518 DEPARTURE FROM 



jesty ; but, unfortunately, I did not succeed in bring- 

 ing either of them alive to England ; one, however, 

 lived bevond the Western Islands. 



We left Swan River on the evening of the 

 6th of May, 1843, running out with a moderate 

 N. E. breeze. Every thing seemed auspicious. The 

 water was smooth, and the sails, as they slept in the 

 breeze, echoed back the sounds of the well known 

 song, " We are homeward bound,'* that was sung 

 with an earnestness that could not be mistaken. 

 I fancied I could discern, in the rough tones of the 

 crew under my command, the existence of the same 

 emotions that swelled in mv ow^n breast at this 

 moment. For seamen, high and low, though con- 

 tent to pass the greater portion of their lives upon 

 the world of waters, can never entirely suppress 

 that yearning for home, which, perhaps, after all, is 

 one of the finest traits in human nature. And 

 now that it might be legitimately indulged, 1 was 

 not sorry to see such strong evidences of its 

 existence. 



Ere the last vestige of day had passed, the coast 

 of Australia had faded from our sight, though not 

 from our memory ; for, however much thoughts of 

 the land to which we were returning crowded on our 

 minds, they could not as yet entirely obliterate the 

 recollection of that we were quitting. The Swan 

 River colony — its history, its state, its prospects — 

 naturally occupied much of our mind. What a 

 change had come over it even since our visit ! From 

 a happy little family, if I may use the expression, it 



