Volume 1

Atlas geographus: or, a compleat system of geography, ancient and modern / Containing what is most of use in Bleau, Varenius, Cellarius, Cluverius, Baudrand, Brietius, Sanson, &c. With the discoveries and improvements of the best modern authors to this time. Illustrated with about 100 new maps, done from the latest observations, by Herman Moll, geographer. And many other cuts, by the best artists.

  • Moll, Herman, -1732
Date:
1711-1717
    does gradually decreafe as you fail to the Weft ward'. 3^ That the Limits of the Trade and va¬ riable Winds in this Ocean are farther ex¬ tended on the American Side than the Afri¬ can ; for whereas you meet not with this certain Wind till after you have pafs’d the Latitude of 28 Deg. on this Side, on the American Side it commonly holds to 30, 3 r, or 3 2 Degrees of Latitude : And this is ve¬ rified like wife to the Southward of the Equi¬ noctial ; for near the Cape of Good Hope, the Limits of the Trade-Winds are 3 or 4 De¬ grees nearer the Line than on the Coaft of Brafle. 4. That from the Latitude of 4 Degrees North, to the aforefaid Limits on the South of the Equator, the Winds are generally and perpetually between the S. and E. and rnoft commonly between the S. E. and E.ob- ferving always this Rule, That on the Afri¬ can Side they are more Southerly, on the Braflian more Eafterly, fo as to become al- moft due Eaft ; the little RefleClion they have being ftill to the Southward. In this Part of the Ocean it has been my Fortune to pafs a full Year, in an Employment that oblig’d me to regard more than ordinary 'the Weather, and I found the Winds con- ftantly about the S. E. the moft ufual Point S E. by E. When it was Eafterly, it gene¬ rally blew hard, and was gloomy, dark, and fometimes rainy Weather : If it came to the Southward, it was generally ferene, and a final]* Gale next to a Calm ; but this nor ve¬ ry common: But I never faw it to the Weft, ward of the South, or Northward of the Eaft. 5. That the Seafon of the Year has fome fmall Efteft on thefe Trade-Winds ; for that when the Sun is confiderable to the Northward of the Equator, the S. E. Wind-s, efpecially in the Streight of this Ocean, (if I may fo call it) between Brafle and the Coaft of Guinea, do vary a Point or two t© the Southward, and the N. E. become more Eafterly : And on the contrary, when the Sun is towards the Tropic of Capricorn the South-Eafterly Winds become more Eafterly, and the North-Eafterly Winds on this Side the Line vere more to the North¬ ward. 6. That as there is no general Rule that admits not of fome Exception, fo there is in this Ocean a Trad of Sea wherein the Southerly and S. W. Winds are perpetual, 'viz. all along the Coaft of Guinea, for above 500 Leagues together, from Sierra Leona to the Me of St. Thomas ; for the S E. Trade- Wind having pafs’d the Line, and approach¬ ing the Coaft of Guinea within 80 or 100 Leagues, inclines towards the Shore, and becomes S. S E. and by degrees, as you come nearer, it veres about to S. S. W. and in with the Land S. W. and fometimes W. S. W. which Variation is better ex* preffd in the Map hereto annex’d, (Vide Map ) than it can well be in Words. Thefe are the Winds which are obferv’d on this Coaft when it blows true ; but there are- frequent Calms, violent fudden Guftsca’l’d Tornado's, from all Points of the Compafs, and fometimes unwholefome foggy Eafterly Winds, call’d Hermitaa by the Natives, which too often infeft the Navigation of thefe Parts. 7. That to the Northward of the Line,- between 4 and 10 Degrees of Latitude, and between the Meridians of Cape Verde and of the Eaftermoft Iftands that bear that Name, there is a Tra£b of Sea wherein it were improper to fay there is any Trade- Wind, or yet a variable ; for it feems con^* denmed to perpetual Calms, attended with terrible Thunder and Lightning, and Rains fo frequent, that our Navigators from thence call this Part of the Sea the Rains : The little Winds that are, be only fome fudden uncertain Gufts, of very little Continuance, and lefs Extent; fo that fometimes each Hour you fh&ll have a different Gale, which dies away into a Calm before another fuc- ceed ; and in a Fleet of Ships in fight of one another, each fhall have the Wind from a feveral Point of the Compafs. With thefe weak Breezes, Ships are oblig’d to make the beft of their Way to the Southward thro’ the aforefaid 6 Degrees, wherein ’tis re¬ ported fome have been detained whole Months for want of Wind, From the 3 laft Obfervables, is fhewn the Reafon of two notable Occurrents in the Eaf-India and Guinea Navigations: The one is, why notwithftanding the narroweft Part of the Sea between Guinea and Brafle - be about 700 Leagues over, yet Ships bound to the Southward fometimes, efpecially in the Months of July and Auguf, find a great Difficulty to pal&ito This happens because
