powers of southern and Eastern Asia; in order to open trade with some, and with others to settle definitely the manner in which our merchantmen should be received, and the charges to which they should be subject. In this latter respect, the practice in many countries is very irregular, depending more upon the notion or whim of the minister at the time, than upon any established law. Mr. Roberts communicated his views in detail to his friend, the Honourable Levi Woodbury, at that time Secretary of the Navy, who laid the subject before the President. It was determined after proper deliberation, that Mr. Roberts should visit the East, in capacity, of "Special Agent of the government," and obtain all the information he could, and negotiate treaties of amity and commerce with such Asiatic potentates, as he might find favourably disposed. Early in the year 1832, Mr. Roberts sailed from the United States on board of the U. S. ship Peacock, then commanded by Captain David Geisinger, and visited Brazil, Buenos Ayres, Java, Manila, Canton, Singapore, Siam, Muscat, the Red Sea, &c. In May, 1834, he returned, bearing with him two treaties which he had negotiated, one with His Highness the Sultan of Muscat, and the other with His Magnificent Majesty, the King of Siam. These treaties were ratified by the President and Senate of the United States, in June, 1834, and Mr. Roberts was appointed to exchange the ratifications. The Peacock was again put in commission to carry him on his distant embassy, the history of which will be found in the following pages. "Le aconsejo en esto lo que debe de hacer como discreto si no lealo, y verà el gusto que recibe, de su leyenda." PHILADELPHIA, January, 1838. 12 THE U. S. SHIP PEACOCK CHAPTER I. VOYAGE TO RIO DE JANEIRO. June, 1835. WHEN I bade farewell to my messmates in February, 1834, I little thought to be named in March, 1835, a member of another mess— "bounden brothers every man "—to roam the ocean, scarcely knowing whither. Yet in one short year, the pains and privations of a long absence had dwindled into mere shadows of memory, and preparations were made for another cruise, not, however, without feeling how deeply parting sinks into the heart. "First partings form a lesson hard to learn;" and it is doubtful whether any one can teach himself to say farewell to home, to friends, to country, without emotion "There is a sort of unexpressed concern, which we cannot quite overcome, be the trial ever so frequent. At sunrise on the twenty-third of April, I was roused by the order, "All hands up anchor," delivered in the growling, imperative tones of the boatswain. The ship was speedily under sail. The city of New York, and its busy scenes receded fast from our view; the Narrows were passed; the bar was cleared, and at meridian the pilot bore away the cape letters. At sunset the land had faded away in the distance. Our hopes were all before us; and the past and the present were only remembered to contrast with the future. "A Dios amada playa; à Dios hogares." The United States ship Peacock, being not more than of six hundred tuns burden, is the smallest of her class. She has a light spar deck which frees the guns from the encumbrance of rigging, and, in port at least, affords the officers a sheltered walk in very hot or LOVE OF THE SEA-SEA SICKNESS. 13 rainy weather, besides a more ample space for the hammocks of the men. In other respects the ship has no commendable quality. She is an indifferent sailer, very wet, and, both for officers and crew, the accommodations are very limited. She is armed with twenty thirtytwo pound carronades and two long twelve pounders. The ship being fitted in the winter, when cordage is inflexible as bar-iron, the rigging stretched very much on putting to sea, though every care had been taken in the outfit, and the seams opened in several places, so that whenever the ship laboured, she was uncomfortably wet. A few days after sailing, we encountered fresh gales, then the gun deck presented a scene of despair, and doubtless there were many regrets in mental reservation. The neophytes were swinging to and fro in their cots or hammocks, in obedience to the motions of the ship, wishing themselves safely on shore, free from the distressingly nauseating effects of the sea. How few would persevere in the choice of the profession, could they but escape in the midst of the first fit of sea-sickness. Yet, when once over, how strong are the ties which bind them to the ocean! Indeed, the love of a sea life is an acquired taste, and, like all acquired tastes, it is apt to be enslaving. On one occasion I passed a night, at a French boarding-house, with a naval officer who had spent seventeen years actually at sea. He was very ill, but feeling himself somewhat more comfortable than he had been, towards morning, he remarked, "After all, doctor, there is no place for a man when sick like being on board ship." Such was not the opinion of those "young gentlemen" who were now for the first time embarked upon the broad blue bosom of the Atlantic. Sea-sickness is a penalty-a sort of initiation