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On the evening of the 3d February, having a brisk gale from the land at N.E. we took our departure from Mount St Miguel in the Gulf of Amapalla, steering S.W. and S.S.W. till we were in the lat. of 10° N. when falling in with the tradewind, we set our course W.N.W. we then made studding-sails to our main and main-top sails, which we hoisted every morning at day-break, and hauling down at sun-set, as it commonly blew so fresh in the night that we had usually to furl our top-sail; but the wind commonly abated at sun-rise.
It is small but as secure as a reef harbour can well be. It is about three miles distant from Point Venus. The chief objection to this harbour is the difficulty of getting out with the common tradewind, the entrance being on the east side, not more than one hundred yards wide and the depth without inconvenient for warping.
The winds were light and variable with calms from this time to the 19th, when a breeze sprang up from the north-east, which gradually came round to the eastward and proved to be the tradewind. Our latitude on the 19th at noon was 24 degrees 13 minutes south, longitude 222 degrees 17 minutes east. Variation of the compass 5 degrees 19 minutes east. Saturday 25.
They were in excellent order: the roots had appeared through the bottom of the pots and would have shot into the ground if care had not been taken to prevent it. The weather was considerably altered for the better and the tradewind appeared settled. The rainy and bad season of the year may be reckoned to begin towards the end of November and to continue till near the end of March.
The gay young doctor's blood ran warm at thought of the South Seas, and in his nostrils I distilled all the scents of the flower-drenched air of that far-off land, and in his eyes I builded him the fairy visions of the tradewind clouds, the monsoon skies, the palm isles and the coral seas.
As the cloudiness of the sky gave us reason to expect much rain we prepared the awnings with hoses for the convenience of saving water, in which we were not disappointed. From this time to our meeting with the south-east tradewind we had much wet weather, the air close and sultry with calms, and light variable winds generally from the southward. Tuesday 29.
Or maybe that was a dream, too, and the awakening would be the changing of the watches, when he would drop down out of his bunk in the lurching forecastle and go up on deck, under the tropic stars, and take the wheel and feel the cool tradewind blowing through his flesh. Came Saturday and its hollow victory at three o'clock.
With this weather and light unsteady winds we advanced but 2 1/2 degrees in twelve days; at the end of which time we were relieved by the south-east tradewind which we fell in with on the 6th at noon in latitude 1 degree 21 minutes north and longitude 20 degrees 42 minutes west. Thursday 7. The next afternoon we crossed the equinoctial line in longitude 21 degrees 50 minutes west.
I was 'ard up 'ere in Papeete once, and was sleepin' in an ole ware'ouse along with others. Darling slept on a window-sill, and 'e used to talk about enjoyin' the full sweep o' the tradewind. We doubted that, an' so one night we crept upstairs and surprised him. 'E was stretched out on a couple o' sacks, and a reg'ler gale was blowin' on him.
On the 23rd of March we saw the land of Brazil; having had thither, from the time when we came into the true tradewind again after crossing the Line, very fair weather and brisk gales, mostly at east-north-east. The land we saw was about 20 leagues to the north of Bahia; so I coasted alongshore to the southward. This coast is rather low than high, with sandy bays all along by the sea.
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