Both the Duke of York and the John Pirie are now steering south east towards Australia, a novelty they appreciate. Although it brings bad weather and rough conditions, the travellers on the John Pirie also welcome the cooler conditions, after being ‘almost stew’d alive for a Month’. There is an interesting comment here on the trying conditions of everyday life on board in the tropics, with butter turning to oil and candles literally melting in their sticks. All is quieter also amongst the passengers, but the Captain continues to be anxious about Mrs Chandler’s state of mind. He orders her husband to keep a close watch on her whenever she is on deck.
A ship enduring a ‘cross sea’, Edward Snell, 1849.
The Rapid meanwhile crosses the Equator. ‘with the usual absurd ceremony’, as Dr John Woodforde wearily records. He manages to escape the fate of the other uninitiated passengers, pleading illness and bribing the crew with a [tooltip color=”grey” text=”A form of British currency, the gold sovereign has been minted to exacting specifications since 1817. Each sovereign contains exactly 7.3224 grams of gold (22 carats). It was worth nominally one pound.”]sovereign[/tooltip] – a substantial fee!