Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1853-11-26
LIEUT.. MAURrs PLAN OF NAVIGATION.
FROM THE LONDON ArHrsEuM OF OCTOBER /.

Il.
Lieut. Maurys Plan for Improving Naviqafioa ,,;1 ,o,.
Remarks on The advantages arising from he Pursuu Of A6
shaet Science Lord Wroesleys Speech IN he Hox,s ~
Lords on 26h April, 1853. Ridgway.
The presence Of Lieut. Maury in Europe the Congress
Of eteoroogsts just held in Brussels the arrival Of the
Dolphin at Southampton and the publication (see Aen
No. 1,350) of the correspondence between COL Sabine
Dr. Bache and the English Admiralty, combine to render
brief notice of the proposed joint investigation of the
ocean desirable, if not necessary.
Lieut. Maury, SO long ago 1912, conceived that it
would be useful to science if the of American
sells could be induced keep their log books in an i'm
proved fashion. Practical shook their heads the
idea He wished them to record the set of currents the
depths of the bed the heat of the water They did
not see his purpose and for long time they gave him lit
tie assistance. Materials nevertheless slowly grew in
bulk under his eye; he compared the information which
he obtained with older logs and at the end of six
he announced his first practical discovery new route
to Rio.
Practical still shook their heads They who had
crossed the line hundred times not to be taught
navigation by person who spent his days in stargazng
porting old logs 1t not easy, therefore, to
get asaor bold enough venture on the new route for
seamen, more strongly welded tradition than perhaps
any other body Of professionals afraid of the Great
Belt Of Gains near the equator and Of bugbear of
rent setting on Cape St. Roche, in South America At
length holder than the rest proposed to sail under Lieut.
Maurys directions; and the consequence that he
reached the line in twenty days instead Of forty
eight hundred miles of the direct course to
avoid imaginary dangers.
After this great discovery Lieut.. Maury had little
trouble with the seamen. To his words: Ma
vgators now for the first time appeared to comprehend
what 1t was wanted them to do and aphy" 1t was this
Why that had made them Indifferent They could see no
advantage in recording the minute details asked for by
the astronomer and they failed in many cases to give
themselves the trouble. Lieut. aurys service was
shortening at various points the route California He
succeeded in reducing the entire voyage from $50
100 days Iii with such practical recommendations in
his hand that the American astronomer has to
offer to Europe share in the glory and the benefits of
larger, more systematic, and more minute survey
than has ever before been made.
In the pamphlet before US Lord Wrottesley has
put the case in very lucid and interesting way adduc
ing some facts proof OF the value Of scientific knowledge
even when it would not to be practically available
The story OF Franklin and his thermometer is good in
stance of this kind Franklin, every body knows was
great at experiments HI had passion for ascertaninp
facts, whether isolated other When crossing the At
antc he had been in the habit of dipping his hermome-
ter into the sea and noting the record These simple ex
perimens though he had notion of their special i'm
portance at the me caused Of the great internal
revolutions in America transferred the trade and wealth
of Charleston to New York. from the South to the North
from the slave States to the Free This important trans
fer was effected thus:
When DR.. Franklin was in England the merchants of
Providence Rhode Island petitioned the of the Trea
uy lit before the recognition of independence that the
Government packets that usually sailed from Falmouth to
Boston, United States might in future sail from London to
Proydenee and they supported the prayer of their petition
by the allegation that the average passage from London 70
Providence fourteen days less than that from Falmouth
to Boston. Now Falmouth and Boston being between Lon
don and Providence this statement seemed rather starng
and Dr. franklin who always the alert when his
tys interests at stake hearing of it, Captain
Foger old New England whaer, who happened also to
be in London at the time The old captain Immediately ac
counted for the fact that had puzzled the Doctor The
don packets said he, are commanded by New England
masters who know something about the Gulf stream the
Falmouth by Engshmen who know nothing about the mat
ter This hint enough for Dr. Franklin lie had either
previously subsequently taken the temperature of the Gulf
stream and had found it considerably higher than the sur
rounding dipping thermometer into the sea- there
fore showed when entered and left it. He and the old
captain laid down its limits according the best the ex
stng information the charts and the result was COM
pee change in the taken by vessels trading between
England and America"
BY using avoiding the Gulf stream as circumstances
required for which the thermometer served the purpose
Of sextant the distance between London and New York
was shortened from sixty to thirty days In this way
New FORK became nearer to England than Charleston
grew into the point for all vessels bound to the New
World TO touch at and assumed the importance Of
great commercial depot Charleston lost its chance of
ever growing into the metropolis of the Republic and
to use the words of Lieut. Maury, all these results are
traceabe to the of the thermometer at sea
This is answer to be pondered by those who affect to
sheer at the temperature registrations Of the Dolphin
The Gulf stream-Franklins observation of which led
to such important results for Americas still compa
ratvey unknown current Yet il is one of the
most interesting streams in the world and for European
American commerce it is far the most important
his astonishing current [says Lord Wroesleyl is al
ways from 81 to 20 warmer than the surrounding ocean,
mparts its temperature to the superintendent atmosphere
hus generating fearful storms. But another and very Gu
ou purpose appears be answered by this extraordinary
stream in addition to the benefits which accrue from It's
transporting il its mild and genial climate
o the shores Of Europe great hawnr laboratory
or all the ice that down into it in streams from
he inhospabe shores Of BaHins Bay and Greenland II is
possible that the weed may help the course Of these
rigid mountains till they completely dissolved in natures
urnace and while their is stayed they gradually
disappear and prevented from nrudng on the more
genial cimes Of the South"
Lord Wrottesley very properly adds: Surely cur
ent which seems to exercise such important
ipon navigation and meeorology is worth examination
Ill all worth knowing is known" Major Rennel who
oad great attention to the Gulf stream as the highway
# nature between the two worlds writing thirty years
igo, says:
But nothing less than great number Of observations of
very kind and those made through many in order
embrace all the varieties Of cases enable the most dill
tent inquirer to make himself Of the whole subject
md the cda be the cork Of Government only for individual in
Jury produce hnie than uncoanected Jacts"
America is doing her part in this great work Holland
las also given in her adhesion to Lieut. Maurys plans
England could not keep aoof from such an enterprise
important for her trading interests so precious in the
scientific results To those who would still object TO the
roube and expense involved-and we may say in pass
ng that these are very smal-Lord Wrottesley offers
striking illustration Of the practical Of real know
edge, whether it be gained by accident by design He
writes
"The who would laugh TO scorn the philosopher expe
menng the leg Of dead frog would stand amazed in
ent admiration before the wonderful performances the
electric telegraph yet the connexon between the and the
thcr IS known TO every tyro in science Who could have
orcseen that Worcesters rude experiment the expansion
II the of water contained the germ that great nven
ion, the seam-engne2 These instances in which the
ude ore was slowly worked into the finished manufacture