The river
in the Phenix for the purpose of paying it a visit; and taking
advantage of a favourable breeze, we hoisted a sail, and went along at
a rate which gave us hope of a speedy arrival at Havre.
After passing the Nore, however, our progress was impeded; and at
length, when off Margate, we were obliged to lie-to, in order to wait
for the turn of the tide: the wind blowing so strongly as to render
it questionable whether we could get round the Foreland. The sun
was shining on the buildings at Margate, and the bells knolling for
evening service; affording a home-scene of comfort and tranquillity
which it was agreeable to carry abroad as one of the last
reminiscences of England.
In about three hours, we got the steam up again, and saw the
British Queen in the distance, still lying to, and apparently,
notwithstanding her prodigious power, unable to get down the Channel.
Dinner was served while the Phenix lay off Margate; but it was
thinly attended, the motion of the vessel having sent many persons to
their cabins, while others were totally deprived of all appetite. An
elderly gentleman, who sate upon my left hand, complained exceedingly
of his inability to partake of the good things before him; and one or
two left the table in despair. Again we sought the deck, and saw the
sun sink behind an ominous mass of clouds; the sky, however, cleared,
and the stars came out, reviving our spirits with hopes of a fine
night. Unfortunately, soon after nine o'clock, a heavy squall
obliged us to go below, and one of my female friends and myself took
possession of a state cabin, and prepared to seek repose.
It was my first voyage on board a steamer, and though the tremulous
motion and the stamping of the engine are anything but agreeable, I
prefer it to the violent rolling and pitching of a sailing vessel. We
were certainly not nearly so much knocked about; the vases of flowers
were taken off the mantel-piece, and placed upon the floor, but beyond
this there were no precautions taken to prevent the movables from
getting adrift; every thing remained quiet upon the tables, a
circumstance which could not have happened in so heavy a sea in any
vessel not steadied by the apparatus carried by a steamer.
The Phenix laboured heavily through the water; a torrent of rain
soon cleared the deck of all the passengers, and the melancholy voices
calling for the steward showed the miserable plight to which the male
portion of the party was reduced. Daylight appeared without giving
hope of better weather; and it was not until the vessel had reached
the pier at Havre, which it did not make until after three o'clock
P.M. on Monday, that the passengers were able to re-assemble.