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    tilde, being near Sumatra and Java, the Con¬ trary Winds from the N. W. or between the N. and W. fet in and blew for half a Year, viz. from the Beginning of December till Alay: And this Moftfoon is obferved as far as the Molucca Ifles ; of which more anon. 3. That to the Northward of 3 Degrees South Latitude, over the whole Arabian or Indian Sea, and Gulph of Bengali, from Su¬ matra to the Coaft of Africa, there is ano¬ ther Monfoon,blowing from OBober to April upon theN. E. Points ; but in the other half Year, from April to OBober, upon the oppofite Points of S. W. and W, S. W. and that with rather more Force than the other, accompanied with dark rainy Weather; whereas' the N. E. blows clear. ’Tis like- wife to be noted, That the Winds are not fo conftant, either in Strength or Point, in the Gulph of Bengali, as they are in the In¬ dian Sea, where a certain and fteady Gale fcarce ever fails. ’Tis alfo remarkable, That the S. W. Winds in thefe Seas are ge¬ nerally more Southerly on the African Side, more Wefterly on the Indian. 4. That as an Appendix to the la ft de- fcrib’d Monfoon, there is a Tra& of Sea to the Southward of the Equate^, fubjeft to the fame Changes of the Wind, viz near the African Coaft, between it and the Ifland Madagafcar or St. Lawrence, and from thence Northward as far as the Lihe; wherein, from April to OBober, there is found a con¬ ftant frefh S. S. W. Wind, which, as you go more Northerly, becomes ftill more and more Wefterly, fo as to fall in with the W. S. W. Winds, mention’d before inthofe Months of the Year to be certain to the Northward of the Equator.- What Winds blow in thefe Seas for the other half Year, from OBober to April, I have not yet been able to obtain to my full Satisfaction ; for that our Navigators always return from In¬ dia without Madagafcar, and fo are little ac¬ quainted in this Matter : The Account that has been given me is only this, That the Winds are much Eafterly hereabouts, and as often to the North of the true Eaft, as to the Southward thereof. 5. That ro the Eaftward of Sumatra and Malacca, to the' Northward, of the Line, and along the Cdaft of Camboia and China, the Mo nib oris blow North and South ; that is to fay, the N:'E. Winds are much Norther- 5 ly, and the S. W. much Southerly. This Conftitution reaches to the Eaftward of the Philippine Ifles, and as far Northerly as Ja- pan; the Northern Monfoon letting in, in thefe Seas, in OBober and November, and the Southern in May, blowing all the Summer Months. Here it is to be noted, That the Points of the Gompafs, from whence the Wind comes in thele Parts of the World, are not fo fix’d as in thofe lately deferib’d ; lor the Southerly will frequently pafs a Point or two to the Eaftward of the South, and the Northerly as much to the Weft- ward of the North ; which feerns occafton'd by the great Quantity of Land which is in- terfpers’d in thefe Seas. 6. That in the fame Meridian, but to the Southward of the Equator, being that Traft lying between Sumatra and Java to the Weft, and New Guinea to the Haft* the fame Northerly Monfoons are cbferv’d, but with this Difference, That theinclina¬ tion of the Northerly is towards the'N. W. and of the Southerly towards the S. E. but thq Ph’ga Venti are not more conftant’here than in the former, 'viz. variable 5 or 6 Points : Befides, the Times of the Change of thefe Winds are not the Catrte as in the Chinefe Seas, but about'a Month or 6 Weeks later. 7. That thefe Contrary Winds do not fliift all at once ; but in fome Places the Time of the Change is attended with Calms, in others with variable Winds : And it is particularly remarkable, That the End of the Wefterly Monfoon on the Coaft of Coromandel, and the two laft Months of the Southerly Monfoon in the Seas of China, are very fubjeCt to be Tempeftuous. The Violence of thefe Storms is fuch, that they feem to be of the Nature ofthe H^ef-India Hurricanes, an&render*the Navigation of thefe Parts very unfafe about that Time of the Year. Thefe Tempeftsare by our Sea¬ men ufually term’d, The Breaking up of the Mon font. By reafon of the fhiftitrg of thefe Wiftds, all thofe that fail in thefe Seas? are oblig’d to obferve the Seafons proper Tor theft* Voyages ; and fo doing, they fail not of a fair Wind, and fpeedy Paffage : ftut if fo be they chance to out-ftay their Time till the contrary Monfoon fet in, as it frequently happens, they are forc’d to give over the L Hopes
