THE CAPE AND ST. HELENA
During the cruises of the _Canopus_, we have only one letter from Jane
Austen with any mention of Frank, and that is before his disappointment
of Trafalgar, or his success at St. Domingo. The full quotation serves
to show some of the difficulties of correspondence. She writes to
Cassandra: “I have been used very ill this morning. I have received a
letter from Frank which I ought to have had when Elizabeth and Henry
had theirs, and which in its way from Albany to Godmersham has been to
Dover and Steventon. It was finished on the 16th, and tells what theirs
told before as to his present situation; he is in a great hurry to be
married, and I have encouraged him in it, in the letter which ought to
have been an answer to his. He must think it very strange that I do
not acknowledge the receipt of his, when I speak of those of the same
date to Eliz and Henry, and to add to my injuries, I forgot to number
mine on the outside.” This plan of numbering was a certain safeguard
against misunderstandings, as it made it easy to find out if a letter
had been lost. The “present situation” was that off Ushant, after the
chase of Villeneuve across the Atlantic, and before the orders to
return southward had been received.
In July 1806, Francis was married to Mary Gibson, known hereafter by
her sisters-in-law as “Mrs. F. A.” to distinguish her from the other
Mary, “Mrs. J. A.”
Among the many social functions subjected to Jane Austen’s criticism,
it is not likely that the absurdities of a fashionable marriage would
escape her attention. The subject is treated with more than ordinary
severity in “Mansfield Park”--“It was a very proper wedding. The
bride was elegantly dressed, the two bridesmaids were duly inferior,
her father gave her away, her mother stood with salts in her hand,
expecting to be agitated, her aunt tried to cry, and the service was
impressively read by Dr. Grant. Nothing could be objected to, when
it came under the discussion of the neighbourhood, except that the
carriage which conveyed the bride and bridegroom and Julia from the
Church door to Sotherton was the same chaise which Mr. Rushworth had
used for a twelvemonth before. In every thing else the etiquette of the
day might stand the strictest investigation.”
Such was Jane Austen’s comment on the worldly marriage. Her estimate of
her own brother’s wedding may be better gathered from the account of
that of Mr. Knightly and Emma.
“The wedding was very much like other weddings, where the parties have
no taste for finery and parade; and Mrs. Elton, from the particulars
detailed by her husband, thought it all extremely shabby, and very
inferior to her own, ‘very little white satin, very few lace veils; a
most pitiful business. Selina would stare when she heard of it.’ But,
in spite of these deficiencies, the wishes, the hopes, the confidence,
the predictions of the small band of true friends who witnessed the
ceremony were fully answered in the perfect happiness of the union.”
From the time of his marriage till the following April, Francis was
free to spend his time with his wife at Southampton, where they were
settling not far from the house where his mother and sisters now lived.
This time was evidently a very pleasant one for Jane. She makes several
mentions of Frank and his wife and their common pursuits in her letters
to Cassandra.
“We did not take our walk on Friday, it was too dirty, nor have we yet
done it; we may perhaps do something like it to-day, as after seeing
Frank skate, which he hopes to do in the meadows by the beach, we are
to treat ourselves with a passage over the ferry. It is one of the
pleasantest frosts I ever knew, so very quiet. I hope it will last some
time longer for Frank’s sake, who is quite anxious to get some skating;
he tried yesterday, but it would not do.
“Our acquaintance increase too fast. He was recognised lately by
Admiral Bertie, and a few days since arrived the Admiral and his
daughter Catherine to wait upon us. There was nothing to like or
dislike in either. To the Berties are to be added the Lances, with
whose cards we have been endowed, and whose visit Frank and I returned
yesterday. They live about a mile and three-quarters from S., to the
right of the new road to Portsmouth, and I believe their house is one
of those which are to be seen from almost anywhere among the woods on
the other side of the Itchen. It is a handsome building, stands high,
and in a very beautiful situation.”
The next letter is an answer to one from Cassandra delaying her return,
evidently a matter of regret to the whole household.
