Monday 15th.. May 1809
We set out from London for Portsmouth late this evening; slept at Kingston, and pursued our journey early next morning accompanied by Major Macquarie 42d.. Regt.. who attended us to Portsmouth[.] [W]e slept the second night at Lipook, and arrived at Portsmouth at 12 o'clock on Wednesday the 17th.. of May; putting up at the George Inn. —

Friday 19th..
Embarked on board His Majesty's store Ship Dromedary, Commanded by Mr.. Pritchard (a Master in the Royal Navy) then lying at St.. Helens between 12 and 1 o'clock this day; Captn.. Pascoe Comr of the Hindostan Man of War, having conducted us in his Barge from Portsmouth off to the Dromedary. Our party on board consisted of Mr.. Pritchard, one midshipman, who lived at his table, Mr.. & Mrs.. Bent, Colonel Macquarie, and myself. —

Monday 22d.. – The Hindostan & Dromedary weighed anchor about 12 o'clock, and we proceeded on our voyage for New South Wales, with a fine light fair Breeze down the British Channel. —

Wednesday 24th.. At 4 o'clock this afternoon we lost sight of good old England; being abreast of and having taken our final departure from the Lizard, (the Southernmost point of Great Britain) about an hour before. The wind fair, and Steering out proper course at W.S.W. — [O]n the 27th.. the weather alter'd much for the worse, it blew extremely hard for two days, and was against us; with a heavy Sea. — I suffer'd much, being in a weak state of health, and Sea Sick; we were at this time chased by two large Ships, which did not answer the private Signals, this occasion'd much uneasiness to me & the other Ladies, I found afterwards that there were new Signals, which the Ships at Sea had not time to be made acquainted with. [F]or these two alarming Ships turn'd out to be Friends; indeed it is a gratifying sight to every English person to see how the Ships of their Country possess the dominion of the Seas, all the way we have come we have occasionally met fine Ships of War as so many safeguards at different stations to smaller vessels. [T]hose Ships we have seen belonging to other nations have all been small Traders. —

Sunday 4th.. June, we have had a great deal of rough stormy weather for the last eight days; and a contrary wind the whole time; knocking us about in the Bay of Biscay. — We had a very violent gale of wind the whole of this day. We fell in with the Magicienne Frigate, and her convoy early this morning. Captain Pascoe of the Hindostan happened unfortunately to have letters & packets on board & a Boatswain belonging to the Magicienne he was order'd by Captain Curtis of that Ship, to send them on board; and against his opinion of the propriety of sending a boat out in such violent weather, unfortunately decided on running the risque, in preference to disobeying the Commands of a superior officer. — The Boat had hardly left the Ship when she was upset, and nine men run the risque of being drown'd; other Boats were immediately put out, & six of the nine were saved, by the great exertions of their Brother Seamen. —We have been much detain'd on our voyage by the desire in the Commodore to make Prizes; we go off our course in pursuit of every Sail we See, by which we have lost many a fair breeze, and encounter'd many a foul one – we have however, once succeeded in taking a Prize – an American Ship which had been taken some days before by a French Privateer, by which I am happy to find that Captn.. Pascoe will derive a considerable sum of money. —

Sunday 12th.. June – Anchor'd early this morning in Funchal Roads, in the Island of Madeira, within a mile of the shore; after passing a hazardous night sailing among the [D]eserters [sic], having mistaken those Islands for that of Madeira – We landed in the afternoon at the Town of Funchal, and went by invitation to reside at the House of Henry Veitch Esqr_ British Consul at Madeira; we were received and entertain'd with much hospitality by Mr.. & Mrs.. Veitch, & their Uncle an elderly Man Mr.. Veitch, who appears to me a most hospitable pleasant man, I took quite a likening to him, but I am sorry to remark in him what I believe is seldom to be found in a Scotch man, that a long residence in a foreign Country seems to have deprived him of that natural love for his Country which I should wish every good man to live and die with. –[H]e has been fourty [sic] years resident at Madeira, & only once during that time at home – he has now outlived all his very old friends, & seems to have no idea of returning again; as often as I think of this man I must think of one who knows how to pay the most gentlemanlike civility & attention to strangers, without the smallest apparent effort. My bad state of health prevented my being able to see much of the Island of Madeira, & what I regretted much more I fear I prevented Colonel Macquarie partaking of many invitations which could not fail to be agreeable. —

Friday 16th.. — We visited the Church of the Lady of the Mount, above two miles up the Hill, Captain Grant of the 11th_ was so good as to accompany us, he is an extremely pleasant Man, has made himself perfect master of the Portuguese language, & seems intimately acquainted with the Inhabitants of the place, even the Nuns at the different Convents seem to be his intimate friends – his manners are certainly calculated to conciliate the affections of every person with whom he associates; – I was carried up the mountain in a Hammock, the appearance of which seem'd to shock Coll.. M. not a little; this did not altogether displease me, as he said I look'd exactly like a corpse, so I flatter'd myself as he did not like my resemblance; that he had no wish to see me in that state, & to tell the truth I never dreaded that he had, as he is not of a nature to wish ill to any one, much less his own wife; who indeed during this voyage has been a troublesome charge, for at the time my illness required the attendance of a maid; I never saw mine; being confined by Sea Sickness below, in so much, that for days together I never saw her. —

On Sunday the 18th.. We walk'd about the Town a good deal, and went by chance into a church where a Young [?] woman was taking the veil! It was a sight of too much interest to admit of our quitting the spot till the ceremony was over. The poor young woman was attended by two noble Ladies in full dress, she was also adorn'd with flowers in her head, &c. [S]he sat on the steps opposite the alter, [sic] one of the Ladies on each side of her, who endeavour'd to support her spirits with cheerful conversation; she seem'd to do her best to second their efforts, but with a visible struggle. I sat or rather crouch'd, very near her – A long time interven'd before the arrival of the Priest; as we waited for him those Ladies next to me told me, that the Convent to which this poor girl was so soon to belong, was the strictest ever known; something in resemblance to that of La Trap. [T]hat it was so poor, that the nuns were obliged to labour very hard for their support, and withall that the situation of the Convent was so extremely damp & unwholesome, that the nuns died at a very early period. The Lady Abbess at the time being only thirty years of age, a dignity which is never confer'd at so early a period, except from necessity. I felt so extremely sorry for the young woman that if it had been possible, I should have most gladly offer'd her my [**indecipherable] if she would have desisted from her dreadful intention – at last the Priest attended by a member of his order arrived; he was a very old Man, he went up to the alter [sic], the Nun knelt at his feet, he was so blind that a Friar held a very large heavy candlestick so low, as to enable him to read. The weight occasion'd an unsteadiness in the hands which held it, the old man finding himself like to be burnt, express'd great indignation; the ceremony then went on. The Priest read for some time in Latin, when that was over the young noviciate was led in procession to the door of the convent, which was open'd to receive her; the Nuns within appearing all dress'd in black with a large piece of black cloth thrown over their heads, which was so thick as to conceal even the form of their Bodies; they had really an appearance not human. — A second ceremony took place at the door of the convent, but the crowd was so great that I could not see it, at this moment there was a noise made by a Person pressing forward thro' the mob, she was soon known to be the Mother of the young woman, there was room made for her to pass, & she arrived at the spot where her Daughter stood, to take her last embrace! – till that moment the Nun supported herself, but the sight of her Mother totally overcame her; her head fell on her breast, & she sob'd aloud in an agony of grief; she was then hurried forward, & I saw her walk on follow'd by those dreadful looking black nuns, who threw rose leaves at her. —I saw her no more! but I understood that her head was immediately to be shaved, she had a great quantity of fine hair, and I saw the dress carried in which she was to change for that she had on, it was an extreme coarse brown heavy stuff, which I suppose she was to wear till she took the black veil. —I cannot say that I ever felt so much distress at the fate of a stranger, as I did on this occasion; the impression was not that I could not hear the subject mention'd without considerable emotion for sometime after. I hope her situation does not feel to her, as it appear'd to me. —While we were at Madeira Captain Curtis gave a spendid Ball on board the Mageciane, [sic] my bad state of health obliged me to decline going, & Coll.. M. was so good as to remain with me. We had the pleasure of seeing General and Mrs.. Mead, Mrs.. M. was an old acquaintance of Coll.. Ms; and an extreme [sic] pretty woman – I admired the style of her house and Garden much —

The Island of Madeira is certainly one of the most beautiful & romantic places to look at which I have ever seen, to Persons who have been long at Sea, & who have suffer'd illness, and bad weather, the sight of Funchal is the most gratifying which can well be imagined; but by the time one has been a few days on shore, the want of air, and great heat; the total exclusion from all kinds of exercise, from the hardness of the roads; which are very steep, and paved with small stones; and above all the filth of the Inhabitants is so disgusting, that I think no time could reconcile one to witness it with indifference – all this serves to shew how many comforts are necessary to render life agreeable to a person who has been accustom'd to live in England. —

On the 19th.. of June we sail'd from Madeira with very moderate weather, we met some small Cruisers which we chased, they proved to be small Portuguese traders. —

