UNDER WEIGH.
The _Camoens_, named after the Portuguese poet of that name, is a
fair-sized steamer of 1200 tons, which runs during the summer and autumn
months at regular intervals of about once in four weeks, between Granton
and Reikjavik, the capital of Iceland, calling _en route_ at other
ports. Subjoined is a map of the Island, with a red boundary line
marking the course of the steamer, and her usual halting places.
Her average run, inclusive of stoppage at the various trading ports, is
six or seven days at most; but in steaming direct from Granton to the
Icelandic capital, the voyage does not occupy more than three and a half
days, if the weather is favourable.
On reaching the _Camoens_, we found the rest of our party already
arrived, and we joined forces at once. All was not ready, however, on
board, for the stowage of the cargo was still in full swing, and sacks
of flour and trusses of hay were being alternately hurled round on the
crane and lowered on deck, sailors and 'odd hands' rushing hither and
thither in the wildest confusion.
Just before our arrival a serious accident had occurred. The steward was
returning from market, when the crane struck him and knocked him down,
injuring the poor man sadly, breaking both his arms, and causing severe
contusions of the head. He was carried ashore to the hospital, and but
slight hopes were entertained of his recovery.
This fatality caused the greatest inconvenience, for independent of his
being a valuable steward, and the sorrow to his messmates at his
accident, it is not generally easy, just as a steamer is leaving port,
to find a substitute. Happily, in this case, a former steward being
disengaged, the captain at once secured his services; but as he only
came on board at the last moment, and neither knew where the supplies
were stored, nor of what they consisted, the ship's company was thereby
put to much inconvenience during the voyage.
Messrs Slimons' agent was on board the _Camoens_ with his ticket book,
and our tickets were at once procured; not expensive by any means, being
only £8 each person to Iceland and back, including the trip round the
Island; our food being charged at the rate of 6s. 6d. per day extra.
The best berth cabin had been reserved for Miss T. and myself, the one
opposite for the three gentlemen, with an intermediate passage, which
latter proved a great comfort, as it contained hooks for coats and
cloaks, and room for two portmanteaus.
The cabins were unusually small, and required very close arrangement of
our effects, and the extra hooks and cabin bags for the wall we had
brought with us were most useful.
Our crew numbered thirty-two in all, and rough-looking specimens of
humanity they indeed appeared. We had two stewardesses, who also waited
at table, and made themselves generally useful. These were slatternly in
appearance, but were very attentive and kind-hearted. There were seven
firemen, two working at the same time for four hours at a stretch, thus
each couple did duty twice in the twenty-four hours; which means eight
hours in the engine-room out of the twenty-four.
There were forty berths on board the _Camoens_, only nineteen of which
were occupied during the outward voyage. The ship carried no surgeon,
consequently my brother was frequently applied to in cases of burns,
sprains, etc.
The captain had a large Board of Trade medicine chest, of which he kept
the key, and from which he usually administered the contents when
required, to the best of his medical knowledge. I must here refer with
ready praise to the kindness of Captain Robertson, a most worthy man,
and of general information. He often came and sat with us in the evening
in the saloon, or smoked with the gentlemen, and many and varied were
the yarns he spun.
We got under weigh about 4.30 on Saturday afternoon, July 31st, being
tugged out of the harbour at Granton. The Firth of Forth was then as
calm as a lake, scarce a ripple to be seen on its surface. A previous
thunderstorm had freshened the air, the rain which had fallen had
ceased, and those lovely mists and tints usually to be seen after a
storm, had taken the place of the dark clouds now rolling away in the
distance. Inchkeith was spanned by a lovely rainbow, and peace, quiet,
and beauty reigned around. The water, indeed, was more like a large
lake, such as the 'Chiem See' in Bavaria--dotted with its islands--than
an inlet of the sea.
On we steamed, passing Leith, Portobello, North Berwick, with the Bass
Rock and the coast of Fife, and, as evening drew on, May Island and Bell
Rock. It was indeed a lovely night. The sky, lit up with the deep, warm
glow of the departing sun, cast a rosy hue over the whole expanse of
water. A night, indeed, so perfect, we all agreed it was worth coming to
sea to witness and enjoy.
The human mind is, however, versatile, and before morning we had cause
to change our ideas, and several of us already wished ourselves again at
home!
On entering the Moray Firth the evening calm of the untroubled sea was
exchanged for rough billows, and hour by hour we became more and more
miserable, each alike in turn paying our tribute to Neptune, and truly
realising the difference between a voyage in prospect and one in stern
reality.
