The record-union., 1891-02-26
THE TERM ''CYCLONE." /"
Signal Observer Barwick Contends Its
Use is Harmless.
He Would Apply 1t to All storms That
Move in Other Than Straight
Lines of Travel.

article this morning in reference to the
manner in which Lieutenant Finley uses
the word "cyclone-, instead of the word
''storm," and that ,lc word "cyclone" is
terror to the people of Kansas, Iowa and
other Western States east of the Rocky
mountains, beg leave to say that the
term brings no fear to Eastern people;
but the word tornado" does. When
tornado does occur it is always on the
south side of storm (cyclonic) center,
and always in the southeast quadrant.
Tornados seldom, if ever, occur in
winter. Speaking about the word
'cyclone," / take great pleasure in ap
pending the following description and
origination of the word, as taken from q
most valuable and useful work called
"Piddington's Sailors Horn-Book on the
Law of Storms, etc." by Henry Pidding-
ton, President of Marine Courts, Calcutta.
This is an old edition 1859, which shows
that the word ''cyclone" was coined years
ago. What Professor Piddington says is
as follows:
But these words-storm, gale, hurri-
cane, tempest, etc.-are very liable to be
used indiscriminately and confounded,
and thus produce some perpleXity, and
even mislead the plain seaman. Our new
or vorteX-like (vorticular) motion, re-
quires new word 10 distinguish winds
OF all kinds having greatly curved courses
from those which, like the trades and
monsoons, we may assume to be
blowing in straight, or nearly straight
lines. l am not altogether averse
TO new names, but l well know
how sailors, and indeed many landsmen,
dislike them; / suggested, however, in
the former, editions that we might, per-
haps, for all this last class of circular or
highly-curved winds, adopt the term
cyclone from the Greek word which
signifies, among other things, the coil OF
a snake), as neither affirming the circle to
be true one, though the circuit may be
complete, yet expressing sufficiently the
tendency to circular motion in these
meteors. We should by the use of it be
able to speak without confounding names
which may express either circular or
straight winds-such as gale Storm
hurricane etc.--with those which are
more frequently Used (as 'hurricane') to
designate merely their strength. This is
what leads to CONFUSION, for we say of,
and we, the authors, ourselves, write
about ships and places in the same
Storm having the storm commencing
the gale increasing the hurricane pass
ing over and the like. merely because
the ships or localities of which we speak
had the wind of different degrees of
strength, though the whole were expert
encing parts of the same circular storm.
"CyctOiddt is a known word, but it ex-
presses relation to a defined geometrical
curve, and one not sufficiently approach
ing our usual views, which are those OF
something nearly, though not perfectly,
circular. Now, if we used single word
and said, the cyclone commenced, in
creased, passed over, etc, we should get
rid of all this ambiguity, and use the same
word to express the same thing in all
cases; and this without any relation to
the strength of the wind, for which we
might freely use all the words, breeze
gale storm tempest hurricane
'typhoon,' ETC., as we pleased.
Il have now before me October, 1S46)
newspaper extract giving an account of
meeting of the florists, market gar
deners and others of the South London
district, to consider means to repair their
losses i'll a severe thunder and hail-storm
which occurred III the month of July or
August of that year. In this article the
words gale storm and hurricane are
used to speak of the meteor as the
French call 1t. And in another, giving
an account of storm which visited
Edinburgh on the 4th of March, the tenn
pest is alternately spoken of as gale
and hurricane and Professor Nichol,
of the Glasgow Observatory, finally
speaks OF it as a storm of translation or
a moving whirlwind,' of large radius,
but ofimmense power. The simple word
cyclone would express all which Pro-
fessor Nichol wished to say, and he
would then, as well as the editor of the
newspaper, have had all his words to ex-
press the violence of the (hail and thunder)
storm without, by using the term 'hurri-
cane for instance, leading their readers
TO suppose that there was anything rotary
about the wind, if they did not mean to
express this.
in the first edition of this work 1
4,, 70,
as TO add II III parentheSiS wherever [
wished to express wind blowing in
circuit, whether a circle or an ellipse, or
awind describing a spiral by its pro-
gression while turning, and as the word
has been generally approved of, and i'll
all cases found to be not only unobiec-
tionable, but often highly convenient,
have now, as noted at the heading of this
part, adopted it with its natural deriy-
atives, 'cyclonic' and 'cyclonal,' and even
'cyclonology,' when speaking of our new
science, throughout the present edition.
And it has been so generally adopted that
have reason to believe it has now be-
come a recognized English, as well as a
professional and scientific word"
The above, Mr.. Editor, is the origin of
the word which is now in so general use
among all meteorologists to designate n
storm of many miles in diameter and cir
culnterence, and of revolving nature.
Certainly you and your many readers
have not forgotten the severe storm of
wind, rain and hail that passed over a
portion of Colusa County last summer.
and laid waste everything in its path and
II was but few days ago that there was a
tornado or waterspout seen from Redondo
Beach, out in the ocean. kicking up the
spray. fthat little circular zephyr had
reached the land there would have been
complete annihilation wherever it struck.
Dana, in his work Two Years Before
the Mast" says that during southeastern
his vessel was obliged to put to sea from
Santa Barbara, on the coast of California,
and that they tthe southeasters) seldom
last above two days, and are often over in
twelve hours.
Speaking of the storm to-day Sunday,
the following verse from Falconers
'Shipwreck" appears to be appropriate
on this occasion:
perhaps this storm (cyclone) is sent with
healing breath
From neighborlng shores to scourge disease
and death?
It's ours on thine unerring laws to trust.
With thee, great Lord, whatever is, is just,
JAMES A. BARwICK,