BACK TO AMERICA 337 



neighbor could not get the lead. Soon after seven o'clock 

 our course changed and when I sought my state-room 

 we were already on the high sea, with wind from South 

 South- West and cloudy sky. The weather throughout 

 the trip was rough and disagreeable, and what made us 

 passengers feel it more keenly was the strange fact that 

 we only sighted two vessels at great distance during the 

 first week; an English Screw-steamer broke the monotony 

 as she passed eastbound under full sails. Of the passen- 

 gers, I saw very little, owing to the fact that few over- 

 came the miserable feeling of what may be called the 

 aftermath of seasickness, which prevented me also from 

 enjoying this transatlantic voyage. Not until the last 

 three days of our trip did I do justice to the excellent 

 board. All in all, this voyage did not present any worse 

 feature than one may expect at this time of the year. We 

 have had a good deal of storm and high sea but nothing 

 in comparison to what I experienced around Cape Horn 

 in eighteen hundred and fifty-one. 



This morning I heard that San Francisco has had a 

 very severe earthquake which is said to have damaged the 

 city considerably ; one part of town is even reported un- 

 inhabitable. The loss of life is small, but those injured 

 more or less severely, by falling brick and timber, are 

 many, according to the morning papers. Of course, as 

 this happened but yesterday, the reports are still meager 

 and more or less exaggerated. However, I am thankful 

 enough not to have been in the midst of it. 



Another item of news from the Pacific affects my pock- 

 et-book materially and consequently, from my standpoint, 

 is of some importance. The competition between the 

 Steamship-lines has ceased in consequence of an amalga- 

 mation, a case of big fish eating the little ones. This, of 

 course, has wrought changes all around, so that the num- 

 ber of steamers has decreased, while the fare is now rated 

 at one hundred and ninety dollars instead of seventy-five, 

 as I paid from San Francisco to New York. This is rather 

 unexpected, but cannot be helped. Another disappoint- 

 ment is the fact that I shall have to wait here until the 

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