[O]n the 28th.. we discover'd land, and at noon pass'd the Island of Buenavista, on the 29th..we made the Island of Mayo, and came to anchor at Porto Prayo Island of St. Jago on the 30th.. – from the Sea this place had a very barren appearance, the ground appearing cover'd with sand, & a very few Palm Trees scatter'd upon the plain; the few houses there are, seem'd of the most miserable appearance. Neither Colonel Macquarie nor I went on shore, there seem'd little inducement, & the weather was extremely hot. Those who did go, were shock'd at the miserable state of the people even the military were in rags, the Sailors sold their old cloths at a much greater price than they cost when new. [A]ny thing of a military uniform would have been purchased almost at any price – the people were much disappointed that nothing of that description could be had. The Governor[']s house was described to us to be more like a shed, than a house, and the Cows & horses occupied the ground floor. This Island however must have a very different appearance in the interior, as we were supplied with Bullocks Poultry & fruit in the greatest abundance, and at very moderate prices. — We only remain'd here twenty eight hours, when we sail'd again to prosecute our voyage; which we continued to do with moderate weather and nothing particular occurring till the 5th.. of July;when we were sent in chase of a Strange sail, when we came near she appear'd to be a very large Ship, & so far from wishing to avoid us, hove down full sail to meet us. [E]very thing was prepared for action, the Strange Sail shew'd no colours; Colonel Macquarie & his men were on the Poop; just as the Ship was coming along side he went to Captain Pritchard to beg he would not be too hasty in firing, till he was confirm'd in the certainty of her being an enemy; this was a fortunate precaution; for she proved to be an American bound to Canton, and had hoisted her colours, but in so awkward a manner as not to be seen by us – we have had many alarms about fighting, but none that came so great a length as this; I felt a great deal of uneasiness, & was very much relieved when the alarm was over. — We occupied our time in reading I work'd at my needle occasionally, every Sunday when the weather was moderate Mr.. Bent perform'd Divine Service in the most agreeable manner. [H]e even read to us in the evening, but this agreeable entertainment was of short duration – we have regularly every evening a game of whist, of which Captn.. Pritchard is particularly fond, but if his Partner commits a mistake, he is sure to be severely reprimanded. When the weather is such as to permit the ships sailing in a steady manner, & that every person appears in good humour, I think being at Sea a very agreeable life; our society on board I consider as particularly good; Captn.. Pritchard being a man of extreme good understanding, and general information; & I must say uniformly desirous of being attentive to his Passengers. — Mr.. & Mrs.. Bent are both pleasant people & I enjoy'd his society extremely at the beginning of our voyage, what the cause is I cannot tell, but he is now more silent, & by no means so much inclined sociability as at first. —When we left England it was the intention of Ministers that the ships should touch at Madeira, and the Cape of Good Hope only; they considering that two stops on the voyage was all that was necessary for the refreshment of the Troops, and if the Hindostan had been as fortunate as this ship, it would have been quite sufficient. —The People on board being very healthy; those few in the Hospital being mostly confined by accidents, or sore legs, and never from the time of our sailing having any infectious complaints. [A] letter from Captain Pascoe gave a very different account of the state of his ship[.][H]e inform'd Coll.. M. that the Disentary [sic] had lately spread to an alarming degree, both among the Soldiers & Sailors of his Ship, that the Sick list increased daily, nor could they hope for a favorable change having nothing but Salt Provisions; and that his supply of water had run so short, that he had not sufficient to carry him on to the Cape – he therefore hoped his proceeding to Rio Janeiro would be favorably thought of at home. [T]he case was too urgent to admit of debate, and we proceeded for that Port.[O]n the third of August we boarded a Portuguese Brigg [sic] from Bengola to Rio Janiero [sic] laden with female slaves, this was a more hazardous service than we had any idea of, the officers found on getting on board that an infectious fever prevail'd among them, to which the Captain and a great number of the slaves had fallen victims – to put a stop if possible to the complaint, they had resorted to a precaution at which humanity shudders, namely, that of throwing the unfortunate slaves overboard as soon as they were taken ill. When we hear'd of this we all thought on Mr.. Wilberforce. — We received a visit from three Gentlemen on board the Oxford Transport, Coll.. Cox of the Artilery, [sic] Captns.. Hawkes & Wallace of the Dragoons; they brought a living Albatross on board which one of the Sailors had taken on the water by knocking it with an oar, we suppose the Bird was in a sickly state, tho' apparently very well. —[W]e saw great numbers of them about this time, but this was the only one caught on the voyage, it is an extreme [sic] beautiful Bird, & of great size. —The Gentlemen did us the favor to dine with us, & we were very much pleased with Captn.. Hawkes, who with extreme good looks combines the most pleasing manners. He told us that he had a young wife on board, which surprised me he seem'd so young a man. Soon after we left St. Jago we were deserted by every living creature, & left to navigate an immense ocean without even a Bird to keep us company, we met no Ships, so that for a time it seem'd as if we had the whole world to ourselves; the first Birds which paid their compliments to us were the albatross's [sic] & their appearance was an event of the greatest interest and importance to us; we next saw sea weed floating on the surface of the water, another indication of our near approach to land, & on the 5th.. of August we sounded, and found a sandy bottom; about the same time we boarded a very small Sloop trading from one part of the coast of South America to the other. —I felt quite rejoiced at the sight of human beings again, it gave rise to a kind of feeling new to me till that moment, connected with the idea of being totally seperated [sic] from our Country, & the people belonging to it, seeing that here we were on another quarter of the Globe, with a new Race of beings, which I could not help regretting were not our own people. So that there was a great mixture of melancholy reflection, combined in the satisfaction which I felt. —

During this voyage one day when the Ship was going at eight knots an hour, a sea man fell overboard – he fell over the poop & past our Cabbin [sic] window, I saw something fall, but had no idea it was a man till I hear'd him cry out, which he did in the most disturbing manner. Coll.. Macquarie ran forward and encouraged him by every means in his power to keep a hold which he had fortunately caught of a fishing line, which hung over the stern – the Ship was put about, and a Boat lower'd, by which the man was saved. —

On the 6th.. of August we saw land, and on the 7th.. came to an anchor in the harbour of Rio Janeiro —It appears to me that no description can convey to the mind of a person who has not seen this harbour, the wonderful beauty and grandeur of it. The Entrance is I believe the finest of any harbour in the world; we saw it to the greatest advantage, it was a fine clear evening, we had a steady leading Breeze to carry us in, & the sun was setting behind the Sugarloaf; which greatly added to the grandeur & beauty of the scene. The first remarkable object after passing Cape Frio, is a gap or rent in the ridge of mountains which skirt the sea shore. This chasm appears from a distance, like a narrow portal, between two cheeks of solid stone. The cheek on the left is of a Sugar-loaf form; a solid mass of hard sparkling granite, 680 feet high above the surface out of which it rises. The opposite cheek is of the same material; but has a regular and easy descent to the water's edge. A little Island strongly fortified, just within the entrance, contracts the passage to the width of about three quarters of a mile. Having cleared the channel, one of the most magnificent scenes in nature bursts upon the eye. A sheet of water of immense size running back into the heart of a beautiful country to the distance of above thirty miles where it is bounded by a screen of lofty mountains; expanding from the narrow entrance to the width of twelve or fourteen miles, every where studded with innumerable little Islands, in every deversity [sic] of shape – the shores of these Islands fringed with shrubs, some of them cover'd with noble Trees, and altogether forming the greatest variety of beauty. — The Town of St.. Sebastian with its numerous churches & spires adds greatly to the lieu [?], and in every direction from where our ship lay we saw convents, and noblemens houses scatter'd over the Country, which is also much adorn'd by the number of fortifications & bridges which in several places form the communication from one mass of rock to another, which have been seperated [sic] by some convulsion of nature, & now present a frightful chasm between. [S]o that Rio Janeiro is not only highly favor'd by nature, but also much adorn'd by the art of Man; indeed tho' the Portuguese have a character for great indolence, no one to see the many great works which have been carried on at this place could think it justly due. —

On the 8th.. of August Colonel Macquarie went on board the Foudroyant 80 guns Flagship, to wait on Rear Admiral de Courcy. [H]e accompanied the Admiral to Lord Strangfords the British Ambassador, who he found at home; and on the 15th.. he was presented in the Evening by Lord Strangford to H. R. H. the Prince Regent of Portugal, and went with his Lordship to the opera, where he could not help remarking to his Lordship that the Princess bestow'd some very cross looks at him. [H]e told Coll.. M. not to be surprised at that, as he had incurred the Lady[']s highest displeasure & resentment at having interferred & prevented her being proclaim'd Queen of Mexico, which Sir Sidney Smith had proposed, and meant to affect. [sic] The Prince who is a heavy fat man slept most part of the time, leaning on his Princes. [T]he opera was well attended & the performance respectable. The first day that I felt myself equal to a walk Coll.. M. & I Mr. & Mrs.. Bent went on shore, we met Sir James Gambier who very kindly walk'd with us all the morning, & took us to see the Public Garden which is well laid out, and ornamented by several buildings; but was badly kept when we saw it – we also went to the Principal church which is quite in the style of Roman Catholic Churches, & not to be compared to the chaste & solid grandeur of our English Churches. Sir James invited us to dine with him next day – we were conducted to his house which is situated in a most romantic spot in an Inlet of the harbour about six miles from where we lay at anchor, by Captain Curzon of the Elizabeth 74, in his beautiful Barge – on our entering the house we were surprised to find it paper'd & furnished in the newest English style. Sir James has purchased the house & grounds, and is improving it both within & out of doors at an unbounded expense, conducted by the best taste; his manner of living is quite magnificent, which Lady Gambier seems form'd by nature to enjoy; she appear'd to us one of the most elegant and pleasing women we had ever seen, and very handsome. They live in the most hospitable manner, and keep quite an open Table for all the English; which Sir James says he considers his duty, besides its being his inclination; he is English Consul. —They were so kind as to insist on giving a ball to the Regt.., we endeavour'd to prevent them, but found it impossible; the ball accordingly took place, & would have been one of the pleasantish that could be, were it not for the anxiety which we felt for the Officers of the Regt.. belonging to this ship, who never arrived tho' we knew they had quitted the Ship. [O]n our return we found them all safe, they had mistaken another arm of the harbour for that in which the house lay, and after rowing about in the dark for several hours were very glad to regain their Ship again —The midshipman who commanded the Boat in giving an account of the mistake said, that when they found themselves in the wrongevery one was of a different opinion of what should be done, & all spoke at once; but when it was finally decided on that they were to return, a general Silence ensured, each person being too much out of temper to speak. [A]t the Ball we met with the Popes Nuncio, several Portugese [sic] nobility, Ld.. Strangford, and all the English persons of distinction at Rio; consisting for the most part of naval officers. Captn.. Pritchard had dined with us on board the Elizabeth with Captain Curzon, he had been invited to the ball in the kindest manner, but sent his excuse; saying that he would not for the world remain out of his ship after nine o'clock. [A]ll his wonderful prudence forsook him when we left him for the ball, an old shipmate who had dined with him at the Captain[']s table proposed to him to renew the pleasures of the bottle below, and there they sat till the middle of the night, when the prudent Captain retired to his own Ship with a violent headach[e]. For which I was not in the least sorry, as I wish'd him to go to the ball. —

