The New York herald., 1876-03-22
The Great Storms.

A peculiar interest attaches to the varying
conditions Of the weather at a season when
the continents of Europe and North America
are being swept by unusually disastrous
storms. The Office of meteorology is now
extended to the prediction of these disturb
ances, instead of being as formerly limited to
their observation and record. Without look
ing outside of the meteorological field of
the United States we are enabled to prog
posticate with considerable degree of ac-
curacy the development, direction, progress
and duration of storms or changes in the at
mospheric state which more or less ap-
proximate to them. Certain conditions
have been observed to be followed
by class of phenomena which are
directly traceable to the operation
of we'll known physical laws. We need,
therefore, only recognize the primary causes
to predict the consequences. The recent
tornadoes in Missouri and Minnesota were
preceded by peculiar conditions of tho
atmosphere as regards temperature and
density, and these extended over large area
of the continent. However, when they were
carefully charted and the opposing aerial
forces assigned to their proper positions,
the plans of the battles were as easy Of COM
prehension as that of Austerlitz or Gettys-
burg, and the centres of the atmospheric
warfare rs clearly marked in relation to their
surroundings rs the farmhouse of Hougou-
articles we explained the process of develop
ment of violent wind storms, accompanied
by rain or snow, and the marvellous precision
of their generation under favorable condi-
tions. We now come to consider the charac-
ter of the storms which prevailed along the
Atlantic coast and in the Western Gulf
States during the past two days. most re-
markably low atmospheric temperature was
observed at every point in the United States
on Sunday and Monday last. 1t seemed
ns if great wave of cold air had
rolled down from the Polar regions
and overwhelmed the Continent as
far south as the Rio Grande and Florida.
During Monday night the thermometer at
Mobile indicated one degree below freezing
point, and ut Galveston, Texas, only seven
degrees above. The temperature at Breck-
inridge, Mimi, was twenty degrees below
zero, and the general records through the
Mississippi Valley ranged from ten to
twenty-five degrees. On the Plains west of
Omaha an area of comparatively high tenn
pernture and correspondingly low barometer
existed, wedged, as it we're, between two
great volumes of cold air. These conditions
favored the development of ''norther" in
the region southwark of Denver, and the
heavy blow at New Orleans was clearly due
to this cause. The escape southwark of
dense body of cold air produced at Indian
ola, Galveston and New Orleans q sudden
fall of temperature and q barometric dis
turbance, but there is nothing to show any
connection between the high winds which
prevailed at these points and the terrific
storm which has swept our Atlantic coast.
This latter and most disastrous visitation
has presented oil the characteristics of q
genuine cyclone, one of those storms which
originate in the equatorial sens and some
times touch our coasts in the sweep of their
parabolic paths The energy of these
meteors largely depends on the conditions
vi luo atmosphere shlouBn tDcy
travel. Their paths are also affected by
such physical obstacles as mountain ranges,
and the Allegheny chain has without doubt
checked the westward course of this ocean
storm and detected it enthusiastically along
our coast line. Thus the storm would strike
the coast at some point between Jackson
vile and Cape Hatteras and impinge on the
mountains, which would give its course q
direction over New York, Boston and Hall
fax. The winds blowing tangentally to the
circumference of the vortex would naturally
be southeasterly along the coast, and this
would account for the extraordinary
number of marine disasters recorded.
OF course when the vapor laden air borne
inland from the sea met the cold condensing
atmosphere it was converted into and pre-
cipitated as snow, until the storm centre had
passed sufficiently to the northward to give
the indraught winds more southerly origin.
Then the snow was followed by rain and
finally by clearing weather, with westerly
winds. The conditions now prevailing in
the interior Of the continent arc very favora-
BILE for the generation Of tornadoes in the