School-Days in 1800 by Lucy Ellen Guernsey

THE fortnight came to an end, as all fortnights do, and the appointed day saw us on board the good ship "Speedwell" dropping rapidly down the bay with the tide, our party, consisting of Mr. Wyndham, the English lawyer, who was Elmina's guardian, Aunt Belinda, Elmina, and myself, being the only passengers. A voyage across the ocean was a greater event in those days than it is now. Three weeks was the shortest time in which it could be performed, and it not uncommonly consumed five or six. We made great provision for our own private table of biscuits, gingerbread, plum-cake, and so forth, with sundry bottles of wine and brandy. It is curious to me, as I look back at those times, to see how entirely wine and spirits were considered necessaries of life. My aunt always had decanters of brandy, West India rum, and Jamaica standing on her side-board, of which all gentleman visitors partook as a matter of course. She had some famous Madeira, which Mr. Wyndham declared to be the very best he had ever tasted, and she had presented him with a case of the same to carry home. But this is by the way.

I said our party were standing on the deck, but they did not remain there long. The wind blew fresh; and when we reached the outer harbour, and the ship began to feel the motion, to lift her head to the waves and drop again, my aunt and Elmina speedily became too sick to stand, and betook themselves to their berths in the little cramped-up state-room below. I was not sick in the least, and would have enjoyed staying on deck, but of course it was my place to wait on my aunt and Elmina. Our accommodations were no more like those even of the second cabin in an ocean steamer nowadays than a log shanty is like my aunt's drawing-room. However, my aunt, who had made the voyage several times, said they were the nicest she had ever seen, and we were content to make the best of them.