Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1858-02-26
LOCAL INTELLIGENCE.

= delivered at the Smithsonian, on Wednesday
evening, before large and intelligent audience
was rcplete with interest and was listened to
with marked attention, except by few youn1
gentlemen in the gallery who were yerv mon,
cry called to order by Professor Henry Wemay
mere De permitted to say to those who attend lee.
tnfes and are careless about listening 10 them
that IL IL seldom probable their ind ference IL
general feeling throug bout the audience, and il
Is hardly mark Of good breeding to prevent
Sons :. i,om hearing hatthey may not feel
The lecturer commenced by calling attention
uIon2h practical experiment to the formation
S az, clouds. lie had glass tube, in which
n'eu piston, working alright. On drawing
the piston to the top of the tube the latter, Of
course, became nled with air. Now stopping
Ine lower end, so as TO prevent the air from
pm, ana pressing the piston down, the air was
compressed and, then, on suddenly raising the
piston again so to afford the air room for
SPEEDY expansion, cloud could be perceptibly
discovered within the tube. This, said Prof E.
Is the prinCi pie on which clouds are formed i'm
the atmosphere. The atmosphere nearest the
earth's Surfare is subjected TO greater compress
sion than that above. When ii becomes heated
10 degree beyond the surrounding air. il be-
comes lighter and will ascend. As il ascpnds it
expands and grows colder, and this causes the
moisture ~ may contain to form clouds. These
clouds continuing to ascend with the column of
air, continue 10 grow colder and the con,-nsa-
uo9 becomes greater until finally they form rain,
and the then increased specific gravity causes
what was moisture, vaPor, or clouds tn descend
again To the earth.
ffn1 IL SAID that he had observed
hhndr'd and seventy storms in the L Rted States,
ana bai discovered that the general rains which
most usually fall in the cold months extend
from the 6uIf OF Mexico to the northern lakes,
and Judging from barometrical indications to a
Snuch farther distance nerthward From east to
west their extent is not usually very great, and
Ssney always move from the west to the east In
" dshlngton, Tor instance, Just before one of
the>e rains commence the wind will be observed
% blow from towards the east. sometimes horth-
east and sometimes southeast, When the centre
he ifv thpTe I'll NO
WIND OF consequence, and as the cloud pasSp,
eaStwardly, before the rain ceases the wind will
dow from the west. This sustains his theory
that the winds always blow towards the Gentle
oil storm. In other words, that storms are
caused by the hs ated air rising upward and con-
densing its vapor By its own RATIFICATION and its
passage through colder strata of air as il ascend.
A. tne air Uses the surrounding air rushes in to-
MT the vacuum, and hence the winds aIways
blow towards the centre OF storm
having fully explained these general storms
tne lecturer next noticed rapid showers These
usually occur In warm we; ther. A limited ex-
TENT OF air Is heated, 1t rises and ol,eyinu the
imperative law PASSES toward the east IL
travels very fast, and being limited in extent
1oes not RAIN In one place but little while The
nlSner the cloud Is, too, the more rapidly il tIav-
lis, and 1t is always the case when clouds are
deeP from the top TO the base, the upper part Will
1saa over towards the east, showing that il trav-
els faster than the lower portion
Hail storms Were next noticed These also
happen cftenest in warm, dry weather, and trav,
Ell more swiftly than rain. The explanation il
a. toiOWs: ne atmosphere being driver and
hotter rises more rapidly and to greater altitude
before the clouds are formed The extent of
these clouds Is also Limited, and As the air rsbes
up WIN great force, the vdpor when condensed
INTO water Is thrown out beyond the sides and
front OF the cloud instead of falling through IL
and the intense cold Of the strata of air into viii
passes causes 1t to freeze before reaching the
warmer air below.
