The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1883-11-24
Cyclones and Tornadoes.

All storms of any magnitude that visit
the United States, except the tropical
hurricanes which sometimes touch the
Southern coast, have common origin
in Or near the Rocky Mountains. Here
the first barometric depression is felt, pre-
ceded by rising temperature, caused by
the warm winds moving northward over
the sun-heated sands of Arizona, New
Mexico and Western Texas. These warm
rarefed currents of air are met by cooler
currents passing over the snow-clad
peaks of the north; cyclonic storm is
formed, usually small at first, which be-
gins its journey eastward, gradually devel-
oping in energy and area as it goes.
The true cyclone usually travels from
the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic coast,
in nearly a straight line Sometimes the
distance is traversed in four days and
nights, exceeding the speed of a railway
express train but frequently the progress
is slow, and the time required much longer,
depending largely upon the atmospheric
conditions met with in the vicinity of the
Great Lakes
Frequently, while the wind may be
blowing from the southeast or northeast,
or between these points, the storm is ap-
preaching from an opposite direction, and
pushes out its cloudy streamers or ''feelers, y
hundreds of miles in advance. There is,
then, no such thing as northeast storm"
as far as the interior of this continent is
concerned.
Tornadoes occur most frequently in the
Western States, and are usually confined
to the territory between latitude thirty
five degrees and forty-fve degrees north,
and longitude ten degrees and twenty-five
degrees west. They are purely local in
effect, although their cause may be remote
always depend upon, and frequently accom-
pany the meteorological conditions develop
ed during the progress of the cyclone proper
across the country They may occur near,
Or in advance of, the cyclonic storm center;
or they may appear near the outer edge Of
the general disturbance, hundreds of miles
away, They usually develop within the
area of the highest temperature, and are
often preceded by brassy sky, and hot,
gusty winds, sometimes followed by sultry
atmosphere and an ominous calm.
They occur most frequently near the
close of the day-their general direction
being from southwest to northeast. They
vary much in size and force but all have
the same general characteristics in regard
to appearance and action, being funnel
shaped cloud, heavily charged with cleo
tricity, that goes bounding and whirling
along in close proximity to the earth's
surface, dealing death and destruction
wherever it touches The generally ac-
cepted belief is that tornado clouds are
formed suddenly by the meeting of warm
and cold currents of air; or, by the union
of positive with negative cloudy, par
tial vacuum being formed, constituting the
axis around which the cloud begins to
whirl, gathering strength and increased
velocity as it goes.
As the tornado now sweeps onward in
its course it rises and falls with a series of
bounds, and, with swaying motion, de-
scribes ngzag course, now forming a
chain of loops and again shooting off on
an obtuse angle, varying in the speed of
its forward motion, which may be anywhere
from ten to thirty miles an hour. At the
same time it is rapidly whirling on its axis
in the opposite direction from screw, or
the hands of clock, the air revolving
around the vortex necessarily attaining
speed of several hundred miles an hour
First widening, then contracting, now
bounding above the tree-tops, and again
descending to sweep the earth bare of every
object within its reach, the aerial monster
surges onward. The largest forest trees,
mere playthings in its grasp, are plucked
up by the roots or snapped off like pipe
stems substantial buildings are first crush
ed like eggshells, then caught upin vor-
tex and the debris carried sometimes for
miles, before it is again thrown off by cen
trifugal force, and falls by gravitation any
where, everywhere, as soon as removed
from the monsters grasp.
1t is difficult to accurately describe the
tornado's appearance and work, even for
those who have been eye-witnesses, or who
have personally passed through the horrors
its coming brings. While accounts differ
as to its appearance and behavior, as wit
messed from different points of observation
and under different circumstances, all sub
stantially agree that it is cone-shaped, its
motion rotary, that its apex resembles fire
and smoke, and that vivid lightning and
heavy rainfall usually accompany it. In
rare instances electricity, in the shape of
St Elmo's fire, viii precede the vortex, and
white steamy cloud will follow. 1t will
be observed that the form of the tornado
cloud is nicely illustrated by the "proof
plane" used in teaching natural philosophy.
The small end of the plane is most heavily
charged with electricity, and, the nearer it
approaches to a perfect point, the greater
will be the accumulation a high tension
is caused, and the electricity must escape
by some conductor So, in the tornado
cloud, the smaller the point or stem, the
greater the force exerted when it meets the
earth.-PopuIdr Science Monthly.