C L O 
C L O 
begun (o ccndenfc, do not continue to do fo till ‘they at 
lait fall to the ground in the form of fain, or fn'ow. It 
is now known that a reparation of the latent heat from 
the water of Which vapour is compos'd, is attended with 
a condenfation of thay vapour in fome degree; in fuch 
cafe, it will firft appear as a linoke, mill, or fog : which, 
if,interoofed'between the fun and earth, will form a cloud ; 
and, the fame caufes continuing to operate, the cloud will 
produce rain or /now. It is however abundantly evident 
that ionie other c^iule belides mere heat or cold is con¬ 
cerned in the formation of clouds and the condenfation 
of atrnofphei icnl vapours. This caufe is efteemed in a 
great meafure the ele&rical "fluid ; indeed eleClricity is 
now fo generally admitted as an agent in all the great 
operations of nature, that it is no wonder to fin’d the for¬ 
mation of clouds attributed to it; and this has accord¬ 
ingly been given by Beccaria as the caufe of the forma¬ 
tion of all clouds whatfoever, whether of thunder, rain, 
hail, or friovv. But whether the clouds are produced, 
that is, the atmofpheric vapours rendered vifible, by means 
of eleClricity cr not, it is certain that they do often con¬ 
tain the electric fluid in prodigious quantities, and many 
terrible and deftruClive accidents have been occafioned 
by clouds very 'highly eleClrified. The molt extraordi¬ 
nary inllance of tiiis kind perhaps on record happened 
in the ifland of Java, in the Eaft. Indies, in Auguft, 1772. 
On the eleventh of that month, at midnight, a bright 
cloud was obferved covering a mountain in the diltricl 
called Cheribcu , and feveral reports like thole ot a gun 
were heard at the fame time. The people who dwelt 
upon the upper parts of the mountain not being able to 
fly fall enough, a great part of the clofid, eight or nine 
miles in circumference, detatched itielf under them, and 
was ieen at a dillance, riling and falling like the waves of 
the fea, and emitting globes of fire lo luminous, that the 
night became as clear as day. The effe&s or it were afto- 
nifhing; every thing wasdeftroyed for twenty miles round ; 
the houles were demolilhed ; plantations were buried in 
the earth ; and 2.14.0 people loll their lives, belides 1500 
head of cattle, and a;vall number of iiorles, goats, &c. 
Another remarkable inllance of the dreadful effeCls of 
eleClric clouds, is related in Brydone’s Tour through 
Malta. It appeared on the 29th of Oftober, 1757. About 
three quarters of an hour after midnight, there was feen 
to the fouth-ivell of the city of Melita, a great black cloud, 
which, as it approached, changed its colour, till at lall it 
became like a flame of fire mixed with black fmoke. A 
dreadful noife was heard on its approach, which alarmed 
the whole city. It palled over the port, and Game firfl: 
on an Englilh Ihip, which in an inftant was torn in pieces, 
and nothing left but the hulk; part of the malls, fails, 
and cordage, were carried to a confiderable dillance along 
with the cloud. The fmall boats and feiloques that fell 
in its way were all broken to pieces or funk. The noife 
increafed and became more frightful. A centinel, terri¬ 
fied at its approach, ran into his box; but both he and it 
were lifted up and carried into the fea, where he perifiied.. 
It then traverfed a confiderable part of the city, and laid in 
ruins almoll every thing that Hood in its way. Several 
houfes were laid level with the ground, and it did hot 
leave one (leeple in its palfage. The bells of feveral 
churches,, together with the fpires, were carried to a con¬ 
fiderable diltance 5 and the roofs were demolilhed and 
beat down. It went off at the north-e'alt point of the 
city ; and, demolifliing the light-houfe, is laid to have 
mounted up into the air with a frightful noife 5. and paf- 
led over the fea to Sicily, where it tore up lome trees, 
and did other damage; but nothing confiderable, as its 
fury had been moftly fpent at Malta. The number of 
killed and wounded amounted to near 200 5 and the lofs 
of fhipping was very confiderable. 