Wishing to see something of the Country a little inland Coll.. M. & I accompanied by Captain Clea[v]eland left the ship with the intention of making a little excursion. Captain Pritchard went with us on shore, but express'd no wish to go with us till he saw us setting off. [H]e then proposed that Captn.. C. should remain to go with him, when they should find horses; by this means tho' a Sailor, wishing to Jockey us out of Captn.. C's company; indeed he had always taken the greatest pains to assure us that he was a first rate horseman, which came soon to be tried, for he succeeded in procuring a horse; but at that unfortunate moment he forgot his [???] in this boasted profession, and acting as most sailors would do, set off with his ponderous load on a weak half famish'd beast, at full speed – by his account the poor horse got sick when he was not much above a mile out of The Town, here the order of things became completely reversed, for he was obliged after treating his horse to wine, & every thing that he could think of to recover his exhausted strength, to support & almost carry him back to the Town. In the mean time Coll.. M. Captn.. C. & I got ourselves pack'd into a small & most antique sort of carriage, exactly like Giles Blas which he went in to take possession of his country house; it was drawn by two mules and we had for a driver a monkey looking black man, who could not speak a word of English, & we were equally ignorant of Portuguese; he set off apparently in good humour enough, but he had no sooner got us into a Street where no English person was to be seen, then he came to a full stop, & began chattering Portuguese evidently in great wrath, we soon had a mob about us to whom he address'd himself occasionally, we did not understand a word; & there we sat in the most hopeless state imagineable; to be sure I then thought what with the opposition from Captn. P. before, and altogether that the fates were against us, & that I should be disappointed in my ride. [T]he Gentlemen becoming tired of being stuck up as if in a show box in the middle of the street for the amusement of the rabble, began to threaten Mr. Post Boy in their turn, he seem'd more enraged than ever, but at last proceeded. [W]e imagine that he objected to carrying three persons, two being the usual number for those sort of carriages. After this detention we got on very well, the road was extremely good, and the Country very beautiful. [W]e went to see a house which was preparing for the reception of the Prince four miles from St. Sebastian in the most beautiful situation; this Palace (as it is call'd), is built in a very pretty style neat, Plain, & by no means on a great scale; which indeed would ill suit the circumstances of the Royal family at this time. [A]fter spending some time at this place, we return'd to St.. Sebastian & on enquiring for Captn.. P. who we had been expecting to see all the time, we were surprised to hear that he had gone to meet us, & had not yet return'd – in about half an hour he made his appearance very much fatigued with the exertion of conducting his horse to his Stable. —

We had the pleasure of dining with Admiral & Mrs.. de Courcy at their house in a part of the harbour which we had not been in before, it is a very retired situation, shut in by a number of small wooded Islands; the house is quite on the waters edge, so close, that you step from the Boat on the stair which conducts you into the house. [H]ere we were entertain'd in the kindest manner imagineable, without any ostentation or parade; the Admiral & Mrs.. de C. appear, very good sort of people of kind unaffected manner, he gave me much good advice on economy, and said that he thought nothing could be more absurd than people going abroad to live in a style which their circumstances could hardly admit of, when it was to be suposed they would not have quitted their own dear Country if their fortunes had been such as to admit of their living there in comfort. —[A]t the Admiral[']s house we met several naval people and among others Captain Hancock, to whom I took a great liking from a stricking [sic] resemblance which he has to Colonel Macquarie. —We became acquainted with a number of pleasant men of the navy at Rio, among whom I must not forget Captain Schomberg who is one of the most gentlemanny [sic] pleasant man I ever saw. —Two days before we left Rio we went in the evening to take leave of the Admiral[']s family, it was very fine weather and the row on the water was delightful. [T]he day before we sail'd we took one of the Carriages of the place & went to take leave of Sir James and Lady Gambier, the approach to their house (which is call'd Bolto Togo), is one of the grandest things I ever saw; within a quarter of a mile the road comes down on the Beach, when the Sugar loaf & other fine Pointed rocks burst on the veiw [sic] at once, with the milder beauties of the foreground; in which the house is situated. [C]ertainly this is one of the most beautiful places I ever saw, but seemingly very unhealthy; there is a grove of orange trees under the house, this sounds very fine, & appears very beautiful, but the scent is so strong, that it is quite overpowering, & to my taste a grove of Birch would be ten times more preferable, & that I hope to possess in front of our house in the Isle of Mull. —

The object of our going to Rio was fully obtain'd, as soon as the state of the sick was made known by Colonel Macquarie to Admiral de Courcy, as as many as they could find room for were admitted to the Hospital, & the others were accommodated in a vessel appropriated solely to thier [sic] use; they were treated with the greatest care & humanity by Doctor Roddam, & were recovering; but the time necessary for a perfect cure was more than the Service would admit of, in detaining us so long; on the 21st.. Coll.. M. went to the Hospital and left it to the choice of those persons who were still extremely ill, either to remain till their recovery, & then follow the Regt..; or to reembark as they were, the poor Fellows answer'd by a shout of joy, that they were ready to embark; their great terror being that of remaining behind the Regt.. —In one of Coll.. M's visits to the hospital I attended him, I believe rather against his inclination; it was highly gratifying to see such extreme good accommodation for the Sick, the Hospital had formerly been the house of a nobleman, was situated in a beautiful Island commanding fine air, and an extensive I need not add beautiful view of the harbour; the lower appartments [sic] were spacious, & fitted up in the neatest manner for the Sick, who lay I may say on the edge of the water, with the view before them, in the upper part of the house, there is a noble Hall for the Surgeons – the Sick have the advantage of walking about the Island as soon as they are able with perfect freedom, the Island being appropriated exclusively to their use – during our stay the ships were amply provided with vegitables, [sic] & beef; the first were excellent, the latter extremely bad, indeed there is no such thing to be had at Rio as good Butcher meat of any sort; the oranges were the finest I ever eat, the Seamen & Soldiers were also supplied with them; and we understood that this last donation was a present from the Prince. —

The weather during our stay at Rio was variable, we had a tremendous thunder storm, attended with excessive heavy rain; I awoke in the middle of the night & was so extremely terrified with the uncommon loud thunder, & wind lightning that I had not courage to move tho' the rain pour'd in upon me, at last my anxiety to know whether Colonel Macquarie was safe, induced me to awake him, for such had been the sound sleep he was in, that he had not heard the thunder. —[W]e were told that the water at St. Sebastian was very bad, unwholesome, & that it would not keep at Sea; but we did not find it so. —The Magicienne Frigate, which we left at Madeira, arrived in the Harbour a few days after we did[.] — Coll.. M. made an application for a transport to carry his Sick men to the Cape of [G]ood Hope, in the expectation of preventing the infection to those men in the Hindostan, who had not been seized with it, but the Admiral said that he could not furnish one, on which it was mentioned to him that, as next best, Coll.. M. would like to send from fifty to a hundred who were perfectly well, on board the Magicienne so as to make room in the Hindostan for the better accommodation of the Sick. The Admiral express'd himself as most willing to give an order to that effect, but Coll.. M. finding that Captn.. Curtis was entirely averse to taking his men said, that he would not on any account send his people on board of a Ship of war, that being the case, not knowing what treatment they might meet with – I must confess that this inhuman conduct on the part of Captn.. C., in addition to the loss of the Sailors on the fourth of June, disgusted me so much, that I could not speak to him with common civility; tho' on all occasions he had been very civil to me. —

One of the Ships officers, Mr. Worthington, had his gold watch &c. taken out of his cabin at night; on the seventeenth Coll.. M. was inform'd that two soldiers (Edward Jordon, & John Shelly) were suspected as guilty of the theft; he immediately order'd them to be confined on the Poop, as it was too late to have an examination of their effects that night; it being extremely dark, & torrents of rain falling, they contriv'd to make their escape in the Jolly Boat, unobserved by the Centry [sic]; the Boat was brought back by two of the natives next day. —I much fear these men will be found, & if they are; they will be sent after us; and as their offence has been great, the punishment must be in proportion, which will be unpleasant; but Coll.. M. wishes they may be found, as their succeeding in deserting is a bad example to others. [O]n the whole I believe it would be almost impossible to find a more orderly or better behaved set of men, but among so many it would be too much to expect them all to be good. —

