Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1871-10-26
mo. IL
What a Merchant Saw of Europe.

GU VA cAtEdctS iTOIu uOl6S which tl6 writer
sent home for the edifcation of his family
and friends, while he revealed in the
scenes of which they treat. He has only
been induced to give them to the press,
with the hope they might do further ser.
vice to entertain those of his aoquaint-
ances who have not seen them. They
will be found incomplete and imperfect,
and the author of them begs greatest leni.
ency from the public. In referring to
national peculiaritiee, their manners and
customs, social and religious life, he will
doubtless encounter the preiudioes of q
class, but he hopes not to incur malignity.
He will copy from his notes in the bold
manner with which he noted in
a private journal, facts, fancies and i'm
pressions at the time of writing them in
foreign lands. Alone responsible for what
they contain, those opersevering as to fol-
low him through his wanderings will, he
trusts, bear with his foibles as become
magnanimous readers. j. D.
AT SEA, Sunday, Feb. 10, 1871,
234 Miles East of Sandy Hook.
DEAR ONES AT HoME.-You will all
remember how inauspioiously the eight
eenth day of February, 1871, dawned
upon US. It's lowering skies, and their
splitting snow, hurled at the mercy of a
tempestuous wind. Truly twas day
calculated to call forth latent fear of the
sea, and to copjure misgiVings of our pur-
pose to set sail from native shores. Those
of you who gathered at Pier At, North
River, md with me and my boon com
panions, William and Willie) boarded
the leviathan ship Italy, will remember
how with hearts strong in the strength of
Him who commanded the Gallilean
waves, we said " Goodbye" at 4 1-2 P. M.
And don't you remember of the fog-lift-
ing barbinger of bon voyage" and a
radiently purpling sun as our captain
walked HIS bridge and gave the signal
which set tho engines working, gliding
US from ont the dock.
"You" may have f1r1otten it" 1 can
not"-how, with tear-coursed cheeks, l
cried with feeble voice, "Good-bye,' N, j"
" Good bye, H" " Goodbye, all" And
then we stood ont mid stream and dreami-
ly foAtod past the Battery. Behind the
wheelhouse, with waving kerchief, far as
| could distinguish you, nay heart went
ont in yearning response to yours, whiah
I know babe me "God speed" all the
while. Those beautiful lines of Tom
Moore's Coward" were replete with
meaning to our trio:
Gas slow our ship her foaming track
Against the wind was chewing,
Her trembling pennant still looked back
To that dear Isle twas leaving.
So 10th we part fr IN all We love,
From all the links that bind US;
So turn our hearts whereer we rove
To those we've left behind US"
Near the Quarantine We passed the
Bremen ship Hermann, also bound for sea,
and at Sandy Hook we had the first taste
of excitement. You are aware that the
insurance companies require an additional
pilot at the wheel until out of the bay
and safely at sea- Pilot boat No. 20 sent
us a row boat with two men adopts at the
art to take the additional pilot from US
The waves were angry and beat the little
skif against the copper plating Of our
ship as a thoughtless child might threat
en- destruction to some valuable, fragile
plaything. TIE pilot swung down rope
from the ships side, clinging for dear life.
A huge breaker once enveloped him, and
caused my heart to pit-pat" with aDx-
iety; but he knew the favorable instant
TO let go his hold and drop into the toss
ing boat. I cried to him Goodbye =
and this was the last to America.
Our inexperienced trio, following Mrs.
Stoves advice, found the warm side of
the smoke stack, and then commenced
mutual congratulations that we were
safely off, speeding rapidly, and that, too,
10 a disquiet sea with no sense Of sea sick
ness. Frankly speaking, l had begun to
1nestion whether after al sea sickness was
not much a ''bugbear,' and more than
aught else an Ultimate surrender to imagi-
nation. Suddenly without premonition
dizziness ran from my head to stomach,
and little disposed to jest, turned to my
companions aud said, "it's coming" My
Judgment for once was faultless, sit did
come" All that nice dinner mother pre-
pared IS souvenir reminder of my depar
ture, to daylight once more and then to
the mermaids down below. William
looked white about the gills, suddenly
grew serious. The desperate determina-
ton of his nature found more than its
match, and lindistiuctly / remember it, for
[ was pressed with business) he yielded
inch by inch until the retching came,
when lie too, at double quick, staggered
to the guards and paid bouutiful tribute
to old Neptune" Willie laughed,
which was one among the most perpiex-
ing occurrence expect to experience.
To our staterooms and to our beds, boots,
coats and all. If any of you have the
bearing of an undue ccnceit,
oolee to sea and witness the vileness of
your human stomach. "Rockod in the
cradle of the deep" what beautiful santi-
rnent it was how ''disgust" overwhelms
it now Will an groaned all night and I
ohorded 10 his requiem-I should call the
strain "passing away" You remember
the bottles filled with choice cider we car
ried to our staterooms and hid under the
hunks. You have not forgotten what a
picture of comfort that stateroom was,
how twas the soul of quiet when we left
The dock. Last night pandemonium chose
it for an abiding place. Cider bottles
rolling about the floor, popping and break
ing, our baggage on the rampage, wildly
rolling at each rock of our cradle. Broken
tumblers, a soaked carpet. Groanings
and retohings in adjoining staterooms and
pervading all. Was it possible
tLoL 4b;s 1voo tba Soma Tto1v IF whom