356 MEMOIR OF JOHN WILSON. 



August, and trust I believe you are so now. The squadron left 

 port with a light leading wind, consisting of ' Donegal,' ' Vernon,' 

 'Castor,' « Stag' (a 46 frigate), * Nimrod,' ' Snake,' and 'Water witch.' 

 The « Dryad' is paid off, being a bad sailer, and the ' Tyne' sails for 

 South America in a few days, and belongs no more to our flag. 

 The ' Trinculo' has gone to Cork, and the * Prince' is at Plymouth. 

 In beating out, ' Vernon' missed stays, and drifted, stern foremost, 

 aboard the ' Castor,' with no inconsiderable crash, staving her boat 

 in the slings, and making much cordage spin. We got off, how- 

 ever, without damage of any consequence, and towards night were 

 off the Eddystone lighthouse. There was very little difference in 

 the rate of going between ' Vernon' and ' Castor.' The ' Castor' 

 rather beat us the first two hours, but at sunset (when sail is always 

 taken in) we were to windward about 200 yards ; the ' Snake,' as 

 usual, a mile at least ahead, and to windward of us all. All night 

 we kept under easy sail in 'our Admiral's lee,' and on Monday 

 morning at six o'clock, signal was made for us to spread all our 

 canvas, and try it before the wind. We soon got into a cluster, the 

 breeze being so light as to be almost a calm, and so we carried on 

 in a pretty but tedious style for the greater part of the day, our 

 prows being in the direction of Falmouth. The Lords of the Ad- 

 miralty are there at present, and I suppose we shall touch in this 

 evening. They were at Plymouth, and I was introduced to one of 

 them, Admiral Dundas, who was very civil; so was Sir C. Paget 

 and Sir F. Maitland, the latter of w r hom invited me to see him at 

 Portsmouth on our return, he being Admiral on that station. Sir 

 J. Graham I did not see, as we were at dinner when he came on 

 board the ' Vernon.' Sir Pulteney has been extremely kind, and is 

 a good old man. I had not heard of poor Minna's death, and asked 

 how she was, when he gave me the intelligence. She was a good 

 woman, in my opinion. She died of dropsy, and had suffered much, 

 but bore it like a Christian. We have just caught sight of an 

 enormous lizard, so large that it is called ' The Lizard,' and we are 

 all to lie under its shadow till morning, so good-night." 



"Cork, Friday, Uth Sept., 1832. 

 "My dearest Jane: — I wrote to you on the 5th, off the Lizard, 

 and since then have enjoyed a week's capital cruising in all kinds of 

 winds, except a positive storm. Your last letter received was the 29th 