“Frank and Mary cannot at all approve of your not being at home in
time to help them in their finishing purchases, and desire me to say
that, if you are not, they will be as spiteful as possible, and choose
everything in the style most likely to vex you--knives that will not
cut, glasses that will not hold, a sofa without a seat, and a bookcase
without shelves. But I must tell you a story. Mary had for some time
had notice from Mrs. Dickson of the intended arrival of a certain Miss
Fowler in this place. Miss F. is an intimate friend of Mrs. D., and a
good deal known as such to Mary. On Thursday last she called here while
we were out. Mary found, on our return, her card with only her name on
it, and she had left word that she would call again. The particularity
of this made us talk, and, among other conjectures, Frank said in joke,
‘I dare say she is staying with the Pearsons.’ The connection of the
names struck Mary, and she immediately recollected Miss Fowler’s having
been very intimate with persons so called, and, upon putting everything
together, we have scarcely a doubt of her actually being staying with
the only family in the place whom we cannot visit.
[Illustration: CASSANDRA AUSTEN]
“What a contretemps!--in the language of France. What an
unluckiness!--in that of Madame Duval. The black gentleman has
certainly employed one of his menial imps to bring about this complete,
though trifling mischief. Miss Fowler has never called again, but we
are in daily expectation of it. Miss P. has, of course, given her a
proper understanding of the business. It is evident that Miss F. did
not expect or wish to have the visit returned, and Francis is quite as
much on his guard for his wife as we could desire for her sake or our
own.”
What the mysterious disagreement with the Pearson family may have been
it is impossible to tell. That it caused more amusement than heartburn
is clear, but Jane was always an adept, as she says herself, at
constructing “a smartish letter, considering the want of materials.”
The next we hear of Frank (beyond the fact that he has “got a very
bad cold, for an Austen; but it does not disable him from making very
nice fringe for the drawing-room curtains”) is on the question of his
further employment. He was very anxious indeed to get into a frigate,
but feared that the death of Lord Nelson, who knew of his desire, would
seriously damage his chances of getting what he wanted. Jane writes:
“Frank’s going into Kent depends of course upon his being unemployed;
but as the First Lord, after promising Lord Moira that Captain A.
should have the first good frigate that was vacant, has since given
away two or three fine ones, he has no particular reason to expect an
appointment now. He, however, has scarcely spoken about the Kentish
journey. I have my information chiefly from her, and she considers her
own going thither as more certain if he should be at sea than if not.”
This was in February 1807. Mrs. Frank Austen was very soon to feel the
loneliness of a sailor’s wife. In April 1807, Captain Austen took
command of the _St. Albans_, then moored in Sheerness Harbour.
Naval matters, though much better than they had been, were by no means
in order yet, and great was the difficulty experienced in getting the
ship properly equipped. Letter after letter was written by the Captain
to “the principal Officers and Commissioners of His Majesty’s Navy”
before the ship could be got ready for sea, properly supplied with
stores and men. It was not until late in June that they at last got
away on convoying duty to the Cape of Good Hope.
The account of Simon’s Bay in the note-book of Francis Austen is
interesting, when compared with the state of things now existing
at the Cape. After sundry very instructive but entirely nautical
directions for sailing in and out, and anchoring, he goes on to make a
few remarks respectively on wooding and watering, fortifications and
landing-places, trade and shipping and inhabitants, from each of which
we give extracts.
“Wood is not to be had here, except by purchase, and is extravagantly
dear; nor is there any sort of fuel to be procured.
“Water is plentiful and of an excellent quality; a stream is brought
by pipes to the extremity of the wharf, where two boats may fill with
hoses at the same time, but as the run of water which supplies it is
frequently diverted to other purposes by the inhabitants, it is rather
a tedious mode of watering, and better calculated for keeping up the
daily consumption after being once completed, than for supplying the
wants of a squadron or ship arriving from a voyage.
“The method generally used by the men-of-war is to land their casks on
the sandy beach on the N.W. part of the bay, a little to the Westward
of the North battery, where there are two or three considerable runs of
water down the sides of the mountains, and make wells or dipping-places
by sinking half-casks in the sand. In this way, many ships fill their
water at the same time without at all interfering with or retarding
each other’s progress. The casks so filled must be rafted off, as there
is generally too much surf to get them into the boats, and when the
South-easters set in strong it is impracticable to get them off at all.
The casks may however remain on shore without injury, and being ready
filled may be got off when the weather suits. Both watering-places
are completely commanded by the batteries as well as by the ships at
anchorage.