On the 23th. [sic] of August at seven o'clock in the morning we sail'd from this most noble Harbour, and pass'd the narrows at 1/2 past eight o'clock A. M., & stood out to Sea with a very fine favorable wind; Captain Curtis intended sailing for the Cape two days after, his ship sails well, the Hindostan being so very remarkable for the reverse, we all thought the Magecienne [sic] would arrive before us; Capt.. Pritchard whose judgement seems always correct in all matters relating to his Profession, thought as we got what he term'd so good an offing; that we might perhaps be there as soon as her, and indeed the wind was delightfully favorable to us for a great many days. —[A]bout the end of the month we had a great deal of rain, and on the night of the 31st.. our Cabin was quite in a float; owing to a leak in the Deck. George Tiers having gone to bed, a Carpenter Charles Tonkins was sent to caulk it, I observed as he pass'd me what a very pleasant handsome looking man he was; after doing what he could to the leak he said that for want of materials he could not do it completely that night, but that he should finish it in the morning. — Poor young man he little knew that that morrow, was to be the last he should ever see in this world. The Soldiers suffer'd much inconvenience from some of the ports taking in water, it was blowing pretty hard, and the Ship was going 9 knots, when Charles Tonkins went over the side of the Ship unattended & unobserved by any person, to caulk in those ports; a service which might have been perform'd with perfect safety if the man had been properly attended, one of the officers in the gun room hear'd a cry, & saw the poor young man fall into the sea [—] he was never seen again —The Ship was brought to, a boat was sent from this ship, & one from the Hindostan but they could not find him. [T]his melancholy accident shock'd us all very much; next day (as is always the custom on board Ship,) there was a sale of his effects & his papers were examined by the Captain; he found a great many letters from a young woman who was engaged to him, which in my opinion contain'd more pure affection, express'd in a more natural & affecting manner than any I ever read; there were also copies of some of his in return, which were also very interesting – what her sufferings will be when she hears of this event it is dreadful to think on. —The man who fell overboard sometime ago might really have lost his life owing to a joke, as when Capt.. P. saw the Ship in confusion, & the men busy lowering the boat, he ask'd what the matter was, & if any one had fallen; the Sailors call'd out Sir, Nobody has fallen overboard; that being the name he went by in the Ship, tho' known to Captn.. P. by his proper name of John Smith. —

It may naturally be supposed that the cause for our being sent on this unexpected service, & the probable state we should find the Colony in, was very frequently the subject of conversation; we had not the smallest expectation of obtaining any information regarding the state of things till our arrival at the Cape, & even then it was very doubtful that we should; but to our surprise we found that Colonel Johnson, [sic] Mr.. Macarthur, Drs.. Jameson [sic] and Harris, had arrived at Rio shortly before us, Coll.. J., & Mr.. M. having also sail'd for England before we got there. [F]rom these Gentlemen we obtain'd a great deal of information, we found that Govr.. Bligh who we supposed to be still under arrest in his own house, had with the permission of those persons in power embark'd on board the Porpoise, under the promise of sailing for England; but no sooner did he find himself out of their power, than he issued a proclamation pronouncing the New South Wales Corps to be in a state of Mutiny, and Rebellion, now under Coll.. Patersons command, and prohibiting all masters of vessels at their peril taking any persons out of the Colony, who had been connected in the Rebellion; all officers belonging to the N.S.W. Corps, & the following names were particularly specified John Macarthur, Nicolas [sic] Baily [sic], Graham [sic] Blaxcell, Richd.. Atkins, Gregory Blaxland, John Townson, Robert Townson, Robt.. Fitz, Thos. Jameson [sic], Thos. Hobby, Alexr.. Riley, Darcy Wentworth, James Mileham, Thos.. More, and Walter Stevenson Davidson – this proclamation was address'd to Edwd_ Harrison Master of the Ship Admiral Gambier, who had notwithstanding brought Mr.. Macarthur & the other persons mention'd to Rio. —

On this proclamation being issued by Govr.. Bligh, Coll.. Paterson publised [sic] another; declaring the Govr.. to have acted in direct violation of his promise on the honor of a Gentleman, of proceeding immediately to England, and prohibiting all persons in the Colony from holding any communication with Govr.. Bligh, or any person belonging to him on board of the Porpoise. —

We had a good deal of conversation with Dr.. Jameson [sic] regarding the extraordinary events which had taken place in New South Wales, and it appear'd to us that even by their own account the conduct of those persons who had acted against the Govr.. was not to be justified, or even excused; we felt sorry that a Man such as Coll.. Johnson [sic] was described to us, should have committed himself as he has done, by an act of the most open and daring Rebellion, by which in as far as it appears to us, he will probably forfeit a life, which has till this unfortunate period, been spent in the service of his King and Country. Colonel Macquarie felt it quite a relief to him, his having quitted the Colony before his arrival, & by that means having spared him the pain of taking measures which the service required, but which no Officer could feel easy at being obliged to have recourse to, particularly on this occasion; Coll. Johnson [sic] being a man of amiable character, & in their early years an intimate companion of his own. —

With regard to all matters relating to the Country and climate, these Gentlemen gave us the most favorable accounts; and they shew'd us a number of views which were very beautiful; one of them was a drawing of Mr.. Harris's House which is situated in a park about a mile from Sydney, – the Park is stock'd with Deer, and it look'd altogether to be in much higher style than any thing we expected to find in the new world. I observed the words Ultimo Place the Seat &c. at the bottom of the drawing. I was struck with the oddity of the name, and ask'd what that could mean, on which the Dr.. with an air of utmost importance strutted up to me & said, I can explain that to you Madam, I was once summon'd to attend a Court Martial, the Gentleman in reading the charge happen'd to say this Court being commenced on the 12th.. Ultimo, instead of instant; they were not clasical, [sic] but I Madam being clasical [sic] immediately perceived the mistake; I ridiculed them, and wrote verses on the subject then; & afterwards call'd my house Ultimo Place. —This Gentleman came to wait on Colonel Macquarie dressed in a new uniform Coat, & seem'd indeed to think himself a very great man, & to wish that other persons should think the same; Mr.. Bent named him Major Sturgeon, in consequence of his resemblance to that character; one day when he had been in our Ship in the morning in his usual grand style, some of the Gentlemen on board were greatly surprised at meeting him a few hours after dress'd like a Jew, in a shabby little Shop making merchandise of some precious stones he had brought for sale from New Holland; it was also discover'd by chance, that Dr.. Jameson [sic] had brought a venture of Shoes and Stockings, and various other articles of traffic, which he disposed of at Rio; it appear'd strange to us that the Surgeon General of a Colony should be concern'd in such matters, tho' highly respectable to those to whose province it belongs. —

The usual track of Ships going from Rio Janeiro to the Cape of Good Hope is farther to the Southward than that we came, and by not pursuing that far Southwardly course, we made the best passage that has been made by two heavy Ships for sometime, indeed this voyage was a very pleasant one to us, we had very favorable weather during most part of it, & we were consatantly accompanied by a vast number of Birds of different kinds; I think there are several Islands in this Ocean still undiscover'd, for sometimes the Birds were quite in flocks, and at those times quite noisy & lively, as if they had lately left the place of their abode. I sometimes thought that we might possibly run on a Rock in the middle of the night, but if we were near any such danger, it pleased the Almighty to save us from even the knowledge of it. — On the 8th.. of Septr.. having been several days without being able to take an observation, the Commodore thought himself farther to the Southward than we we really were, and sent us to look out for Tristan de Acuna when we were twenty leagues to the Northward of it. The weather was extremely thick, and there were we full sail with a strong Breeze, flying in quest of an Island which I presume is but little known; it appear'd to me a foolish and dangerous undertaking, as I conceive that near any Islands or land there must always be some sunk Rocks or shoals, and many such there might be near a place so little known; however if it is so, it was not our fate to find them; from the superior sailing of this Ship to the Hindostan we soon lost sight of her, the Commodore having no mind to part company, fired a Signal of recall; and there ended the only hope we ever had, or probably ever shall have, of seeing this out of the way Island for which at the time I was not sorry, but now that we are out of the danger, I think with some regret of not having seen it. [F]or several days after this we were becalmed, & every person got out of temper, & out of patience with the Commodore, thinking that from taking us the course he did, we had got out of the track of the trade wind, so after finding twenty faults with this poor Man, none of which he perhaps deserved, and scolding and complaining to each other, at last a fair wind sprung up, which put us all into good humour again. Captain Pritchard was wonderfully correct in telling us when we should arrive, or more properly speaking, in his calculation regarding our distance. On the 23rd.. of Septr.. at five o'clock in the morning we discover'd land, agreeing to a mile with Captn.. P.[']s reckoning, and at 11 o'clock we came to anchor in Table Bay, being exactly a month from Rio Janeiro. [O]ur first anxiety was to know if the Magicienne had arrived before us, which we fully expected she would have done, but to our surprise she had not, nor were there any tidings of her during our stay at the Cape, tho' we remain'd there for three weeks; there was much apprehension felt for her safety, it will be long before we shall hear what has become of her; it was now quite a comfort to Coll.. Macquarie that Captain Curtis had been averse to taking any of the Soldiers on board, the change of climate and the care that had been taken of them at Rio, had restored them to health; to have sail'd from the Cape leaving part of them behind, even admitting that they were safe, would have been a most unpleasant business. —At 2 o'clock P.M. Colonel Macquarie went on shore to wait on the Governor, Lord Caledon, Lt.. Genl.. Grey the Comr.. in chief, and Vice Admiral Bertie Comr.. the Naval Force; he promised to return on board in an hour, but did not come till five o'clock, it blew extremely hard, and there were several excessive heavy showers – my anxiety & impatience were great, but at length happily releived [sic] by his safe return. Table Bay is a most dangerous place for Ships to ride in, very frequently it is impossible for them to have any communication with the shore, and their situation is most dangerous when the wind blows towards the shore, the ground being either loose chingle, [sic] which does not hold, or Rock which injures the Cables very much; while we were there a very violent gale came on, & during the time it lasted the Ships were certainly in danger, one vessel the East India Packet from St Helena drove from her anchors, and came very near the breakers before she brought up. —