The height of the clouds is not ufually great: the 
funnnits of high mountains being commonly quite free 
683: 
from them, as many travellers have experienced in paf- 
fing thefe mountains. It is found that the moil highly 
electrified clouds defcend 1 dwelt, their height, being often, 
not more than 7 or 8co yards above the ground ; and 
fometimes thunder-clouds appear actually 10 touch the 
ground with one of their edges : but ‘the generality of 
clouds are fufpended at the height of a mile, or little 
more, above the earth. 
The motions of the clouds, though often dire&ed by 
the wind, are not always fo, efpecially when thunder is• 
about to enfue. In this cafe they are leen to move very 
flowly, or even to appear quite llationary for feme time. 
The reafon of this probably is, that they are impelled by 
two oppofite dreams of air nearly of equal llrength ; and 
in fuch cales it Teems that both the aerial currents afeend 
to a confiderable height; for Melf. Charles and Robert, 
when endeavouring to avoid a thunder-cloud, in one of 
their aerial voyages with a balloon, could find no altera¬ 
tion in the courie of the current, though they afeended 
to the height of 4000 feet above the earth. In fome cafe's 
tiie motions of the clouds evidently depend on their elec¬ 
tricity, independent of any current of air whatever. Thus, 
in a calm and warm day, fmall clouds are often feen meet¬ 
ing each other in oppofite directions, and fetting out from 
fuch fliort dillances, that it cannot be luppofed that any 
oppofite winds are the caufe. Such clouds,..when they 
meet, inllead of forming a larger one,, become much 
fmaller, and fometimes'quite vanifli ; a circumfcance moil 
probably owing to the difeharge of oppofite eleClricities 
into each other. And this ferves alfo to throw fome light: 
on the true caufe of the formation of clouds ; for if two 
clouds, the one eleClrified pofitively, and the other nega¬ 
tively, deltroy.each other on con tad, it follows-that any 
quantity of vapour fufpended in the atmofphefe, while it 
retains its natural quantity of electricity, remains invi- 
fible, but becomes a cloud when eleClrified either plus or 
minus." The fhapes of the clouds- are alfo probably ow¬ 
ing to their eleClricity ; for in thole feafons in which a 
great commotion has been excited in the atmolphericai 
eleClricity, the clouds are feen affirming It range and 
wbimfical lhapes, that are continually varying. This, as 
well as the meeting of fmali clouds in the air, and vanilh- 
ing upon contaCl, is a lure fign of thunder. 
The ufes of the clouds are evident, as from them pro¬ 
ceeds the rain that refrefhes the earth, and without which, 
according to the prefent Hate of nature, the whole fur- 
face of the earth would become a mere defert. They are 
likewife ufefu! as a fereen interpofed between the earth 
and the fcorching rays of the fun, which are often fo 
powerful as to deltroy the grafs and other tender vege¬ 
tables. In the more lecret operations of nature too,, 
where the eleClric fluid is concerned, the clouds bear a 
principal lhare; and chiefly ferve as a medium for con¬ 
veying that fluid from the atmofphere into the earth, and 
from the earth into the atmofphere: in doing which, 
when eleClrified to a great degree, they produce thole 
terrible effeCls, as inllanced above. 
To CLOUD, v. a. To darken with clouds; to cover 
with clouds; to obicure. To make a fullen and gloomy 
appearance: 
Be not dilhearten’d then, nor cloud thofe looks. 
That wont to be more cheerful and ferene. Milton, 
To obfeure; to make lefs evident—If men would not - 
exhale vapours to cloud and darken, the cleared truths, no 
man could mils his way to heaven for want of light. De~ 
cay of Piety.—To variegate with dark veins s. 
The handle fmooth and plain. 
Made of the clouded olive’s eafy grain. Rope. 
To defame: 
I would not be a ftander-by, to hear 
My ToV’feign millrefs clouded io- Shahefpeare. 