    Hopes of accompiUhing their intended Voyages, and either return to the Port from whence they came, or elfe put into fome other Harbour ; there to fpend the Time till the Wind fhaJl become favourable. Ill The 3d Ocean, call’d Mare Pacificum, whole Extent is equal to that of the other Two, (it being from the Weft Coaft of America to the Philippine Mauds not lefs than 150 Degrees of Longitude) is that which is lead known to our own or the neighbour Nations: That Navigation that there is on if, is by the Spaniards^ who go Yearly from the CoaH: of New Spain to the Manilha s f but that but by one beaten Track; fo that I cannot be io particular here, as in the other Two. What the Spanifk Authors fay of the Winds, they find in their Courfes ; and what is confirm’d by the old Accounts of Drake md Candijh, and fince by School eft, who fail’d the whole Breadth of this Sea in the Southern Latitude of 15: or 16 Degrees, is, , That there is a great Conformity between the Winds of this Sea, and thole of the At¬ lantic and Ethiopia ; that is to fay, That to the Northward of the Equator,the predomi- - mat Wind is between the E, and N. R. and to the Southward thereof there is a con- ftant Heady Gale,between the E: and S. E. and that on both Sides the Line with fo much Conftancy, that they fcarce ever need to attend the Sails ; and Strength, that *tis rare to fail of crofting this vaft Ocean in 10 Weeks time, which is about 130 Miles per Diem.. Betides, 9tis faid, That Storms and Tempefts are never known in thefc Parts ; fo that here is the very belt of Sail¬ ing, no Want of a frefh fair Wind, and yet no Danger of having too much: Where¬ fore fome have thought it might be as fhorc a Voyage to Japan and China, to go by the Streights of Magellan,as ‘m? the Cape of Coed Hope. The Limits of thefe General Winds are alfo much the fame as in the Atlantic Sea,* *uiz. about the 30th Degree of Latitude on both Sides ; for the Spaniards homeward- bound from the ManilhcPs, always take the Advantage of the Southerly Monfoon,blow- in there in the Summer Months, and run up to the Northward of that Latitude, as high as Japan, before they meet with va¬ riable Winds, to ftiape their Courfe to the Ea ft ward, And Schooten and others, that. have gone about by tbs, , Magellan Streights, have found the La/nUs of S..E. Winds much about the fame Latitude to the Southward. Befides, ae'farther Analogy between thq Winds of this Ocean, and the Ethiopia, ap¬ pears in that upon the Coaft of Pern, they are always muck Southerly, like as they are found near the Shores of Angola. Thus far Matter of Fa&, wherein if the Information I have receiv’d be not in all Parts accurate, it has net been for want of Enquiry from thofe I conceiv’d beft able to inftru& me ; and I Ihall take it for a very great Kindnefs if any Mafter of a Ship, px other Perfon, wrell inform’d of the Nature of the Winds in any of the aforemention’d Parts of the World, Ihall pleafe to commu¬ nicate their Obfervations thereupon ; fb that what I have here collected, may be ei¬ ther confirm’d or amended,- or, by the Ad¬ dition of fome material Circumftances, en¬ larged. ’Tis not the Work of one, nor of few, but of a multitude of Obfervers, to bring together the Experiments requifite to compofe a perfect and compleat Hiftory of thefe Winds. However, I am not much doubtful that I have err’d in, or omitted, any of the principle Obfervables, whatever lelfer Particlts may have efcap’d mv Know¬ ledge. To help the Conception of the Reader in a Matter of fo much Difficulty, L be¬ liev’d it necelTary to adjoin a Scheme, {hewing at one View all the varidus Tra&s and Courfes of thefe Winds ; whereby "’tis pofllble the Thing may be better'un- derftood, than by any Verbal Defection whatsoever. The Limits of thefe feveral Tra&s are defign’d every where by prick’d Lines, as well in the Atlantic and Ethiopic, where they are the Boundaries of the Trade and varia¬ ble Winds, as in the Indian Ocean, where they alfo {hew the Extent of the feveral Monfoons. I could think of no better Way to defign the Courfe of the Winds on the Map, than by drawing Rows of Strokes in the fame Line that a Ship would move, going always before it ; the lharp End of each little Stoke pointing out that Part of the Horizon, from whence the Wind con¬ tinually comes : And where there are Mon¬ foons, the Rows of the Strokes run alter¬ nately backward and forward ; by which Means