On the 24th.. at 10 o'clock in the morning Colonel Macquarie took me on shore, there was great swell & it was with very great difficulty we got landed, the swell being on the side of the Pier where the steps are, Coll.. O'Connell was much amused at seeing me clime [sic] these steps on all fours, and said he saw I had not been brought up in the Highlands for nothing, I was not well pleased at being laugh'd at, but this speach [sic] made up for the insults, if such it could be call'd. —[W]e walk'd to the house of Mr.. Pringle Agent for the E.I. Company, who is an old friend of Coll.. Ms, we were received by him & his wife in the kindest manner, they had waited breakfast for us having insisted on our living with them during our stay at the Cape, which on account of Mr.. Pringle[']s very bad state of health Coll.. M. at first declined doing – I never felt a change of situation so sensibly as at this breakfast, in an elegant large room, where all was stillness and quiet; it was such a change from the noise, continual motion, and confinement of the Ship; in the forenoon Mr.. Pringle drove me out in his Curricle to Green Point, which is the extent of carriage road on the West side of Cape Town; here I saw a house belonging to Mr.. Alexr. on which he is spending a great deal of money, and from the exposed situation and stirility [sic] of the ground, I cannot think that it will ever turn to any good account. [O]n our return we met Adr.. & Miss Berty [sic] watching a Ship which was coming in, Mr.. P. ask'd the Adr.. his opinion regarding her, for the arrival of a Ship is a matter of the greatest importance, and every one seems in a state of anxiety till it is known where she is from &c. &c.; I found afterwards that this query was merely complimentary, as whatever the Admiral opinions are on these subjects, they almost invariably turn out to be illfounded; I cannot say that I felt any favorable impression for this Gentleman, and from the account I had of his character there was no reason that I should; and I must observe that there is a natural instinct wisely given us of feeling either a predeliction for, or a prejudice against a person at first sight, which I think seldom deceives one; my dear friend Miss Meredith who[se] judgment I consider as very great, is much of this opinion. —I was much delighted with this drive, a Curricle being my favorite carriage, the road goes along the shore all the way, which was cover'd with foam, the wind being strong drove the sea with impetuosity on the shore, which is all shelving coral Rocks; Mr.. P. saw a Ship wreck'd on this dreadful Coast, which indeed any Ship or Boat must be, which come near it —We dined quietly at Mr.. P.; being one of the very few quiet days we had at the Cape. —

On Monday Mr.. Pringle drove again in the Curricle, we went the road to False Bay, which gave me a good idea of the Country in the immediate neighbourhood of Cape Town, the road in this direction is very good, being a great breadth, & well made; we passed a great many very pleasant Country houses belonging to the Dutch Inhabitants, but many of them rented by English officers – Colonel Macquarie dined at Admiral Berties, & I went with Mr.. Pringle to Mr.. Alexrs..; Mrs.. Alexr.. is a very pretty pleasing woman, and she is blest with two fine children, Mr.. Alexander is to my mind an extremely agreeable good humour'd Man, I felt myself quite at my ease in his company which I very seldom do with any person who I have not known for sometime; Coll.. M came to us in the evening. I felt a particular interest in the Cape from my Brothers having been at the first taking of it, when he remain'd there for four years, many other friends of mine had been there also, from hearing them speak often of it I felt almost acquainted with the Place before I had been there. [O]ne of the officers of the same Regt. I found there Captain Monro, who came to see me and was extremely kind and attentive during all the time we staid there. —

Coll.. Macquarie & I took a very pleasant ride with Mr.. Pringle & Mr.. Lawson, round the Kloof, which is a road that carries you from Green Point winding by the Sea till it comes to a pass in the mountains, and terminates by descending on Cape Town, the view of which from the summit of the hill is very fine, we were much pleased by seeing a curious Place form'd by Captain Macnab of the 91st.. Regt.. with great industry & labour, he has certainly the merit of having made a very curious & habitable place where no one but a Highlander would have thought it possible. [T]here are vast numbers of wild animals near Cape Town, but they are seldom known to come within some miles of it, a few days however before we were there, a Tiger had been shot on this road, within a mile of the Town. Mr.. Pringle took us another very fine ride some days after, when we were accompanied by Colonel O'Connell, Major Dale of the 93d. Regt.. & Mr.. Lawson; we went from some miles on the road to False Bay, & then struck off the road to the right, & went by many different winding paths with which Mr.. Pringle was well acquainted over wild moores, [sic] but beautifully wild; being cover'd with the most luxuriant shrubs, & the greatest variety of heaths that I suppose can be seen in any part of the world; it is impossible for any person who has not seen them to form an idea of their beauty, and variety; a bottanist [sic] it would seem must be lost in admiration in this Country, even persons who have no knowledge of that interesting study can make but slow progress in their persuit, [sic] from the irresistible desire to take a specimen of the lovely flowers which at every step arrest the attention. — Mr.. Pringle led us on thro' this forest of beauties till he brought us to the foot of a great mountain, part of which indeed we ascended, where there is a small valley which is known to be inhabited by Hiennas, [sic] Tigers, & many others of these tremendous animals; I could not help thinking with wonder of the composure with which I sat on my little horse in the immediate neighbourhood of ungentle Folks; I may indeed say with truth at the door of thier [sic] habitation; & indeed I cannot say that I thought it a wise thing to do; before I left England I should not have thought myself capable of going willingly into such a place, but such is the force of example, that I went thro' with it without any apparent effort. Mr.. P. then led us down the hill & winding a little to the left, brought us to a rising ground above False Bay, of which we had a fine veiw; [sic] from this spot we turn'd our faces homewards, where we arrived about five o'clock, after one of the most delightful rides I ever had in my life, of not less then [sic] eighteen miles. —

I had heard much of the extraordinary good conduct of the Private Soldiers of the 93d.. Regt.., and during this ride Major Dale began to boast a little of his men. [H]e at last said perhaps you have hear'd of this Regt.. before, they were known in Scotland as the Sutherland Fencibles; Oh then said I, I don't wonder at their behaving so well for they are all Gentlemen! this unpremeditated exclamation was never forgot to me during my stay at the Cape and the Soldiers of this Regt.. went by the name of my Gentlemen ever after. —

Colonel Macquarie met with the greatest attention & kindness from Lord Calledon [sic] and indeed I may say from every one at the Cape who had it in their power to be civil to us, we dined with his Lordship twice, he call'd on us several times, and offer'd us his Carriage & every other accommodation he had in his power, if we chose to make an excursion into the Country; his Lordship is a very good looking young Man, of pleasing manners but apparently extremely diffident; he reminded me much of my friend Sir James Riddle both in appearance, & manner. —There are regular Balls given at the Cape, Mrs.. Pringle, tho' extremely delicate, ventured to go to one, which took place while we were there; It was the best conducted thing of the kind that could be. [I]t commenced at eight o'clock, and every person who intended going is there at the hour; after the first dance the Ladies draw for places; Supper is announced at 12 o'clock, & the Ball terminates in an hour after. The company there very respectable, the dresses of the Ladies particularly neat & plain. – Lord Calledon [sic] staid till near supper time, his Lordship does not dance at these Balls, Admiral Bertie figured away with great industry in every dance, as if he seem'd to consider it a duty incumbent on him to dance his own, & the Governor[']s share too. Colonel Sorrell was Stewart, he was attentive to every person, I liked him by far the best & thought him the most gentlemanly looking Man I saw at the Cape, which is saying a great deal, as there were several very pleasant persons there, among others I must not forget Capt. Blake, who was very kind in lending Coll.. Macquarie his horses. We became acquainted with Mrs.. Hawkes at the Cape and I liked her so much, that I should consider it a very great acquisition; indeed if Captain Hawkes was to effect an exchange into the 73d.. & come to us, which he said he should like to do above all things; however, I fear Mrs.. H. would not willingly undertake another long voyage, having been in great want of even the necessaries of life on the last part of her voyage to the Cape; in so much that she assured me she had many times cried for want of something to eat, when she could not help thinking how the knowledge of her situation would effect [sic] her Father & Mother if they could have been sensible of it –; her Father is a Man of great wealth Mr.. Borradale [Borradall?] a Citizen of London, whose Table no doubt at the very time his child was in want of food, abounded in all the luxuries of good living. Our situation in this Ship has hitherto been very different from that of Mrs.. Hawkes, we have been supplied with all the necessaries of life, & tho' our table has never been neat, elegant nor our cooking of the delicate kind; yet our table has always furnished what any person inclined to eat; could make a good dinner of, and we have had A luxury which I understand is seldom experienced on so long a voyage, which is that of having very fine water. —

I believe it is a general remark that Scotch Men find there [sic] way to every part of the world, & so I have hitherto found it; I believe it is also allow'd that they are always friendly to persons from their own Country, & I am happy in saying that we found this true also. [A]t the Cape I became acquainted with Major Campbell of the 72d.. Regt.., who is married to a Miss Clout a Lady of a Dutch family; he brought his wife & mother in law to see us, & Mrs.. Clout who is a very pleasing woman invited us to her house to dinner, & here we saw the best dinner we had at the Cape, it was quite an elegant entertainment, Mr.. & Mrs.. Pringle were of the Party and it was very pleasant. Major Campbell was not satisfied with this instance of hospitality but insisted on our dining with him in his Barrack at the Castle, he also invited my two Nephews, & found beds for them as often as they chose to accept of them. [T]his was true kindness, & I hope never to forget it, Mrs.. Campbell seems [?] a very good kind of woman indeed, of plain friendly unaffected manners. —

