The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1883-05-19
Protection AGAINST TOrnadOes.


protection against TornadoeS.
| New Orleans Times-DemOcrat.I
In view of the fact that the
people of Mississippi, and partieu-
larly those of Copiah, Simpson
and Lawrence counties, have suf.
fered so severely for several years
from tOrnadoes, it might be well
to call their attention to the re-
port recently prepared bv John P.
Finley, of the Signal Service, Oh
the subject of tornadoes, their
special characteristics and dan
gers, with practical directions for
the protection of life aud property,
which, had it been generally read
and understood in Beauregard,
Wesson and Georgetown, would
have made the mortuary list of
these towns much smaller than
they were.
There is no difficulty whatever
in telling when q cyclone is com.
ing. Its symptoms are easily rec.
ognized and can never be mista-
ken. The people at Beauregard
and Wesson who had witnessed
the cyclone that just a year pre-
vious destroyed the neighboring
town of Monticello, knew what
they had to prepare for, but they
unfortunately did not know what
to do in this emergency when
prompt action was so much needed.
Without entering into o scien.
tihc discussion of cyclones, their
cause and origin, it is sufficient to
give the following peremptory
signs, easily pcrceptible to and
comprehensive by every one On
the day of the storm, and for sew.
eral hours previous to the appear.
ance of the tornado clouds, the
atmosphere is sultry and opprcss-
i've. Clouds form first in the south
west and then almost Immediately
in the northwest, or vice versa.
If they are light, their appearance
resembles smoke issuing from a
burning building, or straw stack,
rolling up in fantastic shapes to
great heights; again, like a fine
mist, or quite white, like fog or
steam. The dark clouds at times
present a greenish or copperish
hue. Again they appear jet black
from centre to circumference, and
they sometimes present purplIsl
Or blush tinge, or at times are
strangely lurid, but always with
what appears to be black smoke
surrounding them.
The clouds form in the south
west aud northeast, and finally
come together with terrific crash,
aud then the funnel-shaped lorna
do cloud appears upon the west
ern sky moving boldly to the front
from this confused mass. A heavy,
roaring noise, like that of heav-
lily loaded freight train passing
over bridge or through q tunnel
is heard, and then the cyclone OF
tornado is upon you.
Now, as some Of these signs ap.
pear hours in advance of any dan
ger; as these storms occur only
in certain seasons of the year,
from April to September, and as
they are restricted to certain sec-
tions of country, it would seem
that there ought to be means
of foreseeing them and preventing
any very great loss of life. And
there are. The far Western and
Northwestern States suffer far
more severely from tornadoes
than Mississippi does. Kansas
has as many as a dozen every year
and Iowa is annually visited by
them; but although these storms
are just as bad on the Western
prairies as in Mississippi, the loss
of life there Is very light, because
the farmers and villagers know
what precautions to take when a
tornado visits them.
The Signal Service gives this
warning: If caught in tornado
always move with all possible dis
patch to the north, unless in doing
so you are obliged to cross the
entire path OF the storm. A glanct
toward the west will tell you whe
ther you are on the southern edge
of the probable path of the torn
ado cloud or moro to the north
| If in the centre, or half way be
tween the centre and southern
edge, your chances are best in {
direct course to the north. Il
further to the south, move directly
and very rapidly to the south