[Thomas Waters to his parents]
[from a transcript]
Ship Wealth of Nations
At sea. February 18th 1871
Dear Father and Mother
I wonder if anyone had or could have kinder or better Father and Mother, Sisters and Brother than I have. I have just been reading over all my English letters which is my usual way of cheering myself up when worried by bad winds or circumstances.
Janey’s and Nancy’s letter about the cows catching them in the orchard and they bolting through the garden hedge is ridiculous and makes me laugh every time I think of it.
We have just passed in sight of the island of Juan Fernandez, I think I spoke about passing the same island last voyage.
had it three times a day, and the mates used to take snacks of it during their night watches. We caught some albatrosses, but they make rather a fishy mess. My old flowers seem not to thrive but the mignonette and nasturtiums are in first rate order. I must not forget the sage, thyme etc that I gathered at Hook. They agreed beautifully with roast pork and infant pigs, and I have enough still left to accomodate many more suckers and roast loins. Fresh beef would be a nice change, but I must not grumble for we have plenty of potatoes.
Sunday February 26th We expect to make land tomorrow and probably will get into Callao at night or next day, and as I shall be very busy I am finishing this letter at sea ready to post if it should be mail day. The weather feels very sultry after our cold cruise off the Horn. Used I always to spell badly and use bad grammar? or is it my memory failing, somehow the double l’s and the e’s and i’s and a few, or I had better own a good many other letters single and double get into wrong positions. Perhaps it is the ignorance of the letters themselves, it serves them right. I hope you both are enjoying your garden as much as I am enjoying my little one. The mignonette is splendid and Janey’s marigolds seem to have a charmed life for if I did not continually root them out my garden would be all marigolds, none of the sweet peas germinated. We have got curried sucker for dinner today, Englishman like, I think a good deal of belly. Our potatoes are spoiling with a kind of dry rot, black spots through them, we will lose about two or three tons and I cannot replace them in Callao, they are too expensive, about three pence per pound, and sweet potatoes wont keep and they cost one penny per pound, yams are scarce and dear but fine, cabbages are reasonable about 8 shillings per dozen, grapes will be just in season. I brought some sauerkraut with me this voyage from London and it is delicious. Now darling old folks I will say goodbye, perhaps I may add a few more lines after we arrive
Your affectionate son
Thomas Waters
Callao March 12th We arrived here March 1st having made the longest passage that I ever experienced. The October gales did us much injury. It is extremely hot here and everything excessively dear, no potatoes of any sort to be got and I have refused the offer of 3 pence per pound for onions altho’ they are partly spoilt. Beef 10 pence per pound, mutton 2 shillings and sixpence per pound. My steward has just brought me from the market a very handsome bunch of flowers. The mail for England had just left Callao the day before we arrived and I received one letter from Hook dated November 13th and one letter from Ben dated January 10th and four letters from Amy, to whom I am just going to write.
With best love to all
Your ever affectionate Son
Thomas Waters
[This letter received at Hook by West India Mail, on April 11th]