The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-01-15

to experienced eyes it gives a warning
| that must be needed. All along the
| west and parts of the south coasts of
England and Ireland, as well as the
west coast of Scotland uncounted tales
are told Of ships which on a perfectly
calm day have been within a few hours
first caught by a gentle roll of water
and finally thrown on a rock-bound
shore by the dreaded ground sea-"
To understand this curious marine
phenomenon it must be borne in mind
that out on the Atlantic waves are Of
ten formed to a height of forty feet.
Driven before a heavy gale. these adj
vance at rate of from thrifty to forty
miles an hour. Travelling at such a
rate they soon get out of the wind
swept area, but even though, for them
the storm is past they still roll in fury,
their undulations often being felt five
hundred miles from the point of their
creation.
In the region of the storms these
waves are fierce, breaking pillows, but
as they get further away, they settle
down into long rolling ridges, which
travel onward in long, unbroken lines,
perfectly parallel with each other. Out
on the open sea these ridges often
stretch out for distance of over thirty
miles, and as they travel in three, each
successive wave being larger than it's
predecessor, the sight is an imposing
one. The further they progress the
smaller they become in height, but this
is compensated for by the fact that
their motion Is communicated to the
mass of water below until the roll can
be detected full fifty feet under the sur
face. This gives them the name of
ground sea-
In this popularity their danger lies,
for when becalmed ship is caught In
them her draught, the resisting power
that enables her to ride out astorm, be-
comes the fulcrum which the liquid
mass uses to hurl her onward to de-
struction. On calm day any sailing
craft caught in the ground sea" near
a rocky shore is as good as lost unless
wind can spring UP and enable her
to beat out to sea- Many ship has met
this fate. The reason many more do not
get lost Is due to the gentle swell that
so deceives a landsman and warns the
sailor.
( AS the ground sea- advances 1T push
es certain amount'o of water before it.
This also forms into ridges like its pur-
suer, but Of less height, and approx
mately no depth. The false sea- as 1t
is called, is little more than a rolling
swell, but it gives warning of from
twenty minutes to two hours duration,
enabling a ship either to run into port,
get out sea, or securely anchor: while
at the seaside resorts the bootmen run
close in shore, to the surprise of the
"trippers."
When it is remembered that wave
twenty feet high, which is often attain
ed by the ground sea-" strikes with
force of one ton to the square inch,
the necessity for caution will be recog
nized
I All waves that come in parallel ridges,
however, are not dangerous as there is
a wind billow' that is closely allied to
the ground sea- in appearance. Wind
pillows are due to heavy wind blow
ing but few miles off the land, but as
they have but a comparatively short
distance to travel. they have no depth.
Consequently even rowing boat is per-
fectly safe on them If properly handled
-Pearson's Weekly,