The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-04-19

fO1 Will understand that "the cOmpaniOns" OF
Governor Ujhazy. thus referred to, are those who
with him were driven into exile from Hungary.
Very respectfully. &C.,
J. BUTTERFlELD, Commissioner.
REGlsrER AND REckIvGR, Fairfield, Iowa.
From The Scientific .4meriean.
The PROBABLE RELATION BETWEEN MAoNI-
rIsM AND THE CIRCULATION OF THE ArMosPHERE.
This is the title to the supplement Of the WASH
ington Astronomical Observable of 1916, by the
scientific Lieut.. Maury, Of the Washington OBJ
servatory, and which we noticed last week II is
a singular document: il begins with, ''the dis
coveries Of Farady in dia-nagnetism are cnlcu-
lated to guide me and to illuminate the darkness
by which have oftentimes found myself sur
rounded, as endsavored to follow the "wind in
his circuits" over the trackless wastes OF the
ocean. Oxygen composes onc-hfth part of the at
mosphere and is mag etic.
lin reference to Mr.. PSine's letter, page ia,
about Farady making the discovery Of oxygen
being magnetic. we would state that he made this
discovery years ago, long before the period re-
ferred to, as can be found in his published works
consequently Mr.. Paine's aIlusion to Mr.. Arch
ibald is something we cannot undsrstand.l The
discovery of the magnetic 'pvcpcrty of oxygen,
Lieut. Aiaury believes, 'sis thu keystone for some
OF the most grand among the sublime and beauti-
full structures which philosophy is erecting for
monuments to the genius Of the age"
In the distribution Of moisture, and the circula-
ton of the atmosphere over the surface OF the
earth, he often suspected that there was so me
other agent at work than heat, and the rotation Of
the earth on its axis. His wind and current
charts, which have conferred celebrity on his
name, enabled him to trace belt Of calms near
the tropic of cancer. From the zone of Gains at
the tropic of cancer, there proceed two currents,
named the sstrnde Winds" The north least trade
winds proceed from the south-sde of the belt Of
Gains to the equator; and the south west trade
winds proceed from the north-sde of the belt of
Gains, and make up two-thirds OF our south west
winds in England. These are surface breezes
From the equator there is perpetual upper cur
rent to the tropical Gains, equal in volume to the
trade winds One PECULIARLY of the trade winds
is, that the southwest breezes give out great
deal of moisture, although proceeding from a
calm belt to cooler regions, IN course where pre-
cpitation is the natural result. The north east
trade winds, on the other hand, proceeding from
the same belt Of Gains, are dry at the very outset.
II was supposed that the upper current which
flowed from the Gains at the equator, descended
at the calm belt at the tropics, and then returned
on the surface as a trade wind, then assembled at
the equator, returning as an upper current. thus
keeping up continual ring of breezes, Lieut..
Maury says, che knew of no agent in nature that
wou d prevent the winds taking this circuit, but
on the other hand, he knew OF circumstances
which rendered it probable that such in general is
not the course Of atmosphercal circulation"
But there are also south trade winds, and
Lieut.. Mnury has come to the conclusion that the
current which flows to the equator as surface
north east wind, ascends at the equator Gains, and
passes 10 the south upper current. while the
current which comes as the south east trade winds
ascended and passed to the calm zone Of Cancer
The reasons for this conclusion are, that the evap-
Grating surface Of the south is the greatest, but all
the great rivers are in the northern hemisphere,
and at those seasons Of the year when the sun ID
evaporating mos, at the south, the greatest guam
tity of rain is falling in the northern hemisphere.
Without taking this view Of the subject, Lieut..
Maury 'could find no part Of the ocean Of the
northern hemisphere from which the sources Of
the great rivers, Mississippi, Lawrence and 9th
ers, could he supplied. Ii appeared to me, he
saws "that the extra tropical regions ofthe north
ern hemisphere stood in the relation of con-
denser to a grand steam machine, the boiler OF
which was in the region of the southeast trade
Winds" and the northwest trade winds to the
tropic of Capricorn, on the other side of the equa-
tor, perform the same Office to the regions beyond
that tropic, which the southeast winds perform
for our northern regions. In this pamphlet va
rious letters are published from farmers dwelling
in the south western States, in answer to enqui-
ries made by Lieut.. Marry, stating that south
west winds generally bring rain in those regions.
lin New York city, our easterly winds are the
rainl So far the evidence to the above deduc-
tons was only circumstancial, when he received
a copy of Ehrenberg's work, from the Prussian
minister at Washington. and in il he found il sta
ted that this celebrated German microscopes dis
covered South American nfusoria in the red rains
Of Lyons, Genoa and other places Of Europe
This, then, was direct testimony-pri'na tacia evi
dence of the truth Of his theory.
1t is stated that, having likened the circulation
Of the atmosphere to a continue whrl Of the
wind in the arctic regions against, and the antar-
tic Nth the hands OF watch, according to the
electromagnetic discovery Of Ampere, he has
found this conclusion very significant. The
south west winds enter the arctic regions, on the
spiral curve, continually lessening the gyrations,
until whlrling about in a contrary direction to
the hands. of watch, this air ascends and com
mences its return an upper current, to the belt
Of Gains at the ,ropic Of Cancer.
Lieut. Maury attributes to magnetism that in
Auence or power "wh oh guides the air from the
south through the cnlms ofCapricorn, Of the equa-
tor, and ofCancer and conducts it into the north,
and back again. This he compares 10 spiral
coil, and the continuous circuit of magnetic cur
rent passing around both poles and winding across
our globe. The attractive and rspu'slve influence
is attributed to the nature Of oxygen, which, as
its temperature il increased, dimirishes IN para
magnetic force, and which increases as ts tempe
nature falls. The subject il a sublime one, and IL
treated in that curt, mathematical aud forcibe
style peculiar to the old authors. He states thai
the footsteps, only, Of this agent--magnetism in
Ausncing the winds--have been discovered. There
are yet great mysteries in the ocean Of air which
envelopes us. The general Gains in the arctic re-
gions, and the great storms in the antartic, have
vet to be properly accounted for, but hitherto we
have looked upon our atmosphere as neutral in
relation TO magnetic force, because oxygen is mag
netic and nitrogen dia-mugnetic. Our atmosphere
is compound Of magnetic and din- magnetic
gas, and the dis-msgnetic is az to l, consequent
ly the oxygen must have the least influence; but
may not this account for the difference Of whirls
at the opposite roles'
From the Laursnsriile Herald, April IL.
p,ocvrp,Scs oy THE SOUTHERN RIG ITS Auo-