“The anchorage is protected and commanded by two batteries and a round
tower. One on the South-east point of the bay, called the Block-house,
on which are three twenty-four-pounders, and a ten-inch mortar. It is
elevated about thirty feet above the level of the sea, and commands the
whole of the bay, as well as the passage into the westward of the Roman
Rocks.
“The round tower is close at the back of, and indeed may be considered
as appertaining to the Block-house. It has one twenty-four-pounder
mounted on a traversing carriage, and contains very good barracks for
fifty or sixty soldiers. The other, called the North Battery, is,
as its name bespeaks, on the north side of the bay. It stands on a
small rocky point between two sandy bays, on an elevation of twenty
or twenty-five feet above the level of the sea, and is mounted with
three long eighteen-pounders and two ten-inch mortars. Neither of
these works could make much resistance if regularly attacked by sea or
land, and are all completely commanded by higher ground in their rear
within half cannon-shot. There is besides these another battery called
Tucker’s, about half a mile to the southward of the Block-house, but
not in sight from the anchorage; on it are three eighteen-pounders. It
was constructed in consequence of a French frigate running into the bay
(not knowing it to be in the possession of the English) and getting
aground somewhere near that spot. It is however so placed as to be of
no use as a defence to the bay, for a ship, or squadron, coming in with
hostile intentions need not, except from choice, pass within reach of
its guns, and as a military post it is confessedly untenable, being
completely commanded by higher ground behind it.
“The only regular landing-place is at the wharf which runs out about
fifty yards into the sea, and is very convenient, having always
sufficient water to allow of the largest boats when loaded to lie
alongside it without taking the ground. In moderate weather, boats
may, if required to do so, land in almost any part of the bay, and it
is, except where the rocks show themselves, a beach of very fine sand.
There is very little trade here, it having been chiefly used whilst in
the possession of the Dutch as a kind of half-way house for their ships
on their passage both to and from India and China.
“The produce of those countries may however be generally procured, and
on reasonable terms, as duties on importation are so moderate that the
officers of the East India ships frequently find it worth their while
to dispose of their private investments here, rather than carry them
to England. There has been a whale fishery lately established by a few
individuals in a bay about four miles to the north-east, called Calp’s
or Calk’s Bay, which appears to be doing very well, but I imagine
could not be very much extended. There is no ship or vessel whatever
belonging to the place, and only a few small boats used for the
purposes of fishing.
“The arsenal or naval yard is a compact row of storehouses under
one roof, and enclosed with a wall and gates, well situated for its
purpose, fronting a sandy beach and adjoining the wharf. It contains
all the necessary buildings and accommodations as a depot of naval and
victualling stores on a small scale, adequate however to the probable
wants of any squadron which is ever likely to be stationed there.
“The inhabitants are a mongrel breed, a mixture of many nations, but
principally descended from the first Dutch settlers whose language
(probably a good deal corrupted both in ideas and pronunciation) is
in general use. The Government is now English, but the civil, as well
as the criminal jurisprudence is regulated by the colonial laws, as
originally established by the Dutch East India Company, somewhat
modified and ameliorated by the milder influence of English law. The
prevailing religion is Calvinistic, but there are many Lutherans, and
some of various sects.”
The contrast between the Cape in 1807 and the Cape in 1905 is so strong
that it needs no emphasising.
After calling at Ascension Island and St. Helena, the _St. Albans_
returned to England. The progress of contemporary history may be noted
by the news which they received on their way back, which was duly
logged:
“By this ship informed of capture of Copenhagen and the cession of the
Danish fleet to the English forces under Lord Cathcart and Admiral
Gambier.” By January 1 they were back at Spithead, where they remained
till the beginning of February, sailing thence, as was so often the
custom, under sealed orders. On opening the sealed packet Captain
Austen found that he was directed to accompany the convoy to St. Helena.
The following account of the island is interesting when it is
remembered that at that time it was an unimportant spot, not yet
associated with memories of Napoleon. The note opens with a colossal
sentence!
“This island being in the hands of the English East India Company,
and used by it merely as a rendezvous for its homeward-bound fleets,
where during time of war they are usually met at stated periods by some
King’s ship appointed to take them to England, has no trade but such
as arises from the sale of those few articles of produce, consisting
chiefly in poultry, fruit, and vegetables, which are beyond the
consumption of its inhabitants, and a petty traffic carried on by a few
shopkeepers, who purchase such articles of India and China goods, as
individuals in the Company’s ships may have to dispose of, which they
retail to the inhabitants and casual visitors at the island.
