The Arkansaw traveler., 1888-11-17
THE sIMooM.
Alta California.

/ Alta California.
The most remarkable Of the hot
winds is the sfmoom (sdm6uli, srRssna,
Shel00k, etc.,, the violent whirlwind,
with or without sand, which affects
the deserts of Africa and southwestern
Asia. The great heat of the soil pass
ing into the atmosphere causes an ap-
probable expansion and Tightening of
the latter, resulting in the formation
of small cyclonic disturbances. The
surrounding atmosphere, in the never
ceasing natural struggle to maintain
an equilibrium, rushes In to I'LL the
space vacated by the expanded air, and
in its turn undergoes the same process
until at last there is q powerful cur
rent drawn into the vortex, frequently
bringing with it quantities of loose
sand, and the cyclone then becomes
visible-huge columns of sand whirl-
ing round and moving forward at the
same time. The air, already very dry
before the simoom originated, now be-
comes still more from the presence of
the dense cloud of dust. Away goes
| tine storm acFoss the desert; st frat II
is seen as low hare on the horizon,
but quickly spreading the cloud ad-
vances, sometimes slowly, sometimes
rapidly, the tall pillars being visible
long way off darkening the atmos-
phere and bringing with them great
destruction. In the whirl the wind
blows with the force of hurricane,
hills of sand are taken up, and are
49, tHN az hnY.NH
into new hills wherever the storm
chooses to- deposit them, so that the
desert is dotted with frequently shift
ing sand ranges Under these are bur-
led whole caravans of traders, travel
ers and even armies. The simoom Is
supposed to have annihilated the arm
les of Sennacherib and Cambyses.
So terribly dry Is the air In these
storms that 1t is fatal to vegetation,
while the density OF the dust-cloud
makes 1t almost impossible for human
beings to breathe. This gives rise to
the idea that the wind contained
deadly poison; hence the Arabic ST.
noon. signifying poisonous wind,
but it Is no more poisonous than any
other wind, its fatal qualities being
simply the excessive dryness and the
quantity of fine sand with which II Is
loaded. The temperature OF the air
has been known to rise to 1873 degrees,
and it's desiccating effect is seen In
dried up mouths and nostrils, In skin
cracking, interEe thirst, painful and
difficult breathing and inability to
sleep. The time occupied in passing q
given spot varies between few min
utes and twenty or twenty-five hours,
the blast leaving behind 1t unmistak-
able evidence of the path 1t has trav-
eled. The hot, parching air OF the Oh
noon, almost as soon as the breath Is
out of the body and before decompo-
sition has time to set in, causes the
flesh to lose all its firmness and con-
sistency, so that it drops or may be
taken Off the bones easily.
A party of officers sleeping OH the
roof of General Jacobs house at ia
cobabad thus recount their experience
of the simoom "They were awakened
by sensation of suffocation and an
exceedingly hot, oppressive feeling in
the air, while at the same time pow
erful smell of sulphur pervaded the
atmosphere. On the following morn
ing a number of trees in the garden
were found to be withered In re- |
markable manner. 1t was as If a cur
rent of fire about twelve yards in
breadth had psssed through the gar
den in straight line, smuggling and de-
stroying every green thing In its
course. Entering on one side and
passing out on the other, its path was
as defined as the course of river"
Palgrave was overtaken by one of
these scourges In northern Arabia.
After some preliminary remarks on
the advance of the simeon, he pro-
ceeds: $50 dark was the atmosphere
and 30 burning the heat that 1t seemed
that hell had risen from the earth or
descended from above. But at the
moment when the worst of the con-
centrated poison-blast was coming |
round we were already PROSTATE, one
and all, within the tent, with our
heads well wrapped up, almost suffo-
Gated, indeed, but safe while our cam
els lay without like dead, their long |
necks stretched out on the sand, await |
ing the passing Of the gale.
1--WE remained thus for ten minutes,
during which still heat, like that Of
a red hot iron slowly passing over us,
was alone to be felt Then the tent
walls began again to flap In the re-
turning gusts, and announced that the
worst of the simoom had gone by.
Ny comrades appeared more like
corpses than living men, and so, / sup |
pose, did /. However / could not for |
bear, In spite Of warnings, 70 step out
aud iook At the ramele. they were still |