498 PASSAGES OVER THE ATLANTIC. 



Captain Toyubee subsequently procured the logs from other ships of 

 similar class which left the Channel at the same time as the Gloriana. 

 The Gosforth, which was also West of the Cape Verdes on the same day, 

 bore to the S.E., crossing the Equator in 25°W., and reaching 20° S. a 

 week before the Gloriana. The Alfred, which pursued a similar course to 

 the Gloriana, crossed the Line in 32^° W. ; and the Vernon and Octavia, 

 which passed inside the Cape Verdes, crossed the Line in 25|° and 26^° W. 



f 

 " The first question raised ia — Was the Gloriana right in steering due South on 

 the 2ad when the wind vvas fair ? The Gosforth's track says no, she ought to 

 have steered S.S.E. until in 25' W., and then to have m ide a httle Easting with 

 the Southing whenever it was possible. But the tracks of the two ships ( Vernon 

 and Octavia) which passed East of the Cape de Verde Islands, say on no account 

 go to the Eastward of 22^ \V. This advice is only applicable when the wind is 

 light and variable ; of course, if a S.W. monsoon is experienced in these parts, a 

 South-Easterly course must be followed until the wind draws to the South. 



•' On looking at these tracks I suppose Maury's correspondent. Captain Windsor, 

 would say that the captain of the Gosforth is ' one of those men who are kicked 

 through the world in good luck to keep them out of harm's way,' or how could he 

 have had a rim of 184 miles between the 5th and 6th of October, when ships to 

 the right and left of him did but little more than half that distance in the same 

 time ? Not being a believer in luck myself, it seems to me that the little Easting 

 he made from the 2nd to the 9th placed him in a position by which he was 

 enabled to keep off the coast of South America, and so avoid the light winds from 

 the 24th to the 26th which affected all the ships North of 20" S. Here my second 

 query is answered, for we find that the Westerly crossing of the Line was not the 

 cause of the hght winds we experienced on the 25th and 26th ; or, to be more 

 explicit, the ships several degrees East of us suffered from them to the same 

 extent aa ourselves. 



" The Alfred and Gloriana have given the extreme Westerly route a fair trial. 

 They started from 20' N., differing one day in their dates, and on the 23rd of 

 October, after passing Cape St. Roque, the Alfred was in the same position as the 

 Gloriana had held on the 22ud. 



" The extreme Eastern route between the Cape de Verde Islands and Africa 

 was fairly tried by the Verni>n and Octavia. It is manifestly wrong for the early 

 part of October, for they lost much on the ships which took the Western route. 



" Considering the positions of the four hindmost ships on the 28th of October, 

 I am inclined to think that the Gloriana's is the best, for to get South of the 

 Calms and Variables near the Tropic of Capricorn is more important than to 

 make Easting, so much so, that, when there, I chose the tack which gives the 

 most Southing. Hence the readers of my last paper on the subject will see that 

 this research proves that we were better off than most of our neighbours, and 

 no doubt the commanders of the other ships wiU examine this chart with great 

 interest. 



" It will be noticed that the Gosforth's track ends on the 21st, so that although, 

 where it commenced, she was but a trifle more than half a daj' in advance of the 

 Gloriana, she ended with an advance of seven days. Thus she gained on the 

 Gloriana, 6^ days; Alfred, T{; Octavia, Sh^ ; and Vernon, 9^ days. 



" The conclusion I draw from this is, that early in October neither the extreme 

 Eastern nor the extreme Western route is good. Therefore, a ship should pass 

 West of the Cape de Verde Islands, and then when the wind will permit, haul to 

 the S.E. when South of them, so as to be about 23'' W. when she is 5° N.; she 

 should then take the tack which gives the most Southing. 



'• Maury's ' Sailing Directions ' support this opinion. The averages he deduce 



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