“The inhabitants are chiefly English, or of English descent, although
there is a considerable number of negroes on the island, which with
very few exceptions are the property of individuals or of the Company,
slavery being tolerated here. It does not however appear that the
slaves are or can be treated with that harshness and despotism which
has been so justly attributed to the conduct of the land-holders or
their managers in the West India Islands, the laws of the Colony
not giving any other power to the master than a right to the labour
of his slave. He must, to enforce that right, in case a slave prove
refractory, apply to the civil power, he having no right to inflict
chastisement at his own discretion. This is a wholesome regulation
as far as it goes, but slavery however it may be modified is still
slavery, and it is much to be regretted that any trace of it should be
found to exist in countries dependent on England, or colonised by her
subjects. Every person who is above the rank of a common soldier is in
some shape or other a trader. A few acres of ground laid out in meadow,
or garden ground, will seldom fail to yield as much produce in the
year as would purchase the fee-simple of an equal quantity in England,
and this from the extravagant price which the wants of the homeward
bound India ships (whose captains and passengers rolling in wealth, and
accustomed to profusion, must have supplies cost what they may) enable
the islanders to affix to every article they raise. To such an extent
had this cause operated, that a couple of acres of potatoes, or a
garden of cabbages in a favourable season will provide a decent fortune
for a daughter.”
The voyage home was uneventful, retarded by masses of floating gulf
weed, which continued very thick indeed for over a week.
By the 30th of June the _St. Albans_ was back again in the Downs.
The little stir consequent in the family life is indicated in Jane’s
letters, written when she was away from home at Godmersham. “One begins
really to expect the _St. Albans_ now, and I wish she may come before
Henry goes to Cheltenham, it will be so much more convenient to him.
He will be very glad if Frank can come to him in London, as his own
time is likely to be very precious, but does not depend on it. I shall
not forget Charles next week.” A few days later she writes: “I am much
obliged to you for writing to me on Thursday, and very glad that I owe
the pleasure of hearing from you again so soon to such an agreeable
cause; but you will not be surprised, nor perhaps so angry as I should
be, to find that Frank’s history had reached me before in a letter
from Henry. We are all very happy to hear of his health and safety, he
wants nothing but a good prize to be a perfect character. This scheme
to the island is an admirable thing for his wife, she will not feel the
delay of his return in such variety.” On the 30th: “I give you all joy
of Frank’s return, which happens in the true sailor way, just after our
being told not to expect him for some weeks. The wind had been very
much against him, but I suppose he must be in our neighbourhood now by
this time. Fanny is in hourly expectation of him here. Mary’s visit in
the island is probably shortened by this event. Make our kind love and
congratulations to her.”
While on these last voyages Captain Austen made two charts, one of
Simon’s Bay, and one of the north-west side of the island of St.
Helena, which are still in use at the Admiralty. An interesting point
in the correspondence of the Captain of the _St. Albans_ at this time
relates to the conduct of the masters of the various vessels belonging
to the convoy. They are very warmly commended for their skill and
attention, while some few from the “cheerfulness and alacrity with
which they repeatedly towed for many successive days some heavy
sailing ships of the convoy, a service always disagreeable, and often
dangerous,” are specially recommended to the notice of the East India
Company. No doubt such praise from captains of the men-of-war engaged
in convoying, was a useful means of advancement in the service of the
Company, and one which would be earnestly desired. It is an instance
of the justice and appreciativeness which was a characteristic of
Francis Austen that the master of the very ship which most retarded
the progress of the convoy comes in for his share of praise, perhaps
even warmer than that given to the more successful officers. “I cannot
conclude without observing that the indefatigable attention of Captain
Hay of the _Retreat_, in availing himself of every opportunity to get
ahead, and his uncommon exertions in carrying a great press of sail
both night and day, which the wretched sailing of his ship, when not in
tow, rendered necessary, was highly meritorious, and I think it my duty
to recommend him to the notice of the Court of Directors as an officer
deserving a better command.”
One incident of interest occurred on the return voyage, which can
perhaps be better dealt with in another chapter.