Fernando Noronha to Bahia
These three days have passed by quietly and without note. On the 23d we had scarcely got out of the "variables" which are so common in the Equatorial regions, but for the two last days we have been driving with a steady Trade wind for the continent of S America.
Since leaving Teneriffe the sea has been so calm that it is hard to believe it the same element which tossed us about in the Bay of Biscay. This stillness is of great moment to the quantity of comfort which is attainable on ship-board, hitherto I have been surprised how enjoyable life is in this floating prison. But the greatest and most constant drawback to this is the very long period which separates us from our return. Excepting when in the midst of tropical scenery, the my greatest share of pleasure is in anticipating a future time when I shall be able to look back on past events; and the consciousness that this prospect is so distant never fails to be painful. To enjoy the soft and delicious evenings of the Tropic; to gaze at the bright band of Stars which stretches from Orion to the Southern Cross, and to enjoy such pleasures in quiet solitude, leaves an impression which a few years will not destroy.
These three days have passed by quietly and without note. On the 23d we had scarcely got out of the "variables" which are so common in the Equatorial regions, but for the two last days we have been driving with a steady Trade wind for the continent of S America.
Since leaving Teneriffe the sea has been so calm that it is hard to believe it the same element which tossed us about in the Bay of Biscay. This stillness is of great moment to the quantity of comfort which is attainable on ship-board, hitherto I have been surprised how enjoyable life is in this floating prison. But the greatest and most constant drawback to this is the very long period which separates us from our return. Excepting when in the midst of tropical scenery, the my greatest share of pleasure is in anticipating a future time when I shall be able to look back on past events; and the consciousness that this prospect is so distant never fails to be painful. To enjoy the soft and delicious evenings of the Tropic; to gaze at the bright band of Stars which stretches from Orion to the Southern Cross, and to enjoy such pleasures in quiet solitude, leaves an impression which a few years will not destroy.
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