Tne large size Of some hailstones he accounted
LOT mus; The Water of wDich they are formed
Is , anLown out in fIont Of the upper part of the
a.. he hail t.,.-
yohu TIE base OF the cloud, which is dragged
siohg Dy the top as II werr, they are overta ken
oy tue base forced into the cloud again in coHse-
H"ehCe OF the force OF the air rushing upward
ana again thrown ont with augmented Size be-
AUS other portions of water have adhered 10
mem IN tlelt second passage through the cloud
III these Increased bdilstones are acain thrown
OUT In fIont they may be again caught up by the
base OF the cloud, and undergoing the same pro
cess De thrown out the second time still further
increased In size. Several remarkable hailstorus
were described, the phenomena of all of which
were July accounted ON the theory originated by
described, and from observations IT was e,,ab
Hsheo, The lecturer said, that they could be ac-
counted Tor on this theory He said, as near as
We could understand him, that these- eccentric
storlns depend on the state of the atmosr here
w hen cloud passes from a driver over more
humid atmosphere where the dew point is lower
other clonds fofm under the base of that; these
taper downward In the middle; still Others form
beneath these, until the centre of the cloud is
brought very near the surface Of the earth The
cloud Is Of very limited extent and the centre
assumes the form of a long narrow neck or spout
Up THIS the surrounding air PUSHES with great
swifiness, and force sufficient to carry with it
large soilo bodies that are thrown OFF al different
attitudes, according TO their specific gravity
sun 1t Is found that the air rushes in from eyey
side towards the centre, and the devastations by
hurricanes all show conformity TO this rule Sew
eral remarkable hurricanes were described
Professor Espy will lecture again this evening
., WINS, ana prove that his theory is applicable
OF all ALI In motion.
Boy GARRorED.-A night or two ago, a boy
about fourteen years OF age, named Kesley. and
employed AZ page in the Senate, was sent about
"a O'Clock in the evening to the Island with
message Being afIaid to return by Four-and- a.
BALI street Canal bridge the little fellow pn .sed
aown Maryland avenue and as he was crossing
the ThiTd street bridge two men spranp ont from
behind pile Of lumber, and one of them csupbt
MN oy thr throat, placing his knee behind his
Dack aAd thns forcing him 10 the ground The
itIe fellow, with courage beyond his years
.siI.e eu hi1ninIIy but Intellectually with bis
sslant>. They proceeded to search his DOC het<
"u, louhd nothing there except a small penknifr
ana lew steel pens, which the rutfians took pos
session OF, and then discovered that he had ,roId
I'ng on one of his fingers they tore IL of in 6ru
Val manner, and then setting him on his fee,
pulled ont Of their pockets, each, a horse pistol
ana fnenaced him away on threats of Laytnr his
head blown OF. The boy fed for dear life need
ing no other prompting
The WASHINGTON THXATRs.- That deserving
young actress, Miss Fanny Morant, takss her
benefit tonight, and we sincerely trust il NAV
DC remuneratiye one. She will appear in two
OF her best characters, as Mrs Halter i'm =. The
Stranger and as Meg Merriles in 'sGuy Man
nering, +" the second aud third acts of which will
be performed
Tomorrow night Mr.. ]. B. Howe who has
oeen gaining steadily upon the regards of our
theatre goers, will take his benefit with an ex
renent bill, viz: Buiwer's comedy of Money
and Naval Engagements
= The Stranger" is admirably cast to. mig t, 1t
Mrs. Hailer, Miss Fanny Morant; Counties.
WinteTsen, Mrs. De Mello; Charlotte, Mrs stone
all; savoyard, with a song) Miss Tree; The
Stranger, Mr.. }. b. Howe; Baron Stenfort, Nh
y ID. Eytnge; Count Wintersen. Mr. j. hi
tingi FTaBcis, Mr.. Carlton Howard; Solomon.
MI Whiting; Tobias, Mr. Russell; Peter, Mr.
j. NJ. Dawson -
CorRr OF CLAINs.-Yesterdav, Judge Blac X.