i?S5.
December.
A V O Y A G E T O T H E
L E T T E R X,
fT ^ H O U G H a fea life is in fome degree become familiar to
JL me, yet the fight of land fills me with a temporary pleafure ;
I fay temporary, becaufe it is foon Hopped by reflecting, that fome
years mult elapfe before I fhall have the heart-felt fatisfaftion of
beholding my native country,
I am afhamed to trouble thee with fuch trifling digreffions;
but in future I will endeavour entirely to fupprefs them, and write
nothing that concerns the paft, or future, but confine myfelf to the
prefent time. ,
On the n th of December, being in 33 deg. 16 min. North latitude,
we had a heavy gale of wind, which obliged us to clofe-reef
our top-fails and main-fail: however, in a few hours the weather
grew moderate. We have found the variation o f the compafs to be
II deg. 16 min. Eafterly. The 16th, being moderate and fine, we
had a great quantity of fpermaceti whales about the lhip, latitude
41 deg. South. On the 21ft, we had a very heavy gale of wind,
which obliged us to hand our top-fails, and reef our courfes: we
alfo reeved preventer braces for the top-fail yards, and preventer
lafliings to fecure our boats : the main and fore hatches were battened
down, and every precaution taken to keep the veffel fnug and
dry. This in all parts to the Southward of the Line, is the longeft
day : it would have been a matter of furprize for thee to have feen
the Sun before four o’clock in the morning; and I dare fay that
there
there are numbers in London who will never beperfuaded that the 1785.
, _ _ ■ . . . _ ' 1 Decembe
Sun rifes before four o clock in December. u—v—
On the 23d, being in 46 deg. South latitude, the fea had a very
muddy, dirty appearance, we faw a feal, and a great quantity of
various kinds of filh playing about the lhip.
Early in the morning of the 24th, we had a heavy ftorm of fnow
and fleet : indeed fince the 21ft we had very little intermiflion
from heavy gales of .wind and fqually weather. This forenoon
our laft goat died, being literally ftarved to death with cold, though
we had taken every precaution in our power to keep her alive.
We felt her lofs very fenfibly for fome time, as Ihehad given milk
twice a day, which made our tea drink very agreeably. Latitude
at noon 47 deg. 2 min.
On the former part of the 25th we had frelh breezes, and pretty
clear weather; but at four in the afternoon a heavygale of win d obliged
us to hand our top-fails and reef the courfes. This being Chrift-
mas Day, we celebrated it as well as our fituation could afford,
and more particularly as it is accounted by failors a greater feftival
than even the Sabbath-Day, though their obfervance of it is not
confiftent with this opinion, as they generally fpend it in noify
mirth, and tumultuous jollity, occafioned by drinking repeated
bumpers of grog to the health of their abfent friends and fweet-
hearts. Latitude 48 deg. 14 min. South.
From the 26th to the 3 ift, the weather was variable : fometimes
we had moderate breezes, .and cloudy; and again, heavy gales of
wind with rain. This is the Summer feafon in this part of the
world, the latitude we were in (viz. 50 deg. 30 min. South) being
£ nearly