    The General IntroduSHon Me IBs they are thicker there than elfe- where, As to the great South Sea, confi- Sering its vaff Extent, and the little Va¬ riety there is m its Winds, and. the great Analogy between them and thofe of the At¬ lantic and Ethiopic Ocean ; befides that the greateft Part thereof is wholly unknown to us; I thought it unneceflary to lengthen the Map therewith. In the foregoing Hiftory are contain’d fe¬ ver al Problems, that merit well the Confide- ration of our acuteft Naturalifts, both by reafon of the Conftancy of the EfFeft, and of the immenfe Extent thereof; near half the Surface of the Globe being concern’d. The chief of thefe Problems are, i. Why thefe Winds are perpetually from the E. in the Atlantic and Ethiopic, as likewife in the Pacific Ocean,between the Latitudes of 30 N. and 30 S ? 2. Why the faid Winds extend no farther with Conftancy than to the La¬ titudes of 30 Degrees ? 3. Why there fhould be a conftant South-Wefterly Wind Upon and near the Coaft of Guinea ? 4. Why in the North Part of the Indian Ocean the Winds, which for one half Year do agree with thofe of the other two Oceans, fhould change in the other half Year, and blow from the oppofite Points, wliilft the Sou¬ thern Part of that Ocean follows the Gene¬ ral Rule,and has perpetual Winds about S. E ? 5. Why in thefe General Trade-Winds it fhould be always true, That to the North¬ ward of the Equator, it is inclined to the Northward of the Eaft ; and in South Lati¬ tudes, to the Southward thereof ? 6, Why in thefe Seas of China, there fhould be fo great an Inclination from the E. to the N. more than elfewhere ? With many more, which it would be much eafier to propofe, than anfwer. ' But left I fhould feem to propofe to others, Difficulties Which I have not thought worth my own Time and Pains, take here the Re- fult of an earned: Endeavour after the true Reafon of the aforefaid Phenomena ; wherein if I am not able to account for all Particu¬ lars, yet *tis hoped, the Thoughts I have fpent rhereon will not be judged wholly loft by the Curious in Natural Enquiries. Wind is moft properly defin’d to be the Stream or Current of the Air ; and where fuch a Current is perpetual and fix’d in its Courfe, ’fis neccflary that it proceed from to G E O 6 8. A P H Y. J f a permanent unmtermming Caufe. Where¬ fore fome have been niclindto propofe the Diurnal Rotation of the Earrh upon i s Axis, by which, as the Globe turns Eaft- ward, the loofe and fluid Particles of the Air, being fo exceeding light as they be, are left behind ; fo that in refpeft of the Earth’s Surface, they move Weftward, and become a conftant Eafterly Wind. This Opinion feetns confirmed > for that thefe Winds are found only near the Equino&ial, in thofe Parallels of Latitude where the Di¬ urnal Motion is fwifteft ; and I fhould rea¬ dily aflent to it, if the conftant Calms in the Atlantic Sea near the Equator, the We- fterly Winds near the Coaft of Guinea, and the Periodical Wefterly Monfoons under the Equator in the Indian Seas, did not de¬ clare the Inefficiency of that Hypothefis, Befides, the Air being kept to the Earth by the Principle of Gravity, would acquire the fame Degree of Velocity that the Earth’s Surface moves with, as well m relpedt of the Diurnal Rotation, as of the Annual about the Sun, which is about three times fwifeer. It remains therefore to fubftitute fome other Caufe, capable of producing a like conftant Effeft, not liable to the fame Ob» je£fcions, but agreeable to the known Pro« perties of the Elements of Air and Waiter* and the Laws of the Motion of fluid Bodies. Such an one is, I conceive, the^A&ion of the Sun-rBeams upon the Air and Water, as he pafles every Day over the Oceans, con- fider’d together with the Nature of the Soil, and Situation of the adjoining Continents, I fay therefore, 1. That, according to the Laws of Statics, the Air, which is Jefs rarf fied, or expanded by the Heat, and conle- quently more Ponderous, mu ft: have a Mo¬ tion towards thofe Parts thereof which are more rarified,*and kfs Ponderous, to bring it to an Equilibrium: And, 2. That the Pre- fetice of the Sttn continually fhifting to the Weftward, that Part towards which the Air tends, by reafon of the Rarification made by his greateft Meridian Heat, is with him carried Weftward i and confequendy the Tendency of the whole Body of the lower Air is that Way. Thus a General Eafterly Wind is form’d, which being imprdVd upon all the Air of a yaft Ocean, the Parts impel one the other, - 5 L"~s m4,