276 Pentland Firth. 



sufficient coal to steam the remainder of the dis- 

 tance. 



Monday, September Ihth. — This forenoon, having- 

 a light air from the southward, steam was raised, 

 and we have been steaming easy since 11 a.m. 

 One or two land birds were seen flying about the 

 ship, though not sufficiently exhausted to alight. 

 They were, however, a welcome sight, denoting the 

 proximity of old England, distant between four and 

 five hundred miles. 



Wednesday , September 17th. — It is now a little 

 past midnight, and we are just at the entrance of 

 the Pentland Firth, bowling along before a strong 

 westerly gale, under sail and steam, at the rate of 

 ten or eleven knots an hour. It has been thick 

 and raining all day, and for two days we have had 

 no sights, notwithstanding which we have made a 

 capital landfall, sighting the small islands of Barra 

 and Rona at 3 P.m., after which the wind sprang up, 

 gradually freshening to a gale, but a fair one. We 

 sighted the light on Cape Wrath at half-past 7, 

 and hope to get through the Firth by 3 a.m. If 

 this wind lasts, there is a chance of getting to 

 Dundee to-morrow night. 



Thursday, September 18th. — Got through the 

 Firth by 4 a.m. ; a heavy following sea, and raining 

 hard. At 11 we anchored off Peterhead, and 

 landed our Shetland men. We weighed again at 7, 

 and shall be in Dundee to-morrow morning. 



