On three several hurricanes of the Atlantic, and their relations to the northers of Mexico and Central America, with notices of other storms / by W.C. Redfield.

  • William C. Redfield
Date:
1846
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On three several hurricanes of the Atlantic, and their relations to the northers of Mexico and Central America, with notices of other storms / by W.C. Redfield. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    with heavy rain ; sea running very high; wind veering from K. E. to N., and inclining to moderate. Oct. 5th, a. m., gale continues; barometer slowly rising; wind veering from N. to N. W.; sea running high and ship laboring heavily :—p. m., strong gales from N. W. with a heavy cross sea. Oct. 6th, a. m., winds moderate, from N. W.; lat. 20° 52', Ion. 84° 21'. [Capt. B. gives this as an abstract of a statement drawn up at the time. It shows the same phases of the gale on the 4th and 5th as with the Angola (6) and Openango (7); while the previous report of the wind's veering round the compass, during the gale, is also proved to be strictly correct. This statement shows, also, a perfect continuity in the double gale, at this locality, and possibly may indicate a detour in the axis-path of the second storm while in the Honduras sea, corresponding to the general system of progres- sion which is seen on Chart 1. The complete revolution of the storm-wind with this ship, whose change of position was not very great, but whose track and winds differ much in direction from those of Ihe Norman (19), is quite remarkable.—Capt. Brown says, the ship's drift was about two knots an hour, forming a kihd of circle. The di- ameter of this circuit may have been 30 to 40 miles. Capt. B. was in the Barbados hur- ricane on the 10th of August, 1831, and thinks this storm quite as bad, while it was of much longer duration. He thinks the ship must have foundered had she been on the oth- er tack] 11/). Barque Zaida, Sept. 27th, wai near Cape Cruz, S. side of Cuba, in lat. 20° 12', ■winds E. by N. to N. E., and continued to vary between N. E. and N. VV. till night of Sept. 30th, ending with fresh gales from N.—Oct. 1st, at 5 a. m., made Cape Antonio, [S. W. end of Cuba,] bearing N, N. W.; wind N. N. E., fresh breezes and clear; noon, lat. 22°, Ion. 85° 30'; p. m. fresh gales N. N. E., hazy. 7 p. m. took in top gallant sails.— Oct. 2d, strong breezes N. by E. and pleasant; 6 a. m. N. E. by N.; 11 a. m. single reef- ed topsails ; lat. obs. 22° 30', Ion. 85° 28'; p. m. commences strong from N. E., squally ; 3 p. m. took in jib and spanker; 4 p. M. close reefed fore and main topsails and furled mainsail, reefed foresail; ends strong gales from N. N. E.—Oct. 3d, took in fore topsail ; 4 a. M. furled foresail; sent down top gallant yards and hove to; gale still N. N. EL, with a heavy cross sea from N. E. and N. N. W., ship laboring hard ; up N. VV'., off N. S. VV.; noon, lat. obs. 23° 28', Ion. 84° 14'; p. m. heavy galo from N. N. E. and cloudy ; midnight, heavy squalls with rain.—Oct. 4th, 3 a. m. set reefed foresail; 4 a. m. gale N. E. by V, set close reefed fore topsail and mizen topsail; noon, lat. D. R. 23° 28', Ion. 83° 40' [?]; p. m. gale N. E. by N., squally ; 5 p.m. handed topsails and courses ; 8 p. H. set fore cour- ses.—Oct. 5th, 4 a. H. wind N. by W.; 7 a. m. N. N. VV., squally, a heavy sea from N, E.; noon, lat. 23° 15'; p. m. fresh gales from N. N. W., cloudy, a heavy sea from S. E., N. E. and N. VV.; 2 P. U. set fore topsail and mainsail; 4 p. m. wind N. N. W.; 8 i>. >i. N. W. by N.—Oct. 6th, \. M. wind N. W. by N., fresh breezes and fine weather; noon, lat. 23° 27'; i>. U. winds N. JN. W. ; 8 p, M. N. N. E. [trades] light and variable. Capt. CHAPMAN states that during the gale the Gulf Stream current, off Cuba, had be- come changed in its course, drifting the Zaida rapidly to the westward ; so that on the morning of the 7th he found himself off Cape Cartouche, in Ion. 86° 40'. On the 11th of October, at 3 p. H. he picked up the two survivors of the Saratoga, off Cape Florida, in lat. 25° 40'. [This position of the piece of wreck appears to show, also, the extraordinary check of the surface current of the Florida stream; for these men were drifted off the Hank as early as the 7th. See case 43, ante. The Zaida evidently had the double gale ; the second superseding the first, early on the night of Oct, 3d.] ('apt. IWcGuiRE, of the Rebecca (201, states that the second gale, at Santa Cruz, began in the S. K quarter, and went round by the S. to the westward, ending on ihe 5th. At 10 \. m. of 4th, had got to be very heavy, and fluctuated in tremendous squalls between S. S. VV. and W. S. W. till i P. M., When it began to veer more westward, gradually abating. 356. Capt. Leslie, from St. Juan de Los Kemedios, [N. side of Cuba, lat. 22 37', Ion. 79° 40',] reports that a very severe gale of wind occurred at that place on the 1st of Octo- ber and continued until the 8d, commencing from N. to N. E., and ending at S. E., caus- ing considerable damage to planters. Charleston Patriot. 45c. Marque Calijornui, Sept. 30ih, lat. obs. 24° 51', Ion. 79° 31'; 2 p. m. fresh gales N. E. by E., cloudy, rough sea; 4 p. m. two reefed the topsails; 10 p. m. wind E. N. E.—