Diary written by Henry Garmston BOTTLE #0117, journeying from England to New Zealand in the vesssel Himalae/Himalaya in 1879
Photocopies of a transcription, supplied by Mrs. Joan Bottle, Winton New Zealand.
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January 11th Left London by ship Himalae. Captain Pitfield,
anchored at Greenhithe, very cold.
12th + 13th Left Greenhithe 2am, struck on a chalk bank off
Dover, waited for the tide and got off. Thames Pilot left
with letters. Some of the people very sick, myself
well. Anchored at Deal, wind against us. Cold and
foggy.
14th Stopped at Deal all day, rained all day. Shaw
Saville's barque foundered off the Isle of White, two
people drowned, rest saved. Ladies very sick, 4 ducks
found dead, pigs and sheep doing well.
15th Still at Deal all day, rain and foggy.
16th Left Deal 10 o'clock with good wind, passed the wreck
ship where the collision took place with German ?
[sic]
17th Passed Isle of White [sic] early in the morning.
Pilot left with the letters, off the hill of Portland
some very sick.
18th + 19th 90 miles S.W. of Scilly Isles, rather rough. Lots of
water coming over.
20th 120 miles S. of Cape Clear fine day, heavy swell,
ducks got loose, had a hunt. Lots of porpoises and
gulls in sight. Vessel rolled very much, lots of
people sick.
21st Vessel rolled very much when at breakfast the whole
table was cleared and some things broken, running down
coast of Portugal. Pigs got loose, had a spree.
22nd + 23rd Ships in sight, one with mast carried away. Fine day
going well.
24th Heavy gale during night, could not sleep. Off Strait
of Gibraltar, went on deck and got drenched from head
to foot by a sea, about 1ft of water in our cabin.
25th Pig died, thrown overboard, saw a shark eat it.
26th Service in the morning, passed a ship off Canary
Isles.
27th Weather fine getting warm, played at quoits. Barque
in sight. Fine rainbow got a line and hook and fished
up seaweed.
28th Heavy rain at night very warm and thirsty. Drank lime
juice. Splendid sunset.
29th 3 sails in sight, hot, played quoits. One of the
passenger's canarys got loose but was caught again.
30th Weather very salty, whales seen. Lots of black fish
about. We are now about 16 hundred miles from Deal.
No wind. Sea calm 4 sails in sight.
31st Warm weather rains a little just getting into trade
winds.
February 1st Very hot. Lat. 25, Long. 18. Had a concert in
evening turned out well.
2nd Fine breeze going on fine. Service in the morning.
Saw lots of Portuguese Men of War ( a sort of jelly
fish ).
3rd Travelled 205 miles in 24 hours. Good wind. Sheep
died and thrown overboard. Lots of flying fish about.
Mother Careys chickens about ( a small bird ).
4th Long. 18, Lat. 21. 205 miles. Played at quoits.
Flying fish caught, are good eating. Boobies seen
( large bird ).
5th Travelled 209 miles. Lat. 11.47, Long. 21.44. Very
hot, now 3000 miles from London off Sierra Leone.
Playing quoits and fishing.
6th 186 miles, very hot nothing to do but read. Too hot
for anything else.
7th Lat. 6.24, Long. 22.35W, 141 miles. 100 in the shade
and in the sun heat above the barometer. Fishing for
bannetas and dolphins. Had a salt bath.
8th Lat. 4, Long. 22.N. Heat 96, 97 miles. Killed a rat
in our cabin. Slept on deck.
9th Lat. 3N, Long. 23W, 21 miles. Heat 110. We are now
in the doledrums [sic], had heavy scholls [sic] of
rain. Poured down, lightening [sic] all evening.
10th Heat 86, Lat. 2.47, 53 miles. We spoke to a vessel
but she would not stop to take letters. 2 other
sails in sight. Rained fast in the evening. I went
on deck and had a bath in it.
11th + 12th Heat 90 59 miles very squally. Strong lightening,
crossed the line.
13th Long. 27.47, Lat 2.22. Heat 80. Rained in the
morning. Lots of porpoises in sight and bonnetas and
flying fish caught. Windy. The main skysail was
carried away. A schooner in sight.
14th Lat. 5.20, Long. 29.37. Heat 83. Several whale birds
seen. St.Valentine's day. Had a lark sending
valentines to each other.
15th Lat. 8.52, Long. 30. Heat 86. 218 miles. Fine
breeze. Played quoits.
16th Lat. 11.51, Long. 31.22. 186 miles. Heat 80. No
wind, very hot, a fowl got out and fell overboard.
