Thus each of the three ships won a first prize. Lord and Lady Napier, with Colonel Napier and Major Guilbard, came to tea on board. In the evening H.M. gunboat Dee (Lieutenant Harstone), arrived and went alongside the mole. She left England with the Don on the 7th. Had first to put into Portland and then into Plymouth and then into Brest, and, finally, into Vigo on the 22nd, on account of bad weather. Being intended for river work, these little gunboats are built with a flat bottom and shallow keel, but will neither steam nor steer. They are provided with twin screws and a rudder at each end. They carry three 64-pounder guns (one aft and two forward) and two Gatlings. They have three masts and draw eight feet of water, but were designed to draw only five feet. July 23rd.-The Don (Lieutenant W. Wilson) arrived. Foggy morning, raw and cold, thermometer 66°, yesterday it was 75°. Both Don and Dee having coaled proceeded to the eastward. Usual services on board. In the afternoon a number of our blue-jackets, chiefly petty officers, had tea given them at the Soldiers' Institute where they fraternised with the gunners and sappers, and compared notes afterwards at a mutual Bible class. Gibraltar abounds with grog ships, where potent and villainous spirits are sold at absurdly low prices. July 24th.-Damp and calm, with fog hanging about in the morning, breezy at midday and in the afternoon; got all ready for starting in the evening after the mail arrives. P. & O. steamer, Gwalior, arrived at 6 P.M. and sailed again by moonlight at 10.30 P.M. for the East; she brought no mails for us and therefore we remained another day. Captain Blair, chief of the police, brought off a huge nosegay of everlastings with our initials and other designs arranged with flowers of different colours, as a present to us from the market-folk. We are four days distant by steam from Portsmouth: the captain had arranged to start to-day and take a fortnight on the voyage, tacking about in the Channel or Bay of Biscay till the time fixed for our arrival at Cowes. As our examination is now over, we much hoped that as we have plenty of time to spare we might have put into Arosa Bay and run up to Compostella, famous for its claim to possess beneath the high altar of the cathedral the body of Saint James the Great. A Papal bull of the thirteenth century ranks it in the same category for pilgrimage as Jerusalem; and this week would have been the unique time for visiting it, thronged as it is just now with devotees from all parts of Spain and the civilised world. July 25th.-St. James's Day, the patron saint of Spain. Calm morning, air reeking with moisture; royal salutes fired by Spanish battery at Algeciras at 8 A.M. and at noon. Captain Lord Charles Scott took us to lunch with Lord Napier at the Convent. The mail of the 20th instant from London arrived, so got under weigh at 6.15 P.M. with Lively in company. The American frigate Galena came in just before we started. We steamed slowly away with our paying-off pendant streaming 500 feet to leeward, and the gilded bladder at its fly floating on the water far astern, after which curiosity two or three small boats paddled until warned off by our bumboatman. We had a fine view of the Rock and the Spanish hills behind, with a lovely sunset over them; and on the opposite side of the Straits, on the African shore, rose the cold grey of Apes Hill with the dark black streaks on its steep cliff, that towered up above the line of mist that was lying on the surface of the sea. At sunset there came over the water the heavy boom of the Spanish guns from Ceuta, saluting the patron saint once more. We passed Trafalgar in the night, making but slow progress westward over the swell that was coming in from the Atlantic, and we found it warmer and closer at night than it had been at Gibraltar. The Lively usually steams ten knots an hour, she finds a difficulty in going slow enough to keep up with us. July 26th.-9.30 A.M. exercised at general quarters, firing shot and shell at a target. 11.15 A.M. set fore and aft sail and made five knots under steam and sail. After evening quarters the usual gymnastics, bar up on deck. First night of auction of ward-room mess-traps which continued for the next few nights, some of the pieces fetching more than they originally cost, through the public spirit of the members and the excellent management of the auctioneer, Dr. Gideon Delemege. On deck pleasant moonlight night. July 27th.-Passed Cape St. Vincent and many sail that were keeping close in to the shore. The wind is from the north-west, and there is a heavy swell coming up from the same quarter; the barometer is rising (a sign of northerly winds) and the water is bottle green. In the afternoon the swell seems going down a bit and the water is greener. We are going to try to make a sailing passage to England, and shall stand well out into the Atlantic in order to get to the other side of the Portuguese trade, which always blows strongly from the north at this time of year hereabouts. There are a number of whales sporting on the starboard bow. Made "rendezvous" to the Lively, "Start Point ten miles north," which sounds like nearing home. During the night the north wind increased and blew six to seven; but it is dead against our passage to England under sail. "Oh! there's a fair wind that blows, would it blow from the west; And it's home, mother, home! it's home I want to be, July 28th.