions. 
It has excited much astonishment among seamen why the 
temperature of the air should be so much warmer to the north¬ 
ward of the line, at all seasons of the year, than at the southward, 
and that the N.E. trades should always be met in a northern 
latitude, particularly when the sun is in his highest southern de- 
