an ellipse a square, an oblong, or any figure, be it never so irregular?
The trade-winds answer, showing the equatorial calm belt—an oblong—as their place of meeting. They neither revolve nor blow at right angles, with the line of their direction from the place of low barometer; but they blow as directly for it as the forces of diurnal rotation will allow. But the cyclonologists, instead of permitting the wind at the distance c'' sometimes to blow to the east, and at d to blow to the north, merely because there is a low barometer east of c'' and north of d, require it always so to blow because, by their theory, there is a low barometer east of d and south of c''! Thus, to reach its theoretical place of destination, the wind must blow in a direction at right angles to that destination! It would require a rush of inconceivable rapidity so to deflect currents of air while they are yet several hundred miles from the centre of gyration. Moreover, the two cyclonologists, c'' and d, would differ with each other as to the centre of the storm. Each at first would assume that the wind was blowing about him in the direction of the curved arrow c'' and d. As the place of low barometer travels towards B, the hauling of the wind would be according to the theory at c'', but against it at d. The cyclonologist in d would place the centre of the storm to the eastward of him, as in the direction of d, but the other would place it to the southward of him, as in the direction c' . By the rule, ship d would be led towards the real track of the storm, i. e.,
into danger, and ship c'' away from it.[1] From all this it would appear that the cyclone theory is defective in this: when the wind hauls in the storm, the sailor who is contending with it, lacks a rule by which he may know the influence which causes it to haul. The gyrating disc of a cyclone can never, I apprehend, exceed a few miles in diameter. On shore we seldom find it exceeding in breadth as many rods, in most cases not of as many fathoms, as its advocates give it miles at sea. I think the dust-whirl in the street is a true type of the tornado (cyclone) at sea.
- ↑ Sec letter to Commodore Wullerstorf, p. 457, vol. ii., 8th ed., Maury's Sailing Directions.