My brother, Mr Gordon, the captain, and two other passengers were the
sole occupants of the saloon at breakfast. At luncheon, the latter
couple were also absent, and more people than ourselves bewailed their
misery, and wished themselves back ashore.
The rolling of the steamer was tremendous. It pitched and tossed to such
an extent that our bags and other things in our cabin were tumbled about
in every direction. Despite the discomfort, we struggled on deck about
twelve o'clock, hoping the air would revive us, and in half an hour felt
quite other persons.
The worst of a rough sea is, that when one is feeling sick, and air is
most needed, one is obliged to shut the portholes, and only imbibe that
which comes from the saloon--a mixture of fumes by no means
invigorating.
I had always prided myself on being a good sailor when on yachting
excursions and short sea voyages, but that 'Moray Firth' undeceived me
in this respect. My misery, however, soon wore off, and save on this
occasion, and one day on our return voyage, even in the rough days we
encountered in the Northern Atlantic, my peace of mind was not further
disturbed.
This first day was indeed a miserable initiation into the hitherto
unknown horrors of the sea, and no greater contrast could be possible
than the calm of the night before and that wretched Sunday. It rained
and blew great guns all day long, and by 6 P.M. the weather culminated
in a severe gale, with the glass steadily falling, followed by a heavy
thunderstorm, with vivid forked lightning. So furious indeed was the
storm, that after passing Duncansby Head, and John o' Groat's House, our
captain turned back and ran his vessel into Sinclair Bay, riding at
anchor there for the night, not being willing, in the face of such
weather, to attempt the 'Pentland Firth.'
The bay was calm, and the gentle movement of the waves was like the
rocking of an arm-chair after the shaking and rolling we had
experienced. We all enjoyed our dinner in peace, whilst the warmth of
the cabin was a pleasant change from the searching cold on deck, which,
despite furs and rugs, had pierced us through and through. Before we
retired for the night, two other vessels had likewise put into the bay
for safety from the elements, and here we were compelled to remain for
forty-two hours while the storm still raged outside. Captain Robertson
was a sensible man; when we asked him why he had put into Sinclair Bay,
he said he considered it wiser to 'lay-to' for a few hours, and make up
the time afterwards, rather than push on through such a gale, burning
coal, and only making a knot or two an hour, perhaps not even that,
straining the ship with her screw continually out of the water, making
every one miserable, and gaining nothing. To this we all agreed, so in
quiet waters we passed a comfortable night, and consequently all the
passengers put in an appearance next morning at breakfast.
As dirty weather was still reported ahead, we also spent Monday (a Bank
holiday) in the bay. Alongside of us lay a large steamer, which had
tried the Pentland Firth in the morning, but after five unsuccessful
hours had been obliged to put back. This steamer had shifted her cargo,
and lay over on her side, in a way that looked to me alarming; we left
her in the bay when we weighed anchor on Tuesday at mid-day.
On the previous night some fishing boats put out from Keiss for herring
fishing, and one came so near to us that we were tempted to prepare some
letters and telegrams, a sailor on board our vessel saying he would try
and drop them into the boat, in a basket. We tied them, therefore, up in
a bag, with the necessary money for delivery, and watched their fate
with anxiety. 'Letters,' shouted our sailor, but the fishermen shook
their heads, evidently thinking it too rough to approach nearer to the
steamer. Again the word 'Letters' was repeated, when another fishing
smack responded 'Ay, ay,' and tacked, and as she shot past us, on our
lee side, the basket was dropped over, accompanied by a bottle of whisky
and ten shillings (the two latter being a _douceur_ for the fishermen
themselves) wrapped up for safety in an old rag, and tied to the bottom
of the basket. The smack to which we thus confided our post was going
out for the night, but the men said they would put into Keiss next
morning, and promised to send the letters ashore, which we afterwards
found they did, whilst the bottle of whisky proved so acceptable a gift,
that finding us still in Sinclair Bay on Tuesday morning, the fishermen
brought some fresh herrings for breakfast, which they threw on board as
they passed, and which proved an acceptable addition to our breakfast
table.
The crew of the smack were a fine-looking set of men, well made, with
handsome, frank faces--six men and a boy; but all they got for their
night's danger and toil was some three dozen herrings. Such is the
uncertainty of the deep.
Our ship's passengers numbered fourteen, exclusive of ourselves, and
while we remained in Sinclair Bay, we had a good chance of criticising
them. All good fellows, no doubt, but mostly of the trading class, and
not very attractive, physically or mentally. There were two women in the
number, the wife and daughter of a clothier resident in Iceland; but
among the entire party we did not find any one likely to add to the
sociability of the voyage, so, English-like, we kept to ourselves as
much as possible.
