NEW SOUTH WALES (continued).
Monday, July 18th.—Lovely sunrise—the last we shall see, alas! in this beautiful place. Very busy; rather a worrying morning; so much to settle and arrange. Did some final shopping with the children. Met Lord Shaftesbury at lunch. Went off to the 'Sunbeam,' feeling quite sad that the moment of departure had at last arrived. The Admiral came on board 'Sunbeam' at the last moment, bringing some violets as a farewell offering. Sailed slowly away, and gradually lost sight of the Heads in the darkness.
Tuesday, July 19th.—At half-past twelve Tom came below to announce our arrival off the port of Newcastle. The wind had been so fresh and fair that we made a smart run of seven hours, sighting the lights at Nobby Head at about half-past ten. Our head was then put off the land, and we hove to, to wait for the tug. This is a process which to the old salt seems a pleasure nearly equal to that of going ashore, at all events to dropping anchor in a well-sheltered harbour. Though I certainty cannot call myself an inexperienced sailor, it appears to me to be the acme of discomfort. Even in a heavy gale it affords but slight relief from the storm-tossed motion of the ship. On the present occasion it was a change from pleasantly gliding along through the water at a speed of nine or ten knots an hour to a nasty pitching motion which made us all very wretched. Everything began to roll and tumble about in a most tiresome manner; doors commenced to bang, glasses to smash, books to tumble out of their shelves, and there was a general upset of the usually peaceful equilibrium of the yacht. So unpleasant was this, that I suggested to Tom that, instead of waiting outside for the reception tug, we should get up steam and go into harbour at daylight so as to have a few hours' rest. This we did, and glided into the harbour precisely at 5.30 a.m., anchoring just off the railway-pier, and quite taking the good people of Newcastle by surprise. The town presented a great contrast to its namesake at home, for the morning dawned bright and lovely, with hardly a smoke-wreath to intercept the charming view. We looked out on a noble river with a busy town on its banks and low hills in the background.
About eight o'clock the chairman of the reception committee, Lieutenant Gardner, of the Royal Naval Brigade, came on board to arrange the order of the proceedings. Everybody was most kindly anxious to show us everything there was to be seen, but Tom thought the lengthy programme would be too much for my strength, and suggested that the original arrangement should be adhered to. Punctually at half-past ten the Mayor and Corporation came on board to give us a cordial welcome and present an address. At 11.15 we embarked in two steam-launches and went up the harbour, which looked gay and beautiful, the port being crowded with shipping. We were told, however, that it is not nearly so full as it used to be a year or two ago. They say that bad times have affected this like every other place, and that only a quarter of the number of vessels are in harbour now, compared to the returns of this time last year.
Kangaroo-foot (Arrigozanthus)
Our first visit was to the hydraulic cranes, by which a ship can take in a thousand tons of coal in ten hours. From the cranes we went a little further up the harbour, to the landing-place, where a dense crowd eagerly awaited us. Carriages were in readiness, but Tom rather upset the plans by his usual wish to walk instead of going in state in a coach. I fear he severely tried the lungs and legs of his entertainers by taking them at a brisk pace up a steep hill to the high-level reservoir. As soon as I got into the carriage a basket of fragrant violets was given to me by the school children of Lampton, one of the collier townships in the neighbourhood. We drove past the reserve and up to the reservoir, from which there is a fine view of the town and surrounding country. We stayed a long time at the top of the breezy hill watching the dark blue waves turn to pale green as they curled their white-crested heads into great rollers and dashed against the steep cliffs of the many little headlands and promontories of the bay. Looking in another direction, the view extends over the rich alluvial plain which surrounds Newcastle, thickly studded with houses and colliery townships. One new colliery has been started quite close to the shore, and not improbably it will be carried, like the old Botallack mine in Cornwall, right under the sea, where the richest seam of coal runs. While we were taking in the characteristic features of the landscape the sun became so powerful, in spite of a cold wind, that umbrellas and sunshades were found necessary.
After leaving the reservoir we drove through another quarter of the town. Every house had at its door a smiling group of people who greeted us warmly. Leaving the town, we went on to Nobby Head. The position is fortified, and garrisoned with a company of the Permanent force. From this point the town is better seen than from the reservoir, and there is a good prospect of the entrance to the harbour. Though it was comparatively calm to-day, the waves rolled in with great force; and it is said that in bad weather the sea is perfectly frightful. Just inside the Heads, not thirty yards from the shore, a small black buoy marks the spot where a steamer went down with every soul on board, not only in sight of land, but actually in port. While Tom was inspecting we rested in the signal-station and talked to the signalman.