earful stories that one has read of the typhoon
in the China seas applies equally to the hurricanes that strike our Gulf
coasts.

"Like all other tropical cyclones, the West Indian Hurricanes are formed
by an upward rising current of air over a moist heated area. There are
five cradles of such storms. One is over the Pacific ocean south-east of
Asia and gives the coast of China, the Philippine Islands and Japan the
typhoon. A second and a third are in the north and the south parts of
the Indian Ocean. A fourth, which is less frequent, is found east of
Australia.

"The cradle of the West Indian Hurricanes is in the North Atlantic,
about six to eight degrees north of the equator and from two hundred to
a thousand miles east of the West Indies. These hurricanes, when first
seen, are quite small but they increase in size and in motion as they
come westward. Most of them, when they reach the Lesser Antilles--where
Uncle Sam's new islands lie, the Virgin Islands--also increase in
whirlwind character, and turn northwestward, skirting the northern edge
of Porto Rico. This is the mean track. About seventy-five per cent of
them pass over a regular storm trail between Bermuda and Charleston,
most of these coming close to the coast and sweeping circularly away
from the land at Cape Hatteras. At the latitude of New York, the curve
has taken them half way round the circle and they disappear as violent
westerly gales, though beginning as easterly hurricanes.

"As you will have noticed, nearly all these storms come in the autumn.
That is because the cradle of the hurricane is the doldrums, and in
August and September, the Atlantic doldrums are at their furthest north.
The Chinese typhoons are most frequent in the same months of the year,
from the same cause."

"And this last one, sir," Tom asked, "the one that blew down my
anemometer last week and which smashed up the old windmill, was it just
like the hurricane of 1900?"

"I think I'll let my nephew tell you about that," was the reply; "he was
in the thick of it, and the people of Galveston gave him a medal for
bravery in connection with it, so he ought to be the one to speak."

"Gee, did you get a medal!" exclaimed Fred. "Do let's have a look at
it."

The young weather observer shook his head.

"I haven't got it with me," he said, a little embarrassed. "But if you
chaps want to hear about the Hurricane, I guess, perhaps, I can do
that." He smiled. "I don't know that I've an