How inconsistently some people dress on board ship! Our two women
fellow-passengers did not often appear on deck, but when they did
venture, despite the wind and rain, the elder wore an enormous hat, with
a long, brown feather, which daily grew straighter, until all its curl
had disappeared; and a light-brown silk dress, on which every drop of
rain or spray made its mark. She was a clothier's wife, and accustomed
to sea-travelling; one would have imagined experience would have taught
her the advisability of a less gorgeous style of apparel.
The girl wore a huge white sailor hat, covered with a profusion of red
poppies, and her whole time seemed to be occupied in holding it on her
head with both hands to prevent its blowing away. But it would rain, and
the red from the poppies silently trickled all over the hat, and
gradually formed rivulets on her face.
Then there was a very corpulent old man, with a large, square-patterned
ulster, and a deer-stalker hat, tied on with a red silk handkerchief
under his chin in a large bow, matching his complexion. His companion
was thin and sallow, and wore a very desponding air, despite a prolific
red beard, which, when we landed, caused much excitement among the
Icelanders. I think their admiration made him feel shy, for after the
demonstration made in its favour at the first landing port, he seldom
went ashore, and even during the four days the _Camoens_ lay off
Reykjavik, he rarely left the ship.
Life on board ship is at the best monotonous, and we had to be contented
with breathing the ozone, rejoicing in its health-giving properties,
speculating as to the result of the voyage, and the novel scenes we
hoped so soon to witness.
If ever cheap novels have their use, it is certainly on board ship.
Soaked with salt water or rain, it matters not; they most assuredly help
to wile away many an hour, and even the usually non-novel reader is not
ashamed to seize the tell-tale yellow-covered volume, and lose himself
in its romance _pro tem_.
The second day we amused ourselves in making sketches of Noss Head,
which one minute was enveloped in thick mist and rain, and the next
stood out, clear and distinct, against a dull, grey sky.
When in the midst of our sketching, lo! quite an excitement prevailed
among our ship's company, viz., the sight of a twenty-five feet
bottle-nosed whale, which every one rushed to see, and which for some
time played around the ship, accompanied by a couple of porpoise. The
animal caused as much excitement as if it had been the mythical sea
serpent itself. We saw them in dozens afterwards, but never with the
same enthusiasm. Of course, the first whale had to be immortalised, and
two of our party sketched and painted it; not without difficulty,
however, for the rolling of the ship sent the water-colours or the
turpentine sliding away at some critical moment of our work, and, on
later occasions, chair, artist, picture, and colours were upset together
in a disconsolate heap on the other side of the ship, much to every
one's amusement.
Sketching at sea, in fact, is no easy matter, chiefly from the necessity
of rapidity in the work; while the smuts from the funnel are most
exasperating, settling on the paper just where clear lights are most
desirable, and--well, paint in oils on a rough day at sea, with a strong
wind blowing the smoke towards you, and judge for yourself!
We left, as I said, our haven of refuge--Sinclair Bay--on Tuesday at
noon, on a clear, bright day, but with a turbulent sea. However, we
passed the Pentland Firth without having to run into the Orkneys for
shelter, passing quite close to Pomona, round Duncansby Head and John o'
Groat's House, a hideous modern hotel in the midst of a desolate bay.
Some people say that the story of John o' Groat's is merely mythical,
and others declare he was a Scotchman, who, for ferrying folks across
the Pentland Firth for fourpence, or a 'groat,' received his nickname.
Again it is said that he was a Dutchman, with eight stalwart sons, who,
having no idea of the law of primogeniture, alike wished to sit at the
head of the table, whereupon John had an octagon table made, which,
having neither top nor bottom, saved any wrangling for preeminence in
his family.
Dunnet Head, which we next passed, is the most northerly point of
Scotland. 'Stroma,' viz., the Orkneys, lay on our right, standing out in
relief against a lovely sky--just such a picture as John Brett loves to
paint.
We were all much struck by the variety of birds in the Pentlands--wild
geese, ducks, northern divers, and puffins, with, of course, the never
absent gull. What a melancholy noise the gull makes, crying sometimes
exactly like a child. And yet it is a pleasing companion on a desolate
expanse of water, and most amusing to watch as it dives for biscuit or
anything eatable thrown to it from the ship's side. Some of the
gentlemen tried to capture them with a piece of fat bacon tied to a
string; but although Mr Gull would swallow the bacon, he sternly refused
to be landed.