The Sun.
London, England, 1850-09-28 00:00:00

unhappy wight who had never before been five miles
from Boston, was anxiously inquiring of the chief
steward the precise time in course of that evening that
the vessel might be expected to founder ; while an-
other steward, with provoking pertinacity, was asking
he* many would dine in the saloon at six, with thee
same business-like unconcern as if the ship were glid-
ing along oulass. So tremendous was the tossing,
so-extreme the apparent uncertainty of any event ex-
cept a watery terminus to all expectation, that this
sort of coolness appeared almost wicked.
Then there was a monster is British form actually
m deck—not braving, it was said, but tempting the
storm to sweep him into eternity. He astonished
even the ship's officers. The cook did not hesitate to
venture a strong opinion against the sanity of a man
who might, if he chose, be snugly ensconsed in the
cabin out of harm's way, but who would re-
main upon deck, in momentary danger of being blown
overboard. The cook's theory was not ill supported
by the subject of it ; for he was continually placing
himself in all manner of odd places and grotesque
postures. Sometimes he scrambled up on the cuddy
roof; then he rolled down again on the saloon-
leek; now ha got himself blown up on the paddle-
box; that was not high enough for him, for when
the vessel sunk into a trough of the sea, he stood up
m tip toe, trying to look over the nearest wave. A
consultation was held in the cuddy, and a resolution
was unanimously passed that the amateur of wind and
water (which burst over him every minute) was
either an escaped lunatic or—a college professor.
It was resolved rem. con. that he was the latter ;
end from that moment nobody was surprised at any-
thing he might choose to do, even while the Hibernia
was labouring in what the mato was pleased to call the
most " lively" manner. The professor, however, to
z.he disgust of the sufferers below, who thought it was
enough to feel the height of the waves, without going
to the trouble of measuring them, pursued his obser-
rations in the face of the contempt of the official con-
clave above mentioned. He took up his position on
the cuddy-roof, which was exactly twenty-three feet
three inches above the ship's line of flotation, and
there watched the mighty mountains that sported with
the brave vessel. He was anxious to ascertain the
height of these majestic waves, but he found that the
crests rose so far above the horizon from the point where
he was standing, that it was utterly impossible, with-
out gaining a greater height for observation, that
he could arrive at any just estimate on the subject.
His observations from the cuddy-roof proved, how-
sver, beyond a doubt that the majority of these roll-
ing masses of water attained a height of considerably
more than 24 feet, measuring from the trough of the
sea to the crests of the waves. But the professor
was not satisfied with this negative proof, and in the
pursuit of his interesting inquiry did not feel inclined
to be baffled. It is impossible to know what the
secret thoughts of the men at the wheel were when
the valiant observer announced his intention of
making the best of his way from the cuddy-roof
to the larboard paddle-box. Now he was to be
seen tumbling about with the motion of the ship, at
one moment clinging to a chain-box, at the next
throwing himself into the arms of the second mate.
Now he is buried in spray, and in a few minutes
afterwards his spare form is seen clinging to the rails
which connect the paddle-boxes.

Despite the storm without, a calm mathematical
process is going on within the mind of that ardent
observer. The professor knew that he was standing
at a height of 24 feet nine inches above the flotation
(nark of the ship ; and allowing 5 feet 6 inches as the
height of his eye, he found the elevation he had ob-
tained to be altogether 30 feet 3 inches. He now waited
till the vessel subsided fairly for a few minutes into the
trough of the sea in an even and upright position,
while the nearest approaching wave had its maximum
Altitude. Here he found also that at least one-half
part of the wave intercepted by a considerable eleva-
'ion his view of the horizon. He declared that he
frequently observed long ranges extended 100 yards on
one or both sides of the ship—the sea then coming
right aft—which rose so high above the visible hori-
zon as to form an angle estimated at two to three de-
grees when the distance of the wave's crest was about
LOO yards off. This distance would add about 13 feet
to the level of the eye. This immense elevation oc-
eurred about every sixth wave. Now and then,
when the course of a gigantic wave was im-
pertinently interfered with by another liquid
giant, and they thundered together, their
creaking crests_ would shoot upward at least
[0 or 15 feet higher—about half the height
.)f the monument—and then pour down a mighty
hood upon the poor professor in revenge for his
attempt to measure their majesties. No quantity of
ialt water, however, could wash him from his post till
he had satisfactorily proved, by accurate observation,
that the average wave which passed the vessel was
fully equal to the height of his eye—or 30 feet 3
uches—and that the mean highest waves, not includ-
ing the fighting or broken waves, were about 43 feet
Above the level of the hollow occupied at the moment
oy the ship.
Satisfied at length of the truth of his observations,
the professor, half-pickled by the salt water, and look-
ing, it must be confessed, very cold and miserable,
lescended to the cabin. Throughout dinner-time a
conversation was kept up between the professor and
he captain—the latter appearing to be about the only
individual on board who took any interest whaever in
these scientific proceedings. The ladies, one and all,
vowed that the professor was a monster, only doing
"all d •pg
"all this stuff" in mockery of their sufferings. To-
wards night the wind increased to a hurricane; the
ship tretn bled like a frightened child before the terri-
ble combat of the elements. Night, with her pall,
closed in the scene :—it was a wild and solemn time.
Towards morning the wind abated. For thirty hours
a violent north-west gale had swept over the heaving
bosom of the broad Atlantic.

This reflection hastened the dressing and break-
fasting operations of the professor, who tumbled up
on deck at about ten o'clock in the morning. The
storm had been subdued for several hours, and there
was a visible decrease in the height of the waves. He
took up his old position on the caddy roof, and soon
observed that even then, when the sea was compara-
tively quiet, ten waves overtook the vessel in succes-
sion, which all rose above the apparent horizon ; con-
sequently they must have been more than 23 feet—
probably about 26 feet—from ridge to hollow. From
the larboard paddle-box, to which the professor once
more scrambled, he observed that occasionally four or
five waves in succession rose above the visible horizon
—hence they must have been more than 30-feet
waves. He also observed that the waves no longer
ran in long ridges, but presented more the feral of
cones of moderate elongation.
Having so far satisfied himself as to the height of
Atlantic waves in a gale cf wind (the professor's esti-
mate must not be taken as the measurement of the
highest known waves, but simply as that of a rough
Atlantic sea), he directed his attention to minuter
and more difficult observations. He determined to
measure the period of time occupied by the regular
waves in overtaking the ship, their width from crest
to crest, and the rate of their travelling. The first
point to be known was the speed of tie ship; this he
ascertained to she nine knots. His next object was to
note her course in reference to the direction of Lion Lae
waves. lie found the true course of the vessel was
east, and that the waves came from the west-north-
west, so that they passed under the vessel at a con-
siderable angle. The length of the ship was stated
to be 220 feet. Provided with this information the
professor renewed his observations. He proeetded to
count the seconds the crest of a wave took to travel
from stern to stem of the vessel ; these he ascertained
to be six. He then counted the time which inter-
vened between the moment when one crest touched
the stern of the vessel and the next touched it, and he
found the average interval to be 16 seconds and a
fraction. These results gave him at once the width
between crest and crest. As the crest travelled 220