The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-08-21
Researches in Cyclonolosy.

An Important discovery HaS TcccHtiy ooon
announced touching the difficult science of
managing ships in cyclones. The avoidance
of these moving terrors on the ocean has been
the study of many of our ablest minds, and
any discovery that throws additional light
upon it will be gladly hailed by intelligent
seamen and by all ''who do business in the
great waters" Ever since the magnificent
generalization, which was given to the world
in 1881 by Mr.. Redfeld, of New York, the
mariner has ceased to tremble before the
fall of the quicksilver in his barometer and
the other premonitions Of the hurricane. This
American meteorological, of justly worldwide
celebrity, clearly established the fact that
storms, seemingly the most violent and law
less, moved with precision in fixed paths, and
executed their rotative movement with almost
the regularity Of the balance wheel. He also
demonstrated that hurricanes in the northern
hemisphere revolve around their centre invari-
ably in direction contrary to the motion Of
the sun and the hands of a watch. Since the
death of the lamented author of this physical
law, now so we'll known as "the law Of
storms" little or nothing has been done to
perfect its details, and many seamen, having
but crudely grasped it and having failed
rightly to apply it in their first attempts, have
frequently found it impracticable, though
countless cases are on record in which it has
saved large vessels, and even whole squadrons,
from probable destruction.
At recent meeting of the Meteorological
Society of Mauritius, Captain Douglas Wales
(of that sland), sailor of long experience
and great practical knowledge and skill, pre-
scented paper "On the Converging of the
Wind in Cyclones, in which he argues that,
on the margin Of these storms, whose diameter
is often several hundred miles, the wind does
not always blow around the central area of the
storm in concentric circles, but frequently it
converges or curves inward, in nearly radial
ines, upon the centre of the gale. As it is in
the centre that the vorticose motion of the
cyclone is most intense and deadly, it is, of
course, of the first Importance to give it wide
berth. According to 'the law of storms" as
first laid down by Mr.. Redfeld, Reid, Dove
and others, the winds within the entire area of
atmospheric disturbance blew in perfect and
cOncentric circles around the common centre.
Captain Wales, however, after multiplied OBJ
servations, shows that this rule is not strictly
observed by the winds, and illustrates his view
thus Let us suppose the vessel in the south
ern hemisphere, where, by the cyclonic theory,
the wind moves around the storm centre with
the hands of a watch. Her commander, in
latitude twelve degrees south, longitude
seventy degrees east, we will say, finds his
barometer falling, sky overcast, confused
swell and other cyclonic premonitions. What
shall he do? ''Heave to on the port tack"
or run to the southwest and make
use of the Storm" 1t is hard to
tell which will be the more dangerous. The
wind being northeast the inference he draws
is that he is on the southeast edge of cy-
clone, whose centre bears northwest Con-
sdering that in the latitude and longitude where
he is sailing the storm is probably travelling
west-southwest he thinks that by running to
the southwest he will diverge continually
from the perilous centre, and, by making
locomotive Of the storm, he will have fine runs
for several days. But if the northeast wind
be only converging toward the fearful, tenn
pestuous whirl in the centre, that centre
bears west by north, half north, instead of
northwest; go that, by following the law of
storms and running to the southwest, he runs
into the very jaws Of destruction. At any
rate, without doubt, on the suppositon of a
converging wind on the outer rim of the hur-
ricane the seaman would be apt to get en-
tangled in the iron meshes Of the cyclone, or
involved among enormous seas and pyramidal
masses of water. The important fact-for it
is fact rather than a theOry-now announced
does not at all overthrow, but confirms, Mr..
Redfeld's discovery, and, by giving greater
practical value to the latter, it will mark a
new era in navigation, as well as in the sci
ence Of entomology.
The converging of the wind toward the
centre of the revolving gale is, of course, due
to the centripetal force being greater than
the tangential force, which is the fact
observed in tornadoes. 1t is Of the utmost i'm
portance to all the interests of commerce, navi-
CATION, science, to say nothing of humanity
itself, that such discoveries as that OF Captain
Wales, which is confirmed by the testimony of
a host of distinguished seamen, should be given
the widest publicity and importance.
The HERALD pointed out some time ago the
necessity of holding our steamship commanders
to strict responsibility to public opinion at
least, if not to international law, for the fullest
acquaintance with the science of cyclones, and
the strictest obedience to those laws which
modern science has prescribed for their avoid
ance. The reasoning Of Captain Wales is
much more than theory or hypothesis, and ex-
presses the opinion and experience OF many
observers. The Secretary Of the Meteorologi-
cal Society of Maurtius, before whom Captain
Wales paper was presented, stated that in
various papers published during the last fir
teen years he had often called attention to the