U.S.S. Juniata

At sea.

August 24 – 86.

 

Dear George,

                        I did not answer your letter from New York, so I write you now. It seems funny to be at sea, I have not got my sea-legs on yet, but have not any fall tho' so far, but came near doing so a good many times last week, the vessel rolled pretty heavy at times, got wet a good many times too.

 

            On Sunday last one of the officers caught a small "Dolphin", the men cut it up and had a stew out of it. When they cut it open they found quite a lot of young / fish in its stomach, several flying fish. We passed a great many flying fish today and spoke with a large English vessel going to England, all sail set both of us, they looked fine, just a good breeze so as to fill all the sails. We tore up several of our sails last week, and one morning our main topsail yard fell down & came near going overboard, fortunately no one was hurt. Today one of the officers has been taking photographs of the rest of us, three groups. I may send you one some day if there is not too great a demand for them. Ship was rolling some, and some of us trying hard to stand up but they were very fair pictures. he is going to take a picture of a vessel / under full sail first chance, if he does I will try & send you one.

 

Sunday Aug 29—We had quite a severe storm Friday last, a cyclone, lasted about 17 hours. I wish you could have seen the seas, the wind blew so strong that it picked up the tops of the waves and carried them along so that the air was full of spray you could not see anything. If you had been laying down on the deck I think it would have picked you up & carried you overboard. All the officers pretty near were bare headed, & bare legged too, clothes were no protection. During the gale a few days before the cyclone the wind blowing warm the southward and eastward a bird drop'd on the deck, so exhausted that it only lived / a few hours. we supposed it must have come from Bermuda, about 600 miles distant, the wind was blowing at 75 miles an hour at the time. I hope you will be able to read what I write, my arms & fingers ache so with holding on to everything like grim death during the storm I don't feel like writing much but I want to have my letters so I can finish quick in case a ship should pass us going home & we should have a chance to send letters. We have been two weeks almost from New York now and we are not 1/3 the way to Cape de Verde. When we will be there I don't know, as we have a good many soundings to make yet. Will say good night. I wish I was in Brighton. I am hungry, and have been ever since I left New York. /

 

Sept 4^th Here we are yet, cant get beyond Latitude 37° and Longitude 50°. Look on the map and find where those two lines cross each other and you will see where we have been laying almost without a breath of wind for nearly a week. not a thing to see but water and sky. The men caught quite a large shark yesterday, which gave them something to do. it must have been very hungry for it had nothing in its stomach, and it snapped at everything in the water. Most every day some one catches some kind of a fish, some of them are peculiar looking, different from any seen near shore.

           

I suppose your school begins on Monday next Sept 6—I hope you have enjoyed your vacation and that you will enjoy going to school. I will write you all about Cape de Verde so if the teacher asks you about the place you can tell her. They cooked a portion of that shark we had some on the table. I did not taste it myself, I may the next. 

 

Sept 19            4 oclock p.m. I suppose you are about through your dinner. I wish I could sit down to dinner with you all. We dont have any too much to eat I can tell you. I hope we can buy some stores in Porto Grande, Cape de Verde.

 

I enclose you a sketch of that water spout we saw the other day. it assumed that shape just before it broke. The water was choppy, & a huge black cloud came along, rained heavy in the region of the water spout, it looked as tho several others were forming when all of a sudden it burst & everything brightened up. There is so little happening on board, one day so much like another that there is nothing to write about.

 

Sept 23.           I hardly know what to write about, but I want to finish this to you, as if a steamer is ready to leave when we get I shan't have any time to write then, & I might miss it if / not ready. I hope you will write me & tell me how you get along at school. You must get the atlas & mark off the Juniata's course, get Frank to show you how to lay off the Latitude & Longitude & put marks like these on then draw your pencil along so you will see the Juniatas track, & can show it to Grandma.        [small diagram interwritten]

 

I hope you get along well with all your teachers. pay attention to your studies when in school, & have your lessons ready every day. I hope you are having as lovely weather in Brighton / as we have here. The nights are very pleasant too. The past two or three nights we have been on deck a good deal watching the shooting stars. Some of the officers sleep on deck now, it is so warm down below.

 

I may write you again before leaving Cape de Verde. It is nearly 3000 miles more to Rio Janeiro, our next stopping place. hope to hear from you at C de Verde. We are beginning to clean up & paint ready for going into port. Will say goodbye, with much love & good wishes             

 

from                Papa.

SOURCES