Journeys in Time: 1809

Notes on the Transcription

The usual conventions have been followed in the transcription of Elizabeth Macquarie’s 1809 journal entries, such as the insertion of omitted words or letters in square brackets where sense or clarity dictates. Similarly, Elizabeth’s use of capitalisation is at times erratic, and sometimes difficult to determine, especially in regard to the beginning of sentences where she regularly omits the capital letter. Editorial policy has been to provide a text which is easy to follow, but which also aims to preserve most of the writer’s idiosyncrasies.

The hyphenation of words at the end of the line in Elizabeth’s journal is indicated by the use of a double colon : however this convention has not been retained in the transcription; instead the complete word is supplied (without any indication). Similarly the long 's' ( f ) has not been retained but rather changed to the modern form of 'ss'.

Punctuation has been introduced sparingly and follows the original wherever possible; the only exception is where a stop is absolutely necessary and this appears in square brackets. The use of superscript, stops, or double stops, have been retained in abbreviations for official titles, military or naval ranks, or with conventions such as Mr. or Mrs. (eg. M^r.. M^rs..).

The diary rubric of specifying the day of the week has been added in bold typeface as an aid to the reader in the division of the diary into separate sections, but not in the full transcription.

Elizabeth Macquarie's diary is somewhat problematical in that she does not appear to have recorded her experiences on a daily basis like her husband, Lachlan - rather she wrote up her impressions at specific times on the voyage, or during port stopovers in Rio or Cape Town. This is similar to the approach adopted by Captain Antill, also travelling on the Dromedary in 1809; though, in his case, he waited until almost the end of the voyage before he began to write up his diary. However, unlike Elizabeth (or Ensign Alexander Huey) who recorded their entries as a personal record only, Antill prepared his diary for his sisters Eliza and Mary to read. In this regard he was similar to Deputy-Judge-Advocate Ellis Bent (another diarist travelling on board the Dromedary) who prepared his diary for the benefit of family members in England.

It is quite remarkable that so many accounts have in fact survived of this particular voyage to New South Wales in 1809 - each one providing a slightly different perspective on the places visited, the events witnessed, and in the descriptions of the various ports of call.