-Wind strong from the north and we are getting well out into the Atlantic, and the little Lively astern, true to her name, is having a fine time of it, plunging and rolling, washing herself down fore and aft. Our coal will not last out at this rate unless we go into Ferrol, as in view of making a sailing passage home we took in none at Gibraltar. All the small sail are now out of sight, they have sensibly kept in under lee of the land. After divisions made sail to double-reefed topsails and topgallant sails. Shortly after split the topmast staysail and carried away the weather main topgallant sheet and split the jib, which as we are steaming at the time seems rather gratuitous. At noon we are 880 miles from the Needles, not a cloud in the sky, and the cold wind comes careering over the white-headed waves from nearly two points before the starboard beam. Temperature 68°. Glad to take to thick underclothing. We are seven points off our course but go pegging away six knots, heeling well over for the benefit of the boilers; we are supposed to be running through the north gale to get into its Atlantic edge, but at present there are no signs whatever of our accomplishing this; the wind is freshening, and the clouds are rising to windward at sunset. July 29th.-A windy sunrise, much cloud and broken scud; there is a heavier swell and the ship is now and then trembling from end to end and tumbling about. At noon we are fifty miles further off Cape Finisterre than we were yesterday, and the barometer is going down. So we gave it up as a bad job, wore ship and stood in for the land. We were tumbling about a good deal in the night, and our bookcases emptied themselves in a way they had not done since we were between the Cape of Good Hope and Australia. July 30th.-Holy Communion after mid-day service. Before dinner furled sails and down topgallant masts and increased to forty-two revolutions, which gave her nearly eight knots. Towards evening the swell had gone down slightly, and we are getting into the clear sky again, and are now only 100 miles off land. At 8 P.M. altered course and headed up for Vigo. Lit fires in two more boilers and increased to forty-eight revolutions. The Lively seems now to be making better weather of it, and to be a deal steadier than she was. July 31st.-At 7.45 A.M. sighted land on the starboard bow, the sea is again smoother. As it is doubtful whether coal can be readily obtained at Vigo we shape course for Ferrol, where we hope to arrive to-morrow afternoon. Wind still strong from the north. August 1st.-Passed Finisterre at 4 A.M. and steamed into the Bay towards Ferrol. The wind has shifted round to the east, and is blowing in the same manner as it was the first time we approached Ferrol (vol. i. p. 220). There is more of a feel of England about the air than we have been accustomed to for the last two years, and there is a dash of haziness about this east wind that seems natural enough. At 1.15 P.M. passed the tower of Hercules by Corunna anchored in Ferrol at 3.15 P.M. Saluted the Spanish flag and the Spanish admiral; the Vittoria ironclad has gone south and the Numancia is preparing for sea; the Spanish gunboats have gone to the Canal, and the Spanish army is hoping to be employed to restore order in Egypt. Got in twenty-five tons of coal by midnight. The Spanish cadets on board the training-ship begin morsing to us just as they did the last time we were here and interchanging congratulations. The same old fishing as before; this afternoon Farquhar and Osborne, (with Davidson) visited their old friend the Jubia river, and caught several dozen trout: the old flies proving as deadly as ever (vol. i. p. 227). August 2nd.-Coaling ship all night and all the forenoon, and by the dinner hour had taken in 154 tons. The coal here is more expensive than we expected, being 12s. a ton more than at Gibraltar. Don Anton Garcia the vice-consul came off to lunch. It is a curious coincidence that Ferrol should happen to be the last port we touch at, as it was the first we came to on leaving England, September 27th, 1880: everything looks just the same as we left it then, the training-ship Asturias, the gunboat, and the dismantled ironclads with their masts showing up above the dockyard walls. Left Ferrol at 1.30 P.M. The new fort on the south side of the narrow entrance to the harbour is now finished: but no guns are mounted; it appears unused and empty of men, Outside we found the N.E. wind blowing pretty fresh, and more sea running, so pointed yards to the wind, and steamed along between eight and nine knots. Passed close under Cape Ortegal and found the wind here less. If the |