18th Lat. 17. Vessel came in sight, we signalled to them
to ask if they would take letters home. Said yes,
lowered a boat went to them. It was an Italian vessel
from Buenos Ayres bound to Antwerp, sent two letters
home.
19th Lat. 18.5, Long. 31.25. Heat 90. Signalled to a ship
it was from San Francisco to Liverpool with grain.
Squally.
20th Lat. 20.2, Long. 20.43 [30.43?]. Distance 90 miles.
Heat 100. Squally of rain in morning. Passed a
vessel that started from London three weeks before us,
it had had bad weather in the Channel. Plenty of
boatswain birds about.
21st Lat. 21.54, Long. 30.14. Distance 115 miles. Heat
95, very hot. Reading and fishing.
22nd Lat. 23.32, Long. 29.30. Distance 103 miles. Heat
85, very warm.
23rd Lat. 24.26, Long. 29.33. Distance 54 miles. Heat
110. A dead calm all day. The heat was intense,
hottest day yet. Plenty of pilot fish about, saw a
large shark quite close to us. Very fine sunset. New
moon.
24th Lat. 25, Long. 29.26. Distance 67 miles. Heat 80.
Fine weather and a slight breeze. Squally and rain in
the evening.
25th Lat. 26.18, Long. 28.25. distance 67 miles. Heat 75.
Fine breeze drizzling rain. Black fish seen.
26th Lat. 27.28, Long. 28.20. Distance 67 miles. Heat 80.
A barque homeward bound on the starboard bow.
27th Lat. 28.30, Long. 27.2. Distance 106 miles. Heat 80.
Ship in sight going same way as us. Spoke to a barque
from Canterbury she had been 40 days out. Very hot.
28th Lat. 29.30, Long. 25.31. Distance 103 miles. Heat
75. Heavy squall of rain and wind, mainroyal fell to
deck. Topsail runner carried away and the yard came
down. A ship in sight steering our coarse [sic].
March 1st No sun. Distance 133 miles. Heat 75. Flying fish
seen.
2nd No sun. Distance by dead recking [sic] 84 miles. A
ship about 10 miles off. It poured in torrents of
rain all day. A splendid rainbow and sunset never saw
such a sight. A large shark seen.
3rd Lat. 33.1, Long. 20.47. Distance 103 miles. Heat 70.
Heat is gradually decreasing. The ship that we saw
yesterday sent a boat over to us at 7 in the morning.
3 men and their 1st mate, they had broken their
chronometer ( a very serious loss for them ). They are
from New York to Shanghai, but we had not one to
spare. They will have to put in some port if they do
not get one. The ship sailed so close that we called
out to each other and asked questions about where they
were bound for.
4th No sun. Distance 153 miles. 2 sails in sight,
carpenter busy condensing water. They can condense
200 gallons a day and consume 1 cwt. coal. Molly
hawks seen ( small birds ).
5th Lat. 36.56, Long. 15.21. Distance 201 miles. Very
windy, Fore Royal split. Raining fast all day.
Plenty of icebergs. Several albatrooes [sic] seen.
Cape pigeons and ships ahead.
6th Lat. 36.59, Long. 10.46. Distance 240 miles. Raining
in the morning. We are now going on fine if this wind
lasts it will soon take us there. The sea is rather
heavy and comes over a bit, if you don't look out you
get wet.
7th Lat. 39.36, Long. 5.27. Distance 253 miles. A school
of porpoises about. Weather colder. Saw a large sun
fish.
8th Lat. 40.45, Long. 31.2. Distance 239 miles.
Drizzling rain. Fine moon light night.
9th Lat. 42.22S, Long. 7.33E. Distance 198 miles.
Several whale, birds, booly hawks seen. Vessel
rolling very heavy.
10th Lat. 42.28, Long. 7.31E. Distance 204 miles. A very
large whale seen quite close, supposed to be about
40ft in length. Plenty of porpoises about.
11th Lat. 42.16S, Long. 12.18E. Distance 187 miles. A
large tree seen floating in the water. Very cold. A
calm in the afternoon.
12th Lat. 43.30, Long 15.18. Distance 132 miles. Heat 44.
In the night we had a heavy gale the mizzen top sail
skysail split. It was very rough and the ship rolled
very much. It carried some of the sails away and
brought others down. The seas came over and we had
two feet of water in the cabin. Did not sleep all
night.
13th Lat. 43.51, Long. 2.45. Distance 236 miles. The
vessel is still rolling very much. The dog kennel was
swimming about the deck with the dog in it, raining
fast.
14th Lat. 44.3, Long 25.55. Heat 40. Distance 223 miles.