Mr.. Pringle with his usual kindness took us to see the famous Constantia where the wine of that name is made, we went in his Barouch [sic] & four to breakfast by invitation with General & Mrs.. Cockell & they accompanied us to Constantia, where we all went on horse back; Captn.. & Mrs_ Pascoe were also of the party, they overtook us a short time after we left the Cape in a Gig, which in the true seaman style he drove at a full Canter, not consulting the inclination of the tidy little horses, which drew them, on the subject; Colonel O'Connel [sic] & Mr.. Lawson were also with us; The day was extremely fine, we walk'd about the grounds which are very pretty, we went to see the vineyards which are very extensive & kept in high order. Mr.. Clout was extremely civil, shew'd us his Cellars &c. &c. & gave us an elegant cold collation to which we did ample justice – I could have spent a day or two here with great satisfaction, the people were so civil, & the place so beautiful; after having stay'd a few hours here we mounted our horses again and return'd by the Hottentot Camp to General Corkells; the Regt..were at parade when we came to the ground – they went thro' their exercise with great correctness, they are a very good looking body of men as fair as figure goes, and they were very clean & neatly dress'd – their fifes & drums I thought the finest I had ever hear'd, and we were told that these people have a great natural genious for music; after seeing the Regt.. exercised we rode among their Huts, their wives and children are sad looking creatures, some of the children attempt to clothe themselves with pieces of sheeps skins, others appear in thier [sic] birth day suit, & altogether they form a most savage like Groop [sic], much more so indeed than any persons I had ever seen. [T]he situation of their Camp is very fine, the officers have very neat snug houses built on convenient spots in the neighbourhood, they have nice gardens, & really with planting hedges & other little improvements, their houses have quite an appearance of comfort. – we proceeded from this novel sight to General C's, where we got into Mr.. P[']s elegant carriage again, and return'd to Cape Town to dinner, the morning having been spent in a viriety [sic] of the most interesting & pleasing amusement. – to my great joy we had a quiet party at dinner, not so with Mr.. & Mrs.. Pascoe who I fancy must have exchanged the canter of their horse into a gallop to enable them to reach the Town in time to dine with the Governor; Mrs.. P being desirous of enjoying as much of his Lordship[']s company as she could, declined playing cards, but sat down most boldly to attack him at Chess; to his great consternation he soon found that his willing antagonist hardly knew the moves, he did all he could to lose the game, but that he found quite impossible; on which the Lady wish'd to renew the attack, but his Lordship had quite enough of it, & beg'd leave to resign his place to some other person. – Lord Calledon sent home his Carriage with Mrs.. Alexander & the other Ladies; by this time poor Mrs.. Pascoe herself so much gratified what with the morning drive, dining at a Lords house; playing chess with the great Man, & being sent home in his grand Coach with a coronet, that she fairly burst out in an exclamation of joy, clapping her hands & dancing with her feet, I vow! I vow! this has been the happiest – & the best day of my life. –this is all very vulgar no doubt, but who can avoid being pleased at this natural conduct, call'd forth by sensations of gratitude, & satisfaction. —

The garrison at the Cape consists of about six thousand Men, we went to see a Review of four Regts.. one of them of Cavalry, by General Grey at Green Point, it was a very pretty sight; the military are in the best possible state of discipline, the Regts.. very strong and fine healthy handsome bodies of Men. [T]hose we saw review'd were the 21st.. Lt.. Dragoons commanded by Lt.. Coll.. Pigot, the 24th.. foot command'd by Lt.. Coll.. Marriott, the 72d.. by Major Ronald Campbell, the 93d.. by Major Dale & a detachment of Royal Artillery by Lt.. Coll.. Cox. – besides the Garrison at Cape Town there is the 83d.. Regt.. at Stillingbush, & the 87th.. at Simons Town, besides the Hottentot Corps before mentioned. General Grey was particularly attentive to us in ordering a Dragoon to attend Coll.. Macquarie, & on the return of the Troops to Town made them pass us in review order. The day was very fine, & poor Mrs.. Pringle accompanied us, for which I fear she suffer'd afterwards, her state of health being so indifferent when we left her, as to occasion us much uneasiness on her account. —

The Military at the Cape were (as is usual with Soldiers) very hospitably inclined to their Brother officers of the 73d.. Regt.., Coll.. Macquarie could not decline the kindness, tho' he felt it a great fatigue dining out so frequently, and sitting so late as he was obliged to do at these great Regimental Feasts; Mr.. Pringle accompanied him to that given by the 72d.., Major Campbell being a friend of his, he gave them a magnificent dinner, & in the true Highland style the Piper play'd all the time, & after the Cloth was removed enter'd the room marching round the Table to Mr.. Pringle[']s great annoyance. Major C. who has a very slow formal manner address'd Coll.. Macquarie in the most serious manner, saying that it was their usual custom of these occasions to have three Coursts (that is three rounds of the Piper about the table), but that as Mr.. P. did not seem very partial to it, he would dispense with the third courst; Coll.. M. most wickedly said that Mr.. P. liked it above all things, & beg'd it might go on. [T]he time bestow'd on this entertainment was far beyond all reasonable limits. —

These late hours were a serious distress to me, & on that account only I felt very glad when the time for our quitting the Cape drew near. [T]he preparations for our departures were much facilitated to me by the kindness of Mr.. Lawson, who accompanied me on all my travels thro the Towns, & took me to the Shop of John Heger a most singular sort of Man, who as a burlesque on his enormous charges goes by the name of Cheap John; among various other articles I purchased a box of Tools from him, at the enormous price of forty pounds; I was almost afraid that Coll.. M. might find fault with me for spending so large a sum on this article, without previously asking his opinion on the subject, but if he thought it wrong, was too good natured to say so. —

I had always hear'd much said of the neatness and beauty of Cape Town, but indeed I think not more than it deserves, the Streets are wide & spacious, the houses all large & handsome buildings, & the Town built on a regular plan; the Parade Coll.. M. says is the finist [sic] he ever saw in any part of the world, except that at Petersburg – but in one particular I fear the resemblance to Cape Town will no where be found, & that is, that there are no Beggars ever seen. [T]his uncommon advantage was accounted for to me by the lower orders of the people being all Slaves, & every possessor of a Slave provides for them for life, whether in sickness or health; those persons who have been slaves, & who have obtain'd their freedom all belong to an institution which supports them in comfort when their inability prevents their being able to work for their maintenance, at the moment a slave obtains his freedom he pays a sum of money to this most excellent establishment, and if he does not happen to have saved enough for that purpose, his Master makes him a present of what is wanting – Indeed all the Slaves I saw at the Cape had every appearance of being well treated, they were respectably clothed, & looked well fed, contented & happy; when they do not find themselves so they take thier [sic] departure, & inhabit the most inaccessible precipices on the Top of Table Mountain, where there is a constant smoke seen ascending from thier [sic] wild abode, which to look at from below, one could not imagine a Goat much less a Man could find his way to. [T]o draw a comparison between the Slaves here & at Rio Janiero, the situation is wonderfully different; those at Rio were indeed in a miserable state. – even the Bullocks & horses at the Cape look'd as if they were well cared for; the singular appearance of the large waggons which are here made up of must strike every stranger, they are drawn sometimes by sixteen oxen all guided by one Man, who sits as Coachman, having a whip of such extraordinary length as to reach the front pair, when they come into Town there is generally a Man at the head of them; I was inform'd that the construction of the carriage part of these waggons is very ingenious and extremely well calculated for rough mountainous roads, it can be all taken to pieces in a few minutes, being all constructed of wood in seperate [sic] lose [sic] joints; which making no resistance to the obstructions, which come in its way, lasts better & is capable of much more service than workmanship of a more solid texture; the creeking [sic] noise these waggons make is hear'd at a great distance, and is truly disagreeable; two days before we left the Cape Mr.. Pringle & Mr.. Alexander set off in one of them on an expedition of several hundred miles to the interior of the Country, their waggon was drawn by six horses, they had besides three riding horses, so that nine horses & four men were employ'd to transport two Gentlemen over the mountains; they look'd very droll when they got into their large machine, which was more like a house than a carriage, both outwardly & inwardly, being well supplied with provisions of all kinds wine &c . to last them during their excursion, which they expected would take them a fortnight to perform. — There is a great space of uncultivated ground in the neighbourhood of the Cape, indeed I should rather say that there is but a small part in cultivation; the soil & climate seem very favorable for gardens, but not for the general purpose of agriculture; being for the most part barren sand, however I understand where it is practicable that very considerable additions has been lately made to the arable land. I have no doubt but that an object of so much importance does not escape the attention of Lord Calledon, who I believe is unremitting in his attention to every object of interest in the Colony. —

