OBSERVING the steady fall of the barometer¹, Captain MacWhirr thought, “There’s some dirty weather knocking about.” This is precisely² what he thought. He had had an experience of moderately dirty weather — the term dirty as applied³ to the weather implying only moderate discomfort⁴ to the seaman⁵. Had he been informed by an indisputable authority that the end of the world was to be finally accomplished⁶ by a catastrophic disturbance⁷ of the atmosphere, he would have assimilated the information under the simple idea of dirty weather, and no other, because he had no experience of cataclysms⁹, and belief does not necessarily imply comprehension. The wisdom of his county had pronounced by means of an Act of Parliament that before he could be considered as fit to take charge of a ship he should be able to answer certain simple questions on the subject of circular storms such as hurricanes, cyclones¹⁰, typhoons; and apparently¹¹ he had answered them, since he was now in command of the Nan-Shan in the China seas during the season of typhoons. But if he had answered he remembered nothing of it. He was, however, conscious of being made uncomfortable by the clammy heat. He came out on the bridge, and found no relief to this oppression. The air seemed thick. He gasped¹² like a fish, and began to believe himself greatly out of sorts.

The Nan-Shan was ploughing a vanishing

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