13-15 October 1809
On the 13th.. of October at seven o'clock in the morning we took leave of dear Mrs.. Pringle, & embark'd in our well known Ship the Dromedary; on coming on board I always feel now as going home, the Ship appearing to me in the place of a house which had long been my habitation, & a very happy one it has been to me; I have spent my time in the manner which entirely suits my inclination, having the great comfort of my Husband[']s company uninterrupted all the morning when we read or write in a social manner, which I shall never enjoy on shore, as when he has it in his power he shuts himself up alone all the morning to business; but here I am admitted from necessity, I have many times thought of the advantage a poor cottager[']s wife has over persons as she may think in a far happier line of life -- she has the satisfaction of inhabiting the same room with her husband and children, she has the objects nearest her heart in her sight at once; a luxury of enjoyment seldom experienced by those she considers above her. ----
For want of a Breeze to carry us out we were obliged to remain at anchor till one o'clock, which time we spent in admiring the beautiful appearance of the scene before us; & I attempted to take a Sketch of it, for alas my efforts in this way can only be term'd such. ----
The appearance of so stupendous a mass of naked Rock as the Table Mountain, strikes the eye with wonder, the name of the Table Land is given by Seamen to every hill or Mountain whose summit presents a line parillel [sic] to the Horizon; the extent of the line now in our view is about two miles in length; this great Mountain is divided by two great chasms into three parts, and is supported as if by two wings; one is called the Devils Mountain, the other the Lions [H]ead, to which it has a striking resemblance; these make in fact with the Table Land but one Mountain, being all joined considerably above thier [sic] common base. [T]hese with the Sugar loaf well named from its form, present a noble object from the Sea, rising to a hight [sic] of between three and four thousand feet. ---Cape Town is pleasantly situated at the head of Table Bay, on a sloping plain that rises with an easy ascent to the feet of the Mountain. [F]rom where our ship lay we had a fine view of the Town which extends a great way along the Beach, the regularity of the buildings & the handsome appearance of them, being all Built of Stone white wash'd, has a fine effect; but we were told when there that this glare of which is extremely prejudicial in so hot a climate; an inconvenience so easily guarded against, it is a pity they do not attend to. ---[A]t one o'clock a light breeze carried us out of the Bay most genteelly and beyond Robin [sic] Island, when we thought ourselves in a fair way of being out of sight of land for sometime; but the Breeze died away and then were we like two great logs floating on the water; the swell wafted us towards the shore, to which we were constantly approaching by slow degrees; and on the afternoon of the fourteenth we were only two miles off the land at that part of the Coast call'd Houts Bay; I felt extremely uneasy at the situation of the Ships, the Boats were employ'd occasionlly [sic] in Towing their heads round from the land, it appear'd to me that if a gale of wind came on towards it we should surely be lost, as Captn.. P. told me it was not a fair place to anchor; we had a good view of out friend Mr.. Alexander[']s place; I could not help thinking that Captain Monro & some of our friends might have taken a boat and come to us; but in this I was disappointed, in this unpleasant state we remained till 1 o'clock morning of the 15th.., when a noble wind came to our relief which carried us round the Cape, and we were out of sight of land. ---[A]t half past 1 o'clock P.M. of the same day, we chased a strange sail directly contrary to our course for N. S. Wales, being contrary to the positive orders of the Admiralty, and continued this chase in a N. W. direction till 1/2 past 10 at night -- when the strange sail was lost sight of, and chase given up. ----
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