The road which is now making round the Kloof is an improvement of his Lordships, for which the Inhabitants ought to feel grateful. —I must not take leave of the Cape without mentioning the Government House & Garden, the House consists of very spacious appartments; the dining room in particular is a noble size, & has been finish'd in a very pretty manner by the last Dutch governor; the ornamental part being just completed when he was obliged to give it up to the English Governor. [A] very large fine looking Dog finding his quarters much to his liking, keeps possession of them [**indecipherable] who will be Governor; having lived to see the English supplant the Dutch, the Dutch the English, then the English again, who I hope will remain in possession during the remainder of Mr.. Wolffs life, & that of many branches of his descendents. [T]he Government house is situated in the Garden, which has a very fine walk of about three quarters of a mile long, & between 30 & 40 yards in breadth, is well shaded by an avenue of oak Trees, and enclosed on each side by a Hedge of cut myrtle; the garden contains 40 acres of rich land, divided into almost as many squares by oak hedges. The Bands of different Regts.. were station'd at intervals on the great walk on Sunday, which seem'd to me an innocent and pleasing amusement to numbers of respectable persons, who walk'd in the Garden after Church time. [A]t the extremity of the Garden there is a Menagerie where we saw some curious Birds, a Lion & Lioness &c. &c.; but the collection is far inferior to what it was in the time of the Dutch. [T]he Government house tho' consisting of such good rooms, appear'd to me to be a very dull habitation; there is no view to be seen the front windows being shaded by the Trees of the Garden, the back of the house is enclosed by a great well. —The most singular and beautiful object I saw at the Cape is the fleecy cloud which so frequently ornaments the Table Mountain, to describe the singular elegance of this fine drapery, would be a difficult task; beautiful as it is, it is no pleasing one to the Inhabitants, as the arrival of the cloud is a sure indication of bad weather. —

There are two Churches at the Cape; one of which I was in, it is a plain building, but a good size, & finish in a very solid and as I think proper manner; being plain & handsome, & not overloaded with ornament. [I]t is first occupied by a Dutch, & then an English Congregation. —

The Inhabitants of the Cape seem very well supplied with Butcher Meat, fish, & Game; vegetables are not good, very scarce, & high priced. [T]he article which is most wanting is fuel. [T]ho' the weather was extremely cold during our stay, we had no fires in any of the houses where we visited, the price of coals is very high, & wood is scarce; in most Families a slave is kept for the express purpose of collecting fire-wood. He goes out in the morning ascends the steep mountains where waggons cannot approach, and returns at night with two small bundles of faggots, the produce of six or eight hours of hard labour, swinging at the two ends of a bamboo, carried across the shoulders. [W]e met numbers of these men returning to Town on our way from Constantia, most of the poor fellows had ornamented the Tops of their faggots & their heads with flowers, some of them appear'd cheerful, but all very much fatigued; this appear'd to me the hardest service I saw perform'd at the Cape. —

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. —

Monday 16th.. Octr.. at noon this day in consequence of our unjustifiable diviation [sic] from our proper course yesterday, in going back in chase of the Strange Sail; we found ourselves to the northward & westward of the Cape of Good Hope – now once more in sight – but which we may not be able to double for some days to come, the wind being almost right ahead. —

Wedy.. 18th.. Octr.. the wind having come round to the northward & westward in the course of yesterday, we were this day at noon in East Longd.. 17d. 40s_; and going almost due East at 6 miles an hour, we must have doubled the Cape between 8 & 9 o'clock this night. [T]his chase was a trial of patience to us, & Captain Pascoe also, we felt ourselves detain'd at a most critical part of the voyage for the sole purpose of his emolument, and he poor Man, made himself sure that the Strange Sail was French, that she would turn out a Rich Prize, and make his fortune; his disappointment was very great when we lost sight of her; our superior sailing was in many respects a great comfort to us, but if there had been any fighting, we should have had all the blows and none of the profit; this is comparatively. —

From every information we had been able to procure regarding this voyage we expected to have had a fair wind in all probability all the way to carry us across from the Cape of Good Hope to New Holland, but we found this a great mistake; we have I believe made slower progress than on any part of our long voyage, the wind has been very variable, and when we had a favorable wind it seldom remain'd for a few days at a time; on the 26th_ we had a very severe gale; we suffer'd very much from not being able to carry sail which would have parted us from the Commodore, it was with the utmost exertion that Captn.. Pritchard kept company with the Hindostan; in the night the arm Chests on the Poop got lose, [sic] every heel the Ship gave these immence [sic] heavy Chests roll'd from one side to the other, the noise & shock this occasion'd in our cabin was frightful. —[T]his heavy gale was succeeded by a calm, and very heavy swell; but as soon as favorable weather came, we forgot it all. —

On the 31st.. in the evening Coll.. M. & I were walking on Deck when Thomas Jackson fell from the fore top Mast Rigging on the Forecastle, and fractured his skull; which occasion'd his immediate death. [H]e was a very active good temper'd young Man, and a great favorite with the Sailors; they were much affected with the accident, & some of them shed tears. This young Man had been rather addicted to drink, when Coll.. M. & Captn.. P. passed him at quarters the Captn.. said I dont think you are quite as you should be. [H]e seem'd offended, & said, you always look hard at me Sir. [I]t is supposed from this circumstance that his being in drink occasion'd this dreadful accident. [N]ext morning his Body was committed to the deep, Mr.. Bent who had been rather unwell for sometime, with his usual kindness on these occasions perform'd the Service; the weather was extremely cold, & I have no doubt that this exertion was partly the cause of his being taken extremely ill, his situation was very alarming for sometime, & we all felt great uneasiness on his account, but happily for us all, as well as his own family, he recover'd; which in a great measure must be attributed to the extraordinary attention Mr.. Carter Surgeon of the 73d.. paid him, & the skill with which he treated his complaint. —

Towards the middle of Novr.. the great object of interest was the Island of St. Pauls, which the Commodore intended to touch at, here we place'd scemes [sic] for catching fish, & collecting vegetables of which we were quite out, the only doubt was whether the potatoes would be good, being as we were told left to cultivate as they best could by some fisher Men who had lived on the Island a considerable time, but had now deserted it. Captain Cleveland said at all events they would surely get some grass for the cow, & he would shoot Birds; for my part I pleased myself with idea of having a walk on the shore, when no doubt I should have had an eye to business too, by looking out for potatoes. [B]ut all these plans were disappointed by the violence of the wind, which in addition to very thick weather obliged us to give the Island a good birth [sic] as Seamen term it; so on the 13th.. we passed it, at the distance of 88 Miles, – and now as we drew near the place of our destination out impatience became greater than ever; calculations were made every day regarding the time we should still probably take to arrive; the Maps & Charts were on hard duty, & no sooner was the day run marked off than we all crowded with impatience to see what progress we had made, the most correct idea I can retain of our general progress is that we have run down fifteen degrees in 7 days generally; sometimes when the wind has been directly contrary we have bestow'd two or three days more on that distance. —[O]n the 27th.. of Novr.. the Commodore made signal for the appearance of land, & of caution; this signal was made about three o'clock in the morning, Captain P. went directly on Deck where he dress'd himself in the cold, he had not been very well for some days before, but at breakfast that morning he found himself taken very ill; he had always express'd his abhorrence of Doctors, & that for his part when he was unwell, he did not wish to see any person; but to be left entirely to himself; however an acute rheumatism attended with total inability, soon concerned us that his opinions when well, were very different from his conduct when sick; he was more impatient and restless than any person I ever saw sick, his Servants had not a moments rest by day or night, when he was awake he kept two or three persons about him in constant employment. [H]is cabin was indeed very confined, Coll.. M. offer'd him the use of one of ours; he seem'd to think it quite a blessing, & said he would move there, but how to effect this was the question, for he had not the smallest power of motion, & was afraid to be touch'd – when the time came for this grand removal our Servant Joseph & Mrs.. Ovens were singled out of many persons present, as the most able bodied men. They accordingly set to work, and got the Captain in their arms – I was in the next Cabin & hear'd him roar out. Avast Avast Avast; Avast heaving! now lower me handsomely; by this time they got him on a chair, & here he was allow'd to rest, having yet to perform the journey thro' the Mess Cabin to the one he was to sleep in. —[A]t last they began to renew the attack, and so did he, with as many orders as he had breath to pronounce words. – Skull [sic] me forward I say, have a care of my larbord side, now hoist altogether. – hold on – you must heave me in at the larbord side – now hoist me, slew me round to the starbord side – steady – these with a few other expressions which it is as well to forget, were as liberally applied to these two Men as if they had been Sea Men – at last he was lodged in his Cott, and there we thought he was to remain during his illness – but in the morning when we sent to enquire for our neighbour, the Bird was flown; we had no sooner left him for the night than he sent for a band of Sailors, & had himself transported back to his old birth, [sic] perhaps with as much ceremony, but certainly with less noise than when he quitted it. —[[O]ne certain rule he says he must insist on, which is, never to be left alone; as for the Doctor he sends for him at any hour of the night which strikes his fancy, and constantly thro' the day; but the worst of it is he can neither say nor do any thing to please him. [A]s to the appearance of land which seem'd to be the immediate cause of his illness, it vanish'd with the morning sun. —On the 29th.. a very large whale was seen, it came quite near the Ship and we saw it to great advantage; its size appear'd to me extraordinary, and I was told that they are seldom seen so large. —

On the 1st.. of Decr. the Hindostan was supplied from this Ship with fire wood and Coals. —

5th.. at 11 o'clock at night a large fire ball was seen not far off, passing in a S. W. direction. —

6th.. Latie.. 39.. 44s. Long 137o -15 E [.] Sounded, but no ground found at 120 Fathoms. —

