Romanoff had to beat down Channel and was six days from the Thames to the Lizard, and strong S.W. winds compelled her to go inside the Canaries and Cape Verdes. She crossed the equator in 21° W. She ran her easting down in 44° S., and though she had no big runs was only 21 days between the Cape meridian and the Otway.
Ben Cruachan also had tempestuous weather and easterly winds on making the Australian coast, and came into port with most of her bulwarks gone. The day after passing the Leeuwin meridian, 19th June, she had a hard gale with a very heavy beam sea. She had her fore and mizen lower topsails blown out of the bolt ropes, and carried away two topmast backstays owing to the heavy rolling.
Aristides had to beat out of the Channel against strong S.W. gales and Miltiades had three days of S.W. gales in the Bay of Biscay, whilst Salamis, which was very deeply laden with her Plimsoll mark awash, was forced down into 47° S. by hard easterly gales.
Samuel Plimsoll, with 384 emigrants on board, was only 16 days to the equator. Between the Cape and the Leeuwin she made the following fine 24-hour runs:—
| June | 11 | 298 |
|---|---|---|
| „ | 15 | 294 |
| „ | 17 | 313 |
| „ | 19 | 304 |
| „ | 22 | 291 |
| „ | 23 | 308 |
| „ | 26 | 314 |
| „ | 26 | 300 |
The Tweed this year was commanded by Captain White, who had had the Blackadder. The old ship averaged 240 miles a day from the equator to the S.W. Cape, Tasmania, her best day’s work being from 8th to 9th July, when she covered 362 miles.
Loch Maree ran down her easting in 41° S. and experienced no very heavy weather, but managed to average 284 miles a day for 28 days.
Rodney went out to Adelaide in 74 days, but her passage was thrown in the shade by the wonderful Torrens, which arrived a few days later, only 65 days out from Plymouth.
The Thomas Stephens left Liverpool on 29th April and made the fine run of 83 days to Rangoon.