HURRICANE.

The Favourite had experienced a hurricane* off Mangaia Island, the natives of which gave notice of its approach; and at Tahiti Captain Sullivan was also told that he might expect a hurricane before long.  From this, and the experience of other navigators, it appears that rotatory gales are prevalent in the Pacific as well as in the Indian Ocean.

(Footnote.  Although this hurricane has been noticed, and the Favourite’s Log published in the Nautical Magazine, I think it will be useful to continue the practice of entering into some detail respecting every hurricane that came under my observation.  This storm, it appears, was encountered off Mangaia, one of the Harvey Isles, lying about midway between the Society and Hapai Groups.  The Favourite was in latitude 21 degrees 58 minutes South, longitude 158 degrees 02 minutes West, five miles South-West by West from Mangaia, at noon on the 17th December, 1842, steering West by South 1/2 South before a moderate gale from East-North-East, with cloudy rainy weather.  At 3 P.M. she had gone 27 miles, when the wind, which had increased to a strong gale, veering to North-East, the course before it was now South-West; but at the end of another hour, having run eight miles, the wind increased to a storm, and veering again to the eastward, the ship was brought to the wind on the port tack under a main trysail.  For the hours 5 and 6, she headed from South to South-West, which would give for the direction of the wind about South-East by East.  At 6.30 a man was washed away with the lee quarter-boat.  At 8, the wind had veered to South by West, having blown a hurricane, with constant rain for the last hour; at 9 most of the half-ports were washed away, the sea making a clean sweep over the decks.  By midnight the wind had subsided to a whole gale; but still veering had reached the West-South-West point, and at 3 the next morning it was blowing only a moderate breeze from West-North-West, with tolerably clear weather.  Sail was now made, and a South-West by South course held for 28 miles, when by the noon observation the latitude was 22 degrees 1 minute South, longitude, by chronometer, 158 degrees 44 minutes West.  The day following the hurricane the wind was moderate from the westward; and on that previous to it of about the same strength from the northward.  The ship’s position at noon of the latter day was about 130 miles to the North-East by East of Mangaia Island.  The duration of this storm, then, may be considered to have been from 4 P.M. to midnight, in which eight hours the wind had veered gradually from East round by South to West-South-West.  The veering being much more rapid between 8 and 9 P.M. when the storm was at its height, the ship must at that time, have been nearer the focus.  The tack on which the Favourite was hove to carried her into the course of the hurricane, or rather placed her in a position to be overtaken by it, as it passed along to the southward