fee paid by every one who ventures upon the broad domain of Neptune. Many plans have been tried to alleviate the distress, beneath the influence of which the stoutest spirit quails, but no one of the many has been generally successful. In some individuals, nature speedily accommodates herself to the new circumstances in which she is placed; in others, whole voyages are not long enough to habituate them to the motion of the ship; the disease continues, with more or less intensity, according to the roughness or smoothness of the sea. A simple, and generally successful treatment, consists in keeping the head cooled by the application of ice or iced water, and swallowing nothing but the blandest articles of diet, as arrow root, barley or For a list of the officers and crew, see Appendix. 14 VOYAGE TO RIO DE JANEIRO. rice water, &c. By this plan, the sense of fulness and constriction of the head, which characterize the invasion of the malady, will be relieved, and the patient will become comparatively comfortable. Ladies who cross the Atlantic in packet ships, where all the appliances of comfort procurable at sea are usually found, may find this hint not thrown out in vain. From the day of sailing, nothing of importance occurred out of the usual routine of ship's duty. The passage was remarkable for a great deal of rain, and we experienced very few days of really very pleasant weather. On the 28th of May, being close to the equator, we had a beautiful annular eclipse of the sun, between the hours of eleven and twelve o'clock A. M. Although the thermomoter did not sink, the air was sensibly cooler, and the whole atmosphere much darkened, yet no stars were seen. On the 10th of June, at sunrise we saw the coast of Brazil, stretching between Cape Frio and the harbour of Rio de Janeiro, the hills, or rather mountains, rising in broken outline in the gray of the morning. The light land wind was quickly succeeded by a gentle sea breeze. About three o'clock P. M. we descried a large sail under the land to the westward of the Sugar Loaf, which proved to be the United States ship Natchez, bearing the broad pendant of Commodore Renshaw. At a distance of five miles we exchanged signals; and, on hauling down our broad blue pendant and substituting a red one, as is the custom when a junior meets a senior commodore, we fired a salute of thirteen guns, which was promptly returned. The breeze continued light, and fell almost calm as the sun sank lower, so that we moved along at a rate not exceeding two miles an hour. The sunset was a magnificent one, even for this tropical region. The soft tints of the sky changed from the lightest orange to a golden hue; from that to rosy, and then deepened to a blazing red, which last faded away into the soft gray of twilight, leaving the clouds no longer reflected upon by the sun, in their own sombre colours. The effect of these hues on the imagination was heightened by the bold and broken outline of the mountains, cast in strong relief, by a flood of light poured upwards from behind them as the sun sank. The moon was at her full, and as she rose, poured her silvery rays over the smooth surface of the waters; and the modest stars of the Southern Cross beamed forth in the calm purity of that religion of which this beautiful constellation is an emblem. The two ships of war, now slowly approaching each other, and with three or four small vessels, were standing in for the harbour. On board ARRIVAL AT RIO DE JANEIRO. 15 of our own vessel, all hands were at their stations for bringing ship to anchor; and all were perfectly hushed, as if by a spell imparted by the quiet glories of the scene around. At half past five, the ships had approached so near that a boat boarded us from the Natchez, and informed us, that having been advised of our sailing from New York by a vessel which had arrived, though she had sailed four days after us, the Natchez had been cruising off the harbor in expectation of our arrival. At eight o'clock we encountered the land wind, and were obliged to anchor outside of the harbor, where we lay very comfortably all night. The next morning we got under way, and about ten o'clock reached our anchorage opposite to the city. As we passed up the bay, every one was charmed with the beauties of the scenery; indeed, several officers recently from the Mediterranean, declared this bay to be incomparably more magnificent than that of Naples. In fact, nothing can be more romantic and diversified than the scenery around Rio de Janeiro; turn where you may, the eye rests upon a spot to contemplate and admire. But the sight is not the only sense which is delighted at Rio; there is a balmy sort of influence in the atmosphere which soon saps all industrious intentions, and induces a procrastinating disposition which is difficult to overcome. Every one seems rather disposed to indulge in the quiet animal enjoyments of eating, drinking, smoking, lounging and sleeping, leaving to slaves all kinds of manual labor, and hence the embonpoint amongst women and obesity amongst men of the Creole and Portuguese residents. |