ON THE MEDITERRANEAN
November 11th.—The crossing from Suez to Marseilles does not take more
than three or four days. The weather grew perceptibly colder. We entered
the Mediterranean in the afternoon and found it very disagreeable in this
season. Great billows are rising on the water and the steamer begins to
rock.
November 12th.—The night has been abominable, the sirocco was blowing
very hard all day.
November 13th.—The snow-covered summit of Mount Etna appears on the
horizon. We have been assailed by a terrible tempest when passing the
coasts of Calabria. All the passengers are prostrated with sea-sickness.
November 14th.—A grey sky, grey rocks, and a grey sea! The wind has gone
down and everybody is on deck. On a placid sea we sped westward, sighting
the mountain ranges of Corsica and Sardinia.