Under a continually favourable wind, we made great progress on the 2d of July, and had the agreeable certainty of leaving the bank of Newfoundland behind us, so that we had reason to hope, during the remainder of our voyage, not to be again incommoded by fogs; latitude 41° 24´, longitude 50°. Notwithstanding the constantly favourable and fresh breezes, the sea was so smooth, that our ship had no more motion than if we were sailing on a stream. And thus passed off the third of July; the air, which had thus far been very warm, became to-day rather cool, which made our cabin very comfortable. At a cable’s length from our vessel we perceived a numerous herd of porpoises, which were sporting on the surface of the water; latitude 42°, longitude 46° 48´.
The 4th of July was the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of American Independence; it was of course duly celebrated on board our vessel. The American flag was hoisted early, and at dinner more wine than usual, and of various kinds, was drank freely. Several toasts were proposed: Mr. Croker drank the health of the King of England; whereupon Dr. Garret proposed that of the President of the United States; I gave Governor Clinton’s; thereupon followed a great many of like kind. We were pretty gay and cheerful, and drank till tolerably late. Several gentlemen got head-aches, and became sea-sick; and many laughable scenes took place. I stole into my state-room, in order to avoid similar mishap.
On the 5th of July we had the good fortune to meet a large whale, which spouted the water high above him in all directions. He did not, however, honour us a long time with his presence, but pursued his course, and we ours, though with much greater velocity; for at the usual meridian observation, we found our latitude 44° 9´ and our longitude 39° 38´. In the morning we had little wind, but when towards evening it freshened, we made from eight to nine miles an hour. Up to this period our voyage had been most prosperous, continually fair wind and the sea very smooth. During three days we had seen a brig at the distance of some miles from us, which was going on the same course, but our ship being a better sailer, we left it to-day considerably behind.
On the 7th of July, weather dull, with occasional rain; which rendered it cold and uncomfortable. Latitude 46° 50´, longitude 30° 31´; wind towards afternoon rather strong, sea running very high with the wind in our stern; this increased the motion of our ship, which was constantly pitching from one side to the other. What was not properly fastened gave way. This gave rise to many droll scenes. The ladies, who were unaccustomed to this new unpleasantness attending a sea voyage, became frightened; they conceived that danger was near, and we had considerable trouble in allaying their fears. One of them entreated in the most affecting manner, several gentlemen, who were whiling away their time at a game of whist, and others who were engaged at back-gammon, not to bring down the vengeance of heaven, and not to increase the danger that surrounded us, by sinful card-playing and unholy back-gammon! But there was no danger whatever to apprehend, though the rolling of the vessel was unpleasant; the passengers scarcely knew where to go, or what to do, for it was even impossible to sleep, inasmuch as the shocking rolling threatened us with a fall from our beds.
We pursued our course swiftly during the 8th of July. Latitude 47° 58´, longitude 25° 10´. In the forenoon the sea was calmer, but during the afternoon, and particularly in the evening, it ran so high that the ship pitched more than yesterday. The weather was, during the whole of the day, unpleasant, cloudy, and rainy, and it was with the greatest difficulty that we kept our feet on the wet deck. In the evening, I observed again in the sea the phosphoric light; some parts of the water sparkled like fireflies.[II.39] We overtook a brig, apparently bound on our course; on this occasion we once more remarked what a good sailer the Pacific is, for when we discovered the brig, she was far ahead of us, and although she had all her sails set, we not only soon overtook her, but soon left her far behind us. We did not approach her sufficiently near to speak. During this damp weather, I acknowledged the superior construction of the Pacific to that of the Pallas; whilst in the latter the moisture penetrated throughout, and exerted its noxious influence on a variety of articles liable to rot, and spread through the whole vessel an insupportable foul smell; every thing in the Pacific was dry, and in our cabin we had not suffered at all from the existing humidity.
The night of the 8th and 9th of July I passed very unpleasantly, owing to the rolling of the vessel; I was every moment on the point of falling out of my bed, and it was only towards six o’clock in the morning that I began to enjoy some repose. The day brought with it clear weather. The wind had been so favourable for the last twenty-four hours, that we found ourselves in latitude 48° 40´, and longitude 19° 12´. In the afternoon the wind became variable and blew from various quarters; we experienced several squalls accompanied by showers of rain. At last it set in strong from the north-west, and drove us forward at the rate of eleven miles per hour. Towards evening we came up with a vessel bound from Savannah for Liverpool, spoke her, and gave her our longitude. Their reckoning differed from ours, as they believed themselves to be in longitude 16°. The sea ran rather high while we were in the neighbourhood of this vessel, so that we could not have a long talk with her, nor even rightly understand her name. We left her far behind us.
On the 10th of July, the wind continued favourable, there was a heavy swell of the sea, and much motion in the vessel. The weather clearing off towards noon, we were enabled to make exact observations, which we could not do for some days before, on account of the cloudy weather. It appeared, that we had made a small mistake in our computation of the longitude, for by the precise observation of this day, we found our latitude to be fifty degrees twenty-two minutes, and our longitude seventeen degrees. We saw already several birds, a proof that we were approaching land; we continually saw petrels and mother Carey’s chickens. The more we sailed northwards, we felt the air becoming cooler, which created in me no pleasant sensation.
