, 1873-10-18

which induces u~ncIean animals to prefer
parsnips to pearls, the Press OF Jamaica
will care as little about whether kilograms
or barometrical observations as it does at
this moment about 'AssociQted Press
news or other like tinger-poats on the
road to journalistic perfection Our pub
lie is supposed to be more deeply i%nteres-
ted in |lGatning that a policeman was
caught asleep upon his beat last night than
in knowing that thousands OF dollars are
expended annually by America in keeping
the entire Atlantic and Pacific Coasts alive
with storm te'egrams-js embracing IN
scientific grasp every part Of its land, from
Sandy Hook to the Golden Gate of Cali
%foruia, and from Key West to the DOmin-
ion of Canada.
In order to complete its chain of informa-
ton. jamaica has been brought within
its lines, and hencetorth four daily obser-
v%ations, made by delicate instruments ad-
iusted to the standard at Washington, will
be forwarded to the Storm Signal Depart
ment of the War Office there.
OF what value this toIegraphy is, may
be CLEANED from the following: In No
vember, 1854, while the French fleet was
onerationg In the Black Sea against the
stubborn walls of Sebastopol, the tidings
flashed across the wires that q mighty
tempest had arisen on the Coast Of France,
and bv the warnings of. the barometer, was
on its way eastward. The telegram was
sent bv the French Minister of War from
Paris. and reached the allied fleet in good
time to enable them to put to sea before
the cyclone could travel the five hundred
I~eagues gifts course, and dispense or destroy
the most splendid navies that ever rode
those waters. The storm came with fatal
punctuaIity to the predicted hour. The
Crimea, shaken, rayaged, scourged by its
fury, presented everywhere a scene of
havoc and ruin in the Allied Camp, more
fearful than any Gre of all the Russian forts
combined could have inflicted. 1t is not
too much to say that, but for that telegram
and its timely storm warning, the congre-
gated navies, far from home and shattered
to pieces, could not have sustained the
besieoing armies, and the event of the
great Eastern War might have been differ
ent (says our authority from what it was
So happily, in this Instance, did theory
(too often despiscd) blend with fact, that
the French War Mini5tae aid, " 1t appears
that, by the aid of the electric telegraph
and barometric observation, we may be
appraised several hours, or several days, Of
great atmospheric disturbances, happening
at the distance OF 1000 or 1900 leagues"
It was three years after this-after the
actual occurance of the famous "BIack
Sea storm alluded fo-that, in America,
for the first time, was startled the idea,
since perfected to its present status, of
daily weather kilograms from all parts of
the world, so that the maritime interests
of the entire Globe might participate in
the safety such a system would establish.
The Observatory at Myrtle Bank is to
become a link in this gigantic safety
scheme. That it may be found worthy the
cost bestowed upon it,. and of the import
ance presumed TO be'a portion Of its call
into existence, every man in whose soul
dwells but q %scintilla Of feeling of good will
towards bis fellow-men, must most deVout-
ly, Wish.-GaAps NeUs Letter. 81 Zi"