could again make the island. Another time
Mrs. White had a similar misfortune; the ship
was driven off for three weeks, and very nearly
lost!
Our house is (and all are built nearly after
the same model) a complete proof of the nationality
of an Englishman, and his partiality
for a comfortable fire-side. Though the latitude
is temperate, each room is furnished with
a noble fire-place ; and in what we call “ The
Government House,” we meet every night,
and sit round a large and cheerful blaze, each
telling his story, or adventures, or singing his
song; and we manage to pass the time pleasantly
enough.
Looking out from my abode, no spot in the
world can be more desolate ; particularly on
a blowing night. The roar of the sea is almost
deafening; and the wind rushing furiously
down the perpendicular sides of the mountains,
which are nearly nine hundred feet high,
and are masses of craggy rocks, has the most
extraordinary and almost supernatural effect.
No sooner does night set in than the air is
full of nocturnal birds, whose screams are particularly
mournful; and then comes the painful
reflection, that I am so many thousands of
miles from every human haunt, and separated
from all my friends and family, who are in
total ignorance of where I am, or what has
become of me. But I force myself to struggle
against dismal thoughts, unwilling that my
comrades (who do every thing in their power
to console me) should suspect how much I
suffer; so I take my seat by the fire, shut out
the night, pile on a cheerful log, and tell my
tale in turn. I must confess that, amongst
my companions, I never see a sad or discontented
looking face; and though we have
no wine, grog, or any other strong drink,
there is no lack of jovial mirth in any of the
company.
Fortunately for me, when I came on shore,
I brought with me some of my drawing apparatus,
which now, in my forlorn state, has
been the source of much amusement and improvement
; making the time not hang so
heavily on hand as it otherwise would do.
20th. For the last ten days we have had a
succession of wet, cold, uncomfortable wea-
y 2