The Sun.
London, England, 1846-11-20 00:00:00

RULE IN SEAMANSHIP.

The f.llowing notice was received here on Saturday
last, by a gentleman in our neighboprhood, enclosed in
letter- from his Excellency Colonel Raid, C. 8., latt
Governor of the Bermudas, now Governor of Barba
does, &c., author of the " Theory of Storms." It has
been kindly handed to us for insertion in our paper, and
we readily give it a place, as it may be of essential ser
vice to seamen sailing from our port :
Every rule applicable to ships which have become in-
volved in storms is admirable. Captain Andrews, corn
wander of the royal mail steamer Medway, on leaving
Bermuda for England on the 23d Sept., 1846, suggested
the following

By keeping the wind on the starboard quarter, when
in a revolving storm in the northern hemisphere, ships
gradually sail from the storm's centre ; and by keeping
the wind on the port quarter, when in the southern
hemisphere, ships sail gradually from the centre of a re-
volving storm.

This rule applies to three quarters of the storm's cir
de. But there is always one quadrant in a progressive
whirlwind storm, more dangerous than the ocher three,
being that over which the storm's centre passes in its
progress ; and there would be danger in applying the
rule with a ship in this quadrant.
Within the tropics, whilst the course of storms tend,
towards the west, the quadrant of greatest danger will
be on the west sides. But these quadrants will gradu-
ally change their position as the storms recurve; and in
high latitudes, as the course of the storms become east
erly so will these quadrants of greatest danger come to
be on the east side of the storm. In order to know
which is the quadrant of greatest danger, the theory
must be studied until it is understood.

An example of Captain Andrews' rule for the
southern hemisphere was practised by Captain Moorsom,
Royal Navy, when commanding the Andromache frigate
at Mauritius, in 1826, and is the more remarkable because
it was executed by, Captain Moorsom, before the theory
of storms was understood. Leaving her Majesty's ship
Ariadne,_ in Port Louis Harbour, at the wish of her
commander, Captain Moorsom put to sea in the An -
dromache with the wind at S.E., veering to S.S.E., pre
determined to steer without regard to the compass, and
to keep the wind as it veered, always upon the larboard
or port quarter. He had come to this decision fram at-
tentively studying the logbooks of ships which had en-
countered hurricanes in the neighbourhood of Mauritius,
and observed that the wind veered there in a uniform
manner. By steering as described, Captain Moorsom
.radually carried his frigate away from the centre of the
storm,'' until he had gained its opposite side, and mode-
rate weather. Then, having the wind at N.B. veering to
E.N.E., he brought his ship upon the starboard tack, in
order to return to Mauritius, which port she reached un-
injured.

By comparing extracts from the two log-books, it
appears that the Ariadne, in Port Louis harbour, was
in the centre of the hurricane, and had the storm
very severely; whilst the Andromache, by putting to
sea, and being so steered so as to keep the wind on the
port quarter, had comparatively moderate weather.—
Dundee Courier.

Yesterdayelming
majority
- jorEitdyinob3urtogh6),TwreosolnvedCotoumnceiml,obriyaliasne
overwhelming
against the discontinuance of the Sunday trains between
this city and Glasgow. By this decision our municipal
representatives have done high honour to themselves,
and manfully discharged their duty to their constituents.
—Scotsman of Wednesday.
SQUIB DAY.—On Guy Fawkes day a large num-
ber of boys assembled round the Wellington statue, and
saluted the passers-by with " Please to remember the
Guy l"—Punch.
HOP IN T ELLIG EN C E.—WORC ESTER, NOV. 17.
The declaration of the hop-duty last wet-k seems to have
had a different effect on the market-to-day than what
was expected ; for, not only is it firm, but prices of the
best samples are absolutely a little higher than last
Saturday, and all sorts scarce, and in good demand ;
and from the general tone of the market there is every
prospect of better prices being obtained next week.
There was not a single load of hops brought to market
to-day, and the few weighed 'were most of them those
left unsold last market-day.—Weighed on Saturday,
new, 159 ; during the week, newox
old 12 W
9r-
cester Journal.

(From the Northern Whig.)
As numerous inquiries have lately been made, re-
specting the preparation of starch from Indian corn,
some account of its manufacture may be interesting. It
resembles, in its principal details, the plan which
was, several years age, proposed by Mr. Jones,
for -the preparation •of starch from rice. The
first operation is the preparation of a weak solu-
tion of caustic soda (soda ash), containing about
' two hundred grains of real alkali to the gallon
of water. I may mention, that soda ash is at pre-
sent manufactured by Messrs. Ritchie, at the Belfast
Chemical Works, from whom information, respecting
the amount of real alkali contained in their samples, may
Ile procured. The Indian corn is placed is a vessel. of
tinned iron, and the alkaline solution, in the yroportion
of fifty gallons of liquid to every one hundred pounds of
corn, poured upon it. It is allowed to steep for
twenty-four hours ; and, after that, the liquid is run off
and the corn well washed, by repeated application of
cold. water, and placed on perforated trays or sieve., to
dran. When properly washed, and the water drained
off, it is ground to flour between mil stones, and is
again steeped in a solution of soda, of the same stteugth
as that before employed, in the proportion of 100 pounds
,f meal to 100 gallons of the solution. This mixture of
meal and ley is allowed to remain together for 24 hours,
and repeatedly agitated. It is next allowed to renceini-
rest for about 70 hours, so that the starch may settle
town to the bottom of the vessel, after which the
supernatant liquid is poured off. The mat ter
which has been deposited is then stirred up with
a large quantity of pure water
,; and the mixturt-?
of starch, husks, &c., is thrown u on a fine silk
sieve, through which the starch runs into a wooden
vat, where it deposits itself. If the starch has not
been sufficiently separated from the impurities, the
washing and straining is repeated ; after which, it is
collected and dried, in the usual manner practised in
farina manufactories.

There is also another process, which may he follow d,
to separate the starch from Indian corn, in which a mix-
ture of muriatic acid (sp'rits of salts) and water is Eub-
stituted for the alkaline solution, as a solvent for the
gluten, &c., of the grain. The operations are conducted
in a precisely similar manner to those which I have just
described. It may be necessary, for the information of
some persons, to mention, that the starch procured fruit)
Indian corn is identical in its properties with potftto
farina. JOHN F. BODGES, M.D.

111 E WEATHER.—SIIN OFFICE, NOVEMBER 20.
T,SERMOXETER, Lowest, 48; Highest. 55 ; soon, 52

BAROMETER, 29.38.

WIND S.W., morning, rain and stormy: afternoon, fins•