The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1890-12-27
OCEAN WAVES.
Interesting Facts About the Force of the Ag-
itated Sea-Effect of the Velocity and
Continuance of the Wind-Experi-
ments With Waves and Their
Results.

From the New York Sun.
The enormous might and destructivenes,
of ocean waves, although long we'll knowr
by "those who 90 down to the sea in ships,
have never been more forcibly brought tC
the attention of landsmen than during the
past winter. The reports of shipmasters
engaged in the North Atlantic trade prove
conclusively that the winter of 19S9-'9(
was marked by more violent gales and more
tremendous seas than any other winter of
which we have any record.
1t is well known to seamen that about
the nastiest open ocean waves in the world
are in the Gulf Stream, to the Southwark
of the Banks, where the current opposes
them when they come from the East.
The current seems to make them narrower
and sleeper The size of wave is nothing
to sailor, provided it is broad enough on
the base and has sloping instead of steep
sides. The largest waves to be found are
off the Cape of Good Hope, where at times
there are not half dozen swells to the
mile, but they were not at all dangerous
compared with such a sea, for instance, as
was encountered by the steamer Glamorgan
in her passage from Liverpool to Boston a
few years ago The steamer was noted for
her structural strength, but she was boarded
during gale by one wave that tore off
her iron bulwarks as if they were made of
cardboard, carried away her boats, broke
away the whole side of the iron house on
deck, tore off matches, filled the hold, and
made her complete wreck.
The Scythia, in a voyage to Boston last
January, made during twenty-four hours
307 miles by the indicated revolution of
the screw, but, in fact, she made only sc
miles ahead, owing to the propeller being
almost constantly out of the water while
the vessel vas riding the enormous seas.
In the same gale the Sandman, from Port
land to Liverpool, shipped sea that tore
from its fastenings her heavy iron smoke
stack, flooded the fireroom and put out the
fires, smashed all her boats but one, and
killed three men. In the same month the
steamship Rhynland, from Antwerp for
New York, was boarded by one sea that
smashed five of her boats, her wheelhouse
and her port rail. Another sea fell on
deck, smashing three more boats, carrying
away the rail, breaking the heavy iron
turtleback and disabling the steering gear.
The Italia was struck by sea that snapped
off two blades of her propeller as though
they were pipestems.
DISABLED ON THE OCEAN.
Half the steamers that crossed ting North
Atlantic in the past winter had to put into
Halifax for fresh supply of coal, and sew
eral were obliged to burn their boats, spars,
bulwarks and even portions of their cargo
to reach port Many of them with their
bows pointed to the sea and their powerful
engines going at full speed could not make
any headway against the tremendous force
of the waves and wind. Many were obliged
to put back to Liverpool, as during days
and weeks of battling with the waves they
could make no headway against them. In
several cases the crews refused to do duty
unless the captain would put back to port
Some were actually set back by the ele-
ments, in spite of their efforts to drive
against them; others were only saved from
laundering by lying-to and using oil, and
others were overwhelmed in their terrible
battle with the awful seas, and went down.
Perhaps the influence of the tides on the
waves is nowhere more clearly shown than
on the coasts of Scotland In the long,
narrow bays that indent the coasts the
tides have very rapid current. No boat
can live there in gale that is running
contrary to the tide. There is theory
that the tides are the cause of very strik-
ing peculiarity of the waves in storm.
1t has been noticed that after a series Of
moderately high waves have passed a ship
she will encounter three in succession which
are conspicuously large. Then there will
be longer or shorter period of compara-
lively moderate waves, followed by three
more very large ones, and so on. Some
sailors believe that tides or currents trip
ping up the waves bring them together
until they unite in those enormous swells
that carry havoc on their crests. In sup
port of this is cited case at Peterhead
! Harbor, on the English Coast.
Over thirty years ago there was great
crowd of people down near the beach one
day watching the swells come in from the
severest storm on record at the time
About two hours before high water three
tremendous waves rolled in, and, breaking
on the beach, carried away 315 feet of a
great bufkhead built nine and half feet
above high water of the spring tides. One
piece of the wall weighing thirteen tons
was carried fifty feet. Two hours exactly
after high tide three more waves came in
of similar character, but they did less
damage. This was the first case ON record
in which the formation of the big seas was
connected with the time of the tides, but
similar observations have been frequent
since then.
1t is on record that the waves of the
German ocean once broke in two solid
column of freestone SO feet high and II
feet in diameter at the base The diameter
at the place of fracture was II feet. At
the top of Bound Skerry of Whalsey, in
Zetland, the waves have broken out of
their beds, which are 85 feet above the
level of the sea. blocks of stone weighing
from eight to ten tons. Smeaton, in his
history of the Eddystone lighthouse, says,
in referring to the power of waves, that
controlling these powers Of nature is sub
iect to no calculation"
LIKE HERCULES.
At Port Sonachan, in England, where
the "fetch" of the waves, or the breadth Of
the water over which they travel, is but
IA miles, block of stone weighing fonrth
of ton was torn out of solid stone stair
way leading from a landing 1t was then
rolled over and over. If such effects are
obtained under such circumstances, what
must be the force which Atlantic steamers
have to encounter? But for the enormous
strength of the modern steamer, and the
fact that she rarely receives the full impact
of the wave, few steamers could hope to
Withstand the tremendous power of the
ocean waves in gale of wind.
The case is entirely different with sail
ing vessels. These are lighter, more buoy