| Sunday, 19th | Went ashore today for the beef. Had a truck all the way. Bought a bottle of ink for 20 cents - 4d. A chap called Wells off the ‘Star of Russia’ came aboard. He was a very decent chap. We lived high. We had a bottle of bovril. We put it all in at once. | ||
| ⚪ | Monday, 20th | Bent all square sails. Then went on chipping again. | |
| Tuesday, 21st | Today finished chipping the block, and had the good luck to strike a job with the 3rd mate making wire lashing for for'id sheds. | ||
| Wednesday, 22nd | Had a good day overhauling blocks below [- ? -]. Not doing much. Went ashore for beef and sold some English and foreign stamps for a dollar. Also managed to get hold of a tin of milk and 3 packets of cigs. I had to carry the beef (weighing 114 Ibs) the whole way, there being no trucks. ‘Chalenger’ finished. | ||
| Thursday, 23rd | Been ny own boss all day sewing fore topsail downhauls and messing about in tar. Received a grand letter from home. | ||
| Friday, 24th | Doing just the same today. The rest being sand and canvasing. Can hear the cable rattling on the rocks quite plainly. Rolling a bit. | ||
| Saturday, 25th | Hove up Port anchor, took half an hour. Cable was covered with sea moss, except where it had been chafing on the rocks, was shining like silver. | ||
| Sunday, 26th | Skuse, Tommie and Shields went ashore, but are back soon. The mates went and played a cricket match, but lost. Scottie and I had to wait a long time at night for them. The mate was drunk, and had a great chunk of wood, which he let fall on my hand, ass that he was. I was wild. No tea and heavy surf. | ||
| Monday, 27th | Went ashore for the beef. Large surf on. Another ship's boat was almost swamped. I was draged clean out of our gig and suspended on a roap above the “angry deep”. Pleasant position. Made a pillow out of Kiar. | ||
| Tuesday, 28th | ‘Pericles’ hove out tonight. Cheered, set off rockets, Roman Candles, blue lights ect. The other ships doing likewise. Spinning foxes. 6 men of the [- ? -] were taken to Calabush. | ||
| Wednesday, 29th | I have been making all kinds of line, cord, string, etc. Had the pleasant job of reeving off mizzen, and galf signal halyards. I'm the only one who has been up yet. | ||
| Thursday, 30th | Saving the stays. Puling up [- ? -] of topgallant yard. Sold a pouch full of tobacco for 40 cents. | ||
| Friday, 31st | Sitting up aloft with second mate. Doing very little. | ||
| AUGUST 1896 | |||
| Saturday, 1st | I had a job in the store room, and I eat as much as I could. Mate and 2nd mate blind drunk. | ||
| ⚪ | Sunday, 2nd | This morning Johnie, Scottie and I went ashore about 9. Went to Mr. O'Neill's house and got a pass for the railway, and went up in one of the cars. It was splendid going up an incline of over 50°in 3 minutes. It being only 15 yards short of a mile. A magnificent view from top. The ships look like toys. We watched a fine cricket match, and the English and Sootish engineers gave us a fine dinner in the Hotel. Salmon, and Beer, Eggs and beefsteak, tea, bread and butter, peaches ect. We were shown all round the place, and in the engine house. Also went and saw the cross on the hill. At half past five all ths captains and mates including ourselves came down in a car full of nitre. It comes down in terrible jerks. It was a most enjoyable day. Could not have been better. I would not have missed it for anything. | |
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