Ixxviii MEMOIR 



'S.S. Elba: May 25. 



1 My first intentions of a long journal have been fairly frus- 

 trated by sea-sickness. On Tuesday last about noon we started 

 from the Mersey in very dirty weather, and were hardly out of 

 the river when we met a gale from the south-west and a heavy 

 sea, both right in our teeth ; and the poor Elba had a sad 

 shaking. Had I not been very sea-sick, the sight would have 

 been exciting enough, as I sat wrapped in my oilskins on the 

 bridge ; [but] in spite of all my efforts to talk, to eat and to 

 grin, I soon collapsed into imbecility ; and I was heartily thank- 

 ful towards evening to find myself in bed. 



4 Next morning, I fancied it grew quieter and, as I listened, 

 heard, " Let go the anchor," whereon I concluded we had run 

 into Holyhead Harbour, as was indeed the case. All that day 

 we lay in Holyhead, but I could neither read nor write nor 

 draw. The captain of another steamer which had put in came 

 on board, and we all went for a walk on the hill ; and in the 

 evening there was an exchange of presents. We gave some 

 tobacco I think, and received a cat, two pounds of fresh butter, 

 a Cumberland ham, Westward Ho ! and Thackeray's English 

 Humourists. I was astonished at receiving two such fair 

 books from the captain of a little coasting screw. Our captain 

 said he [the captain of the screw] had plenty of money, five 

 or six hundred a year at least. "What in the world makes him 

 go rolling about in such a craft, then ?" " Why, I fancy he's 

 reckless ; he's desperate in love with that girl I mentioned, 

 and she won't look at him." Our honest, fat, old captain says 

 this very grimly in his thick, broad voice. 



' My head won't stand much writing yet, so I will run up 

 and take a look at the blue night sky off the coast of Portugal. 



' May 26. 



4 A nice lad of some two and twenty, A by name, goes 



out in a nondescript capacity as part purser, part telegraph 

 clerk, part generally useful person. A was a great com- 

 fort during the miseries [of the gale] ; for when with a dead 