The sea is still very rough and we can get no rest at
night. Some sick. Shall not be sick at all now.
15th Lat. 44.29S, Long. 32.18. Heat 40. Distance 271
miles. Sun very bright going on well. 271 miles is
the most we have done in a day yet.
16th Lat. 44.40, Long. 36.15. Distance 174 miles. Several
pie balled [sic] porpoises about. Caught some stormy
petrels, icebirds.
17th Lat. 45.3, Long. 38.53. Distance 113 miles. Raining
all day. A large whale seen.
18th Lat. 45.5, Long. 42.5E. Wind W. Distance 137 miles.
Hevy swell and seas going over. No sleep at night.
19th Lat. 45.9, Long. 45.53. Distance 161 miles. Several
large pieces of seaweed passed us, but we could not
catch them with our hooks. Vessel rolling heavily.
20th Lat. 45.26, Long. 48.21. Distance 106 miles. It is
now 30 days since we sent our letters home. Raining.
Lots of birds about.
21st Lat. 45.4, Long 53.47. Distance 223 miles. A full
rigged ship passed us. She was from Glasgow to
Melbourne, very fine ship.
22nd Lat. 45.5, Long. 58.54. Distance 224 miles. Ship
rolled very heavily.
23rd Lat. 45.45, Long. 64.45. Distance 249 miles. Fine
breeze and sun shining very bright.
24th Lat. 45.48, Long. 68.1. Distance 139 miles. Very
cold and raining, sea rough.
25th Lat. 45.16, Long. 71.46. distance 159 miles. Wet and
cold.
26th Lat. 46.2, Long. 76.30. Distance 205 miles. Weather
very foggy, men are busy cleaning the vessel ready
for painting.
27th Lat. 46.51, Long 81.39. Distance 220 miles. The wind
blew very hard during the night and poured with rain.
Seas came over and we had the water in our cabin.
28th Lat. 47.56, Long. 27.21E. Distance 242 miles. Very
heavy gales of wind nearly took all sail in. The sea
very rough. Things in cabin rolling about. A cape
hen caught. Vessel rolling.
29th Lat. 48.14, Long 91.23. Distance 169 miles. No
sleep, vessel rolling.
30th Lat. 48.27, Long. 96.52. Distance 201 miles. Weather
fine with good wind.
31st Lat. 48.45, Long. 101.45. Distance 206 miles.
Weather cold.
April 1st Lat. 48.41, Long 106.15. Distance 181 miles. Had
some fun being the first of April. Caught some
birds. Plenty about.
2nd Lat. 48.11, Long. 111.47. Distance 217 miles. Vessel
rolling and seas coming over. Busy cutting our names
and drawing about the boards of our cabin as we are
getting near the end of our journey.
3rd Lat. 48.28, Long 117.37. Distance 235 miles. The men
busy cleaning and painting ship.
4th Lat. 48.28, Long 121.37. Distance 149 miles. Weather
very cold but good wind.
5th Lat. 49.18, Long. 127.25. Distance 245 miles.
6th Lat. 48.42, Long 132.17. Distance 195 miles.
7th Lat. 8.4, Long. 134.39. Distance 101 miles. A calm
in the morning. A cape hen caught. It measured 6
-1/2ft from the tip of one wing to the other.
9th Lat. 48.21, Long. 146.15. Distance 256 miles. The
men are busy hauling the cable up and getting the
anchor ready.
10th Lat. 48.13, Long. 151.5. Distance 198 miles. Fine
breeze and all going on fine.
11th Lat. 48.19, Long. 156.4. Distance 198 miles. Good
Friday. The sailors had a holiday. A calm. A nasty
roll. Lots of birds about.
12th Lat. 48.16, Long. 157.22. Distance 52 miles. We had
a very heavy gale, about 40ft of bulwarks carried
away. Both watches on deck and the Captain all
night. At 4 o'clock the main royal mast and skysail
were carried away. The water came over in tons and
we had 2ft of water in our cabin. The saloon was
flooded and they had to bale it out. The anchor
slipped over the side and they had hard work to get
it back. All the sheep and pigs rolling about the
deck.
13th Lat. 47.19, Long. 159.56. Distance 103 miles. The
wind still blowing very hard. All things rolling
about.
14th Lat. 47.16, Long. 160.40. Distance 53 miles. Very
high wind. Water coming over all things rolling on
deck. No sleep.
15th Lat. 48.27, Long. 165.56. Distance 212 miles. Fine
breeze at 11 o'clock we sighted the snares ( a lot of
rocks ). Met a barque to Melbourne. Only about 200
miles from Lyttleton.
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