The Gold Fields of St. Domingo; With a Description of the Agricultural, Commercial and Other Advantages of Dominica. and Containing Some Account of Its Climate, Seasons, Soil, Mountains and Its Principal Cities, Rivers, Bays and Harbors (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1860 Excerpt: ...to blow back from the sea to the interior valleys and mountains, increasing in intensity until about two or three o'clock in the morning when it abates, and ceases a little before sunrise. This is called the sea or night "breeze, and agitates and cools the air during the night. The effect of these two breezes forms a very curious contrast. That of the sea coming from the circumference (chiefly however from the East) towards the centre, advances in that general direction, (although its direction is modified somewhat by the courses of the valleys and ridges, ) agitating the leaves and murmuring in the forests, while the land breeze has an eifect exactly opposite, and the more the situation approximates the centre of the island, the sooner does it manifest itself. It must not however be imagined that the alternation and succession of these breezes are so uniform as not to be affected by other and extraneous causes. At certain times of the year, particularly during the equinoxes and solstices, the sea breeze becomes very strong, sometimes even impetuous, and during several days blows without interval or with very brief cessations, during which the land breeze is not felt at all. At such seasons the sea breeze usually augments at the rising of the sun as if encouraged by his presence. At other times the land-breeze predominates, particularly during the tempestuous season in April, May and June. As almost all the thunder storms are formed and come from the interior of the island, as soon as they begin to overspread the sky the sea breeze is beaten back and dies away, leaving the empire of the horizon to the land. After the storm is past, the land breeze often continues predominant during the night, when in the morning the sea breeze drives it back to its retr...