10th.. in the morning a Seal was seen, and some land Birds; being the first inhabitants of the new world who came to pay their compliments to us; Coll.. M. consider'd the appearance of the Seal as a sure indication of being at no great distance from the land; – Captn. Pascoe having long before decided on going thro' Bass's Straits we are now making for Governor Kings Island. [H]e proposed going into Port Phillip, but Coll.. M. wishing much to meet with Governor Bligh, and judging that he might possibly be at one of the settlements on Van Deemins [sic] [L]and requested our Commodore to take the other side of the Strait that he might have a communication with Port Dalrymple, this he readily agreed to. [T]he Hindostan was this day supplied by us with Rum, and Cocoa; Coll.. M. never could bear the idea of the two Ships parting company, and every days experience convinced us how necessary they were to each other; indeed it is hard to say to what necessity the Hindostan might have been reduced if Captain Pritchard had not been able to supply her many wants. —Our voyage is now please God drawing to a conclusion, having been in every respect hitherto prosperous, except in expedition; our detention having been occasion'd by the bad sailing of the Hindostan, a Ship very ill calculated for so long a voyage. We have been remarkably healthy in this Ship, the number of Soldiers on the sick list seldom exceeding five or Six, & even then generally confined on account of sore legs, or accidents, at no time have we had a contagious disorder among them. Nothing indeed can exceed the minute care & attention paid by Coll.. M. to his Men at all times; twice each day he visits every part of the Ship, the men are regularly paraded morning an[d] evening, the women are also obliged to appear clean and well dress'd at regular parades appointed for them; the Soldiers deck is kept as clean as it is possible to make it, and when the weather is damp or any wet has got in, the stoves are kept burning between decks all day; during the warm weather wind sails were always kept in the hatchways, the advantage obtain'd from than was by no means so great as it ought to have been, owing to their being made on a bad construction, & ill placed; besides being made of old canvas which was always giving way; if the Navy board were sensible of the very great advantage of these wind sails particularly to Ships in a hot climate, crowded with Troops I cannot think but that they would make an allowance for this purpose of proper Canvas. —

Care was always taken that the hammocks should be kept dry – which is certainly a matter of great importance. The provisions served out to the men were of the best quality, & well cook'd; in every object relating to the comfort and health of the Men, Coll.. M. always found in Captn.. Pritchard the greatest desire to promote both. What the cause is of the very different state of health on board the Hindostan it might perhaps be difficult to discover, it appears to me that the Service these Ships are now employ'd in, is more likely to be successfully executed by a Master in the Navy, than a Captain; Mr.. Pritchard is his own Purser; his Credid [sic] and character depends on the manner in which all the persons on board are accommodated, he knows what is required, & that if any thing is wanting the blame will attach Solely to him; any great neglect on his part would probably be the means of depriving him of his Ship; besides his situation in life does not set him above attending in the most minute manner to the wants of the persons under his charge. In the Hindostan being commanded by a Captn.. in the Navy, the stores & provisions are supplied by the Purser, who happens to be a Rogue; & they are in want of every thing, & totally out of that most necessary article – fire – As I have been very little in that Ship, I know nothing of how Captn.. Pascoe goes on, but I hardly think he can lay the minute attention to the comforts of the Men which Mr.. Pritchard does.

Our society had been added to at the Cape of Good Hope by Mr.. Campbell, who being desirous of going to New South Wales had procured a passage in this Ship, & lived at the Captains Table; in as far as we have seen him yet, he appears to be a great acquisition, being a man of gentlemanly manners, & information; he is a native of Ireland, his family having originally been Scotch. —

13th.. Decr.. the wind having been for some days quite against our making the Straits this object was abandon'd this morning by Captain Pascoe, who made the Signal for a course to go round the Cape; a thick Fog came on which prevented the Ships from being able to see each other the whole day, Guns have been fired very frequently to prevent the Ships from parting company – in the evening the atmosphere clear'd, & we had the pleasure of seeing our Friends, which was much better than hearing from them, the conversation being so loud as to annoy me a good deal all day. —

14th.. We have clear weather but the wind being N. E. 1/2 N., is rather against the probability of our seeing land to day our Lat at 12 o'clock was 44 - 13 -, Long 144 - 43.; we have been sent on to look out, we are sailing with a fine steady breeze & smooth sea – we have seen some large Whales to day, and a number of Bonettas but we have no birds about us – we saw a good many when we were making for the Straits – Captain Pascoe has made the rendevous Oyster Bay, we imagine his object in this is to supply himself with fire wood, for which this Bay is particularly well calculated. —

15th.. At half past 10 o'clock this morning we have with the mercy of God made the land; having a clear sight of the Mew Stone. Coll.. M. immediately order'd the Band to play God save the King! [W]hen it struck up he felt himself particularly affected. —[W]e have made the land in the most favorable manner possible, our reckoning by time keeper & observation being perfectly correct. [W]e sounded & found a coral bottom at 80 Fathoms, right up & down, being 15 miles from the Mew Stone, which bore north of us. —It blows a fine moderate gale at S. W. which if it continues to blow as fresh and as fair as it does at present, we shall probably see Port Jackson in three days. —

The Mew Stone call'd so from its resemblance to a Rock of the same name on the Coast of Cornwall is a fine striking object, being high and running to a Peak; it resembles in Shape the Bass in the Firth of Forth. We saw some low Islands a little to the westward of it. [O]ne of these Islands is named Pedro Blanco, the other the Eddystone; this last had the appearance of an old square built castle when we were opposite to it, & on the top as well as that of Pedro Blanco the appearance of a white Flag display'd from the highest Part of them, we supposed that the excessive whiteness of these Rocks is occasion'd by the Sea Fowl, the only inhabitants they are capable of maintaining. We saw a very fine surfe [sic] dashing up the Rocks to a great height, tho' we were at the distance of 15 miles from them [W]hen we were leaving the Eddystone it had the appearance of a Ship under full sail — [A]t 2 o'clock this day the Commodore hove to, & made the Signal for a Man overboard; we lay to, but did not go to him; he had his boats out for two hours but to no effect, the Man was unfortunately drown'd – he was one of the best Seamen Captain Pascoe had; it was his birth day, the other sailors had treated him to a share of their Grog on the occasion he went to his station on the yard arm to look out in a state of intoxication, & fell asleep; another man was half way up to releive [sic] him when he fell. — This disturbing accident detain'd us three hours during which time the favorable wind lasted but shortly after deserted us. —

On the 16th.. at eight o'clock in the morning we saw Cape Pillar at about five miles distance. The Cape is form'd exactly like a part of Gribun in the Isle of Mull opposite to Oskamull. I do not know of any place the resemblance to which would be so gratifying to me. [S]ome of the happiest days of my life being spent at Mrs.. Macquaries house at Oskamull. [T]he weather was too thick to admit of our seeing the Pillar at the time we look'd out, but it had been seen a few minutes before by several persons in the Ship. —

On the 18th.. Colonel O'Connell paid us a visit, and told us that they were entirely out of fresh provisions – we could not offer them any assistance being nearly in the same state ourselves, the weather is calm cloudy & rainy, & we are all very tired of being at Sea, & sorely disappointed in the sanguine expectations we form'd of being at Sydney in three days after making the land. The Hindostan was supplied again this day with spirits & firewood. —

On the 19th.. – the wind came against us —

On the 21st.. Saw Land again. —

The 23d.. wind quite against us, & pretty high, in the evening a great deal of Lightning, at 2 A. M. a Calm.

24th.. – at about 6 o'clock this morning the wind came fair, we have a fine breeze & are going on well, if this continues we shall be in all probability in Port Jackson tomorrow, our Late_ to day at 12 o'clock being 36.. 17 E [blank space] indeed it is full time for our voyage to be over we have kill'd our last Mutton, & our last Pig. — We have not had any fowls for sometime, I ask'd the Stewart [sic] some days ago if he thought our mutton would stand out, he said yes I think it will, at five Knots.

Coll.. M. is rather unwell. [T]he motion of the Ship has given me a confused feel in my head, this is in addition to my uneasiness on his account makes me feel very much out of sorts; I can't enjoy any thing, & feel very cross. — We are sailing along the Coast & can plainly perceive the smoke of the natives fires – at 12 o'clock we were only 12 miles from the Shore. Captain P. tells us that we are about 137 miles from Port Jackson. —

25th.. The kindest congratulation I ever received was this morning from my beloved Husband who thank God feels himself better. —

The wind continued favorable & brisk all night we supposed we must of course be arrived at our destined Port. Mr.. Bent who I believe is one of the most anxious persons on board for our arrival ask'd his Servant how many miles there was on the board – a hundred and twenty Sir was the answer – Mr.. Bent overjoyed said he supposed we were just coming to anchor & was getting out of his cott as fast as he could to have a view of the coast. No Sir said George for we are out of sight of land! [N]o person but one who has been long at Sea can well imagine what a disappointment this was to us all. [W]hat possess'd the Commodore we are at a loss to guess but with a fair wind & full moon and a clear Coast he thought proper to stand out to Sea and we are so unfortunate as to find that the wind has come against us[.] [T]his is really vexatious[.][W]e have been so frequently baffled in our expectations that I really think but things have ever so favorable an appearance again we shall hardly venture[?] to hope to derive [?] much benefit from it. —

We dined this day with the officers[.] I felt it quite a pleasure to meet them all once more before we land in a sociable manner I feel attach'd to them all and happy in their company[.] — The Soldiers were paraded by Colonel Macquarie this morning in complete marching order in their new Caps and Clothing mess'd exactly as they will be when they land [.] No body of Men could possibly appear cleaner or in better health[.] [I]t was gratifying to see that the excessive pains which Colonel Macquarie had bestow'd on them had not been lost and that out of 370 Soldiers on board of this Ship there should only be six in the Sick report and those only slight triffling cases this is the more extraordinary as they have been above seven months at Sea. — Captn.. Pritchard gave them an extra allowance of grog to celebrate the day with[.] [T]his indulgence was well bestow'd for tho' they were merry & jovial they were perfectly queit[sic] & orderly.

[End of journal entries]

Source Macquarie, Elizabeth. Journal
Original held in the Mitchell Library, Sydney.
ML Ref: C126 pp.1-111. [Microfilm Reel CY554].