The earth teems with beautiful and profuse vegetation—for the most part in a wild state. Magnificent convolvuluses and lilies, rare ferns—of which I gathered, perhaps, as rare a collection—amongst them two or three species of tree ferns, great raspberries and gooseberries; and a very arcadia of flowers, lovely objects all for the artist's pencil.
The women seem devoid of that quality we so much admire in Englishwomen, and which is so rarely found beyond England's shores—the quality of modesty. It is rather embarrassing, for instance, whilst bathing to find your clothes—which you had left on the beach—the centre of an admiring and criticising crowd of ladies, handling and trying on each separate article of your rather intricate wardrobe, and wishing, no doubt, the owner would swim to shore and help them in their efforts. Such unaffected simplicity and ingenuousness is most refreshing to witness.
How extremely alike child nature is all over the world! Observing a little half-famished girl in a canoe alongside, I handed her a piece of jam tart through the port. At first she was at a loss what to do with it, but soon following out an universal law in such cases, she ventured to put it to her mouth. The result may be expected; for no matter how widely tastes differ, every child likes jam. It was real good to see the hearty way in which that copper-skinned maid smacked her tiny cherry lips, and looked her grateful thanks through her great lustrous almond eyes. With the intention, perhaps, of sharing the delicacy with her brothers and sisters, who shall say? she carefully wrapped up the remainder, and placed it inside her only garment. How often, dear reader, have you and I not done similarly at school feasts? Though this little Loo-Choo's heart was willing, the flesh was weak; the parcel was again taken out, re-examined, and re-tasted—but with evident reluctance—till, finally, after a few ineffectual efforts to overcome selfishness, the whole was consumed.
It is satisfactory to be able to write that in their dealings with this simple people our men acted always with kindness and consideration; paying, or offering payment—for it was generally refused—for everything they had.
The arrival of the "Swift" with our mails was the signal for our departure from pleasant Loo-Choo.
Perhaps it may be remembered that just about this time English society at home seems to have undergone a mental crisis which, at one time, certainly threatened the fabric of its reason; and all about that absurd pachyderm "Jumbo." Of course, more or less, any agitation emanating from home must in time reach Englishmen abroad; thus the "Jumbo" wave visited these seas, and day after day, week after week, it was nothing but "Jumbo." You would have thought the whole ship's company was sickening for elephantiasis. Some funny fellow in the squadron noticing this weakness, attached the name to our ship which, amongst the blue jackets at least, has entirely supplanted the original one. But this by the way.
Well, we reached Nagasaki without accident; coaled, and left for Kobé,—south of Kiusiu—with a rattling breeze fair abaft. All went smoothly until we arrived off Satano-Misaki, the southernmost point of Kiusiu. The word "Satano," if it be, as is said, of Portuguese origin, needs no comment. Here the fine breeze forsook us, and left us in a flat and quite unexpected calm; for, generally speaking, in rounding this cape the reverse of calms is met with. To make matters still more unpleasant, a heavy ground swell began to set through the straits, and the squadron having fires drawn at the time we all found ourselves in the doldrums. Still, however, there was something of a current which had its effect on the ships, so that it was impossible to keep in anything like station. In this state of affairs the "Curaçoa" drifted on top of the "Daring," and cracked her up a bit, rendering extensive repairs to her absolutely necessary. She was despatched on to Kobé for this purpose.
After varying fortunes, now a calm—anon a gale, we arrived at Kobé on June 3rd. This makes the sixth time during the commission we have touched at this place, and strange coincidence! on fives times out of the six we have anchored at noon, and have dined off that delightful compound, pea-soup, on entering the harbour.
Meanwhile the admiral and the "Swift" are away in Corea, negociating a treaty with that nation.
On reaching Yokohama we found our anticipated pleasures doomed to disappointment; for that yearly visitant, cholera, was holding high revel in the town, and doing pretty well just as it pleased. Nevertheless, the admiral arrived the previous day, and gave leave to the squadron until 9 p.m., with injunctions against visiting certain localities.