The 11th of July was rather windy and rainy; in other respects matters remained in statu quo. Latitude fifty degrees thirty minutes, longitude twelve degrees fifty-five minutes. We hoped to find ourselves on the next day on the Nymph bank, which stretches from the south of Ireland, far into the sea, nor were we deceived in our expectations, for very early on the 12th of July, we experienced an uncommonly heavy motion, and the waves ran as high as in a storm, although the wind was not strong. This served as an assurance, that we had attained the Nymph bank. The motion of the sea here is caused by the pressure of great masses of water upon the bank, whereby the under water is cast up, and driven with great force towards the surface. The lead was hove for soundings several times since midnight, as we lay still too far to the south, to be governed by landmarks; had the weather not been so hazy, we could easily have distinguished Cape Clear, the south-westernmost point of Ireland, consisting of a single high rock, jutting out into the sea, and provided with a light-house. While we were seated at dinner, land was discovered. We mounted on deck, and beheld the high coast of the county of Cork in Ireland; the weather continued so hazy and rainy, that we could not have a clear and fine view of the land. I was surprised at the indifference with which I contemplated the first European land that now met my view, and particularly when I compared this indifference with the joyful enthusiasm, with which, one year past, on the 24th of July. I put my foot for the first time on the soil of America! But at that time every thing was new to me, and my expectations were wrought up to the highest pitch; now on the contrary, I could only expect to see what was generally familiar. After dinner we perceived off the coast of Ireland, two islands with high hills, called the Saltees, and near them a three-masted ship, as a floating light at anchor. We met likewise a steam-boat, bound from Milford in Wales, to Waterford in Ireland. It lay rather low in the water, and as the wind blew strong from the west, the sea ran so high, that I did not at all envy the condition of the passengers in the steam-boat, over whose deck the waves were constantly beating. The sight of land made our passengers more cheerful, and towards evening we became more happy than usual.
On the morning of the 13th of July, the wind was uncommonly mild, the weather, however, cleared up, so that we gradually discovered the lofty and mountainous coast of Wales. Among these high mountains, we particularly distinguished that of Snowdon, which towered above the others, until its pinnacle became lost in the clouds; it is about four thousand feet high. We descried the Isle of Anglesea next, and came so near it, that we could perceive distinctly its rough, high and precipitous rocks, arising from the ocean. On the highest of these rocks, stands a watch-house with a signal pole; we showed our number; every vessel that trades with Liverpool, is there furnished with a number, under which it is inscribed in the book of the exchange, and our signal was immediately hoisted over the watch-house. By a chain of telegraphs, the news of our arrival reached Liverpool in a moment, at the distance of sixty miles. Under the high rock of Anglesea, is a smaller, more isolated rock, on which stands a white light-house, which contrasts charmingly with the dark rocks. From the higher rock, a zigzag path, cut in the rock and surrounded with a white wall, leads to a bridge, suspended by ropes, over which you enter this little island. As we approached it towards noon, the wind sprang up, and we enjoyed the majestic spectacle of the waves breaking on the black rocks. Then we made the highlands of Holyhead, doubled them and directed our course to the east. Behind the cape, the beautifully situated town of Holyhead with its harbour burst upon our view. This English harbour is the nearest to the Irish coast; between it and Dublin there is a regular communication by steam-boats. We tacked and stood over to the coast of Wales, and were delighted with the appearance of its fresh green soil; its neat houses and churches. The green hedges with which the fields and meadows are encompassed, produce a very pleasing sensation; I however observed, that there was a great scarcity of trees. The scenery towards the sea side began likewise to be more lively, as there was a great number of vessels in view. At last the pilot-boat came up, and put a pilot on board. As one approaches England from the European continent, the elegant construction of these one-masted cutter pilot-boats and their quick sailing, excites astonishment; but if one is bound from the United States, and has beheld their elegant shipping, and particularly the New York pilot-boat schooners, there is no reason for surprise, for the English shipping is far inferior to the American.
Toward evening, the ebb was against us; we could no longer run into Liverpool, and were obliged to cast anchor within fifteen miles of the city. We had passed the same floating light, which I observed three years ago, in a voyage from Liverpool to Dublin, and we lay near four light-houses, two of which gave a remarkably clear and beautiful light; the light of one of these towers played gracefully on the waves. These towers were a considerable distance from each other, and are so situated, that two must be brought in a line, to find the proper course. I had observed on the coast of Wales, some white pyramids, which also serve as landmarks. We met to-day several steam-boats, bound to different ports along the Irish coast. Dr. Garret, whose business led him to Ireland, availed himself of this opportunity to proceed to Dublin, and left us while we were still under way. We beheld the departure of this lively fellow-passenger with much regret, as the loss of his good humour and wit, greatly depressed our spirits. Three custom-house officers soon came on board, who after inspecting the vessel for form sake, and partaking of a hearty collation, instantly freed us from their company. We were boarded by several boats, which offered to take passengers ashore; but as it was near dusk, and as the most of us were in no hurry, only two of our fellow-passengers accepted their proposals. This was the nineteenth day since our departure from Sandy Hook, and we could not be too thankful to Providence for his protection, and our happy and speedy voyage. As it was known in Liverpool, that we were to sail on the 16th ultimo, from New York, our friends anxiously awaited our arrival.