passage to; „ The British government, allows';thet*I ' ft '••^T if** *. '•••* CQfttr3c■ t■p' r, jiv■ e_
— “ shillings a ton for water, and sixpence a pound for
“,,jb;eef, for the use of the crews of his Majesty’.s ships
“ of wap. ;■^OPb%epnferact wine;,i§ o f a weak quality,, and
“ will not kegp: and the.price, is sixpeepj ppupi^s for a
Y ton, containing one hundred and twenty gallons/ A
“ fle^^)twenty^|ailof p^m^vW^rmay >be amply sup-
“ plied with .refreshments here, i|s|heir stay should not
“ exceed ten days,
“ The road- is open from the west to the sonth-south-
“ east. T h c ^ j i^ blow; strongest,hepg from soqthjwest
“ to sjputh--east. Ships obliged to anchor fji^theJwiiyep
“ in Funqhal road should,bpvery attentive to the^dark
“ gloomy appearance, of the weather toother southward,
“ with a swell setting in; for i t i s ,ye-ry-dangerous^re-
“ maining at anchor with those prognosties*||gj >
It has been thought a harbour might, be constructed,
thp at. a considerable expence, by uniting^tho Fort:de.
Ilheo, commonly called the Loo castle, with a rocky
neck of land that jets into the water towards it, distant
about one hundred and twenty yards. The depth, of
water, through this narrow * passage, is from six ;to seyen
fathoms : sq that it would require,,an, immense mass of
stone work,: of which the materials are, indeed,,at hand-,
to withstand the heavy sea, which almost perpetually
tumbles in when the wind is blowing from .the Southward
; and which has frequently been known to break
over the Loo castle, a «height' presumed to be ho. less
tha-meightyvfeet.- Such a harbour would, indeed, contain
but a very few^e^selsj’besidesithaicraffc employed
inicarfyidgvcohmadiMes from the'capital to the/smaller
ports,'and bringingifrom thence to»ife'theiproduceiofiithe
islando Durin^he/«stormy .season,? those,vessels.moor
within the Loo rock, and are secured by additional;cai
Mesr>to the tsfee>fband thus,-i when .tempests threaten,
they areientirely left to take their chance, being quitted
by.*ke crew, who7se^k#efege tipoh land^Jn
| The island of Madeira; at first vievf,;appeared rockyi
barren, and’ uncultivated ; but its beauties exparided -to
th^deyep on rashearer /approach paird: nothing acb’ulc^ be
more picturesque? and inviting*, 'than‘)th^%ppearrance<of
F unchal and its adjacent hills, when,observed from;thp
ships at anchor. [T h row n isi-situated in the midst o f ,a
verdant valley, in', which johjjrrches-and other buildings,
whiteaon the outsidedbfeiHg interspersed, makelah> agreeable,
contrast with the ever-green ,trees and iplaritarions.
Spring and summer may be. said to^be the/ only sggr
sons, as it is known that thejcold otbeat>ber$ are seldom
so gfceatf as to, be unpleasant. During the Embassador
stay:, Fahrehbelt’s thermomethrrwas from sixty-ninb tp
seventy-two degrees, in thejshtadel at noon. It is seldom
found to«ek*®®sd seventy-fivefdcgfees! iri «thh autumn ip
the?middle of thevintage^; and,; inlJanuafyv.At is about
sixtytfour in Funchal, tho the to.p &: o f’the hills, in sight