From this point the _Red Jacket_, steering a more westerly course, had light and variable winds, whilst the _Mermaid_ was better treated and reached the latitude of the Cape five days ahead, and still held better winds, being actually 1397 miles ahead of the _Red Jacket_ on 15th June. _Red Jacket_, indeed, did not really get going until 26th June, but from that date her log is so remarkable that I give it below.
The _Red Jacket_ was in 40° S., 14° E., before there was any need to touch her topgallant sheets, and Captain Reid was evidently determined to find wind somehow, with the result that, in spite of it being the depth of winter, he was not deterred from standing far to the southward on a Great Circle course. He was rewarded by all the wind he could desire, but so great was the cold that the ship was put down by the head by the frozen spindrift which covered her to the mainmast in an icy mantle.
Her log from 26th June, when she first began to feel the benefit of the westerlies, was as follows:—
+-------+------+-------+-------------------------------+-----+ | Date. | Lat. | Long. | Weather. |Dist.| +-------+------+-------+-------------------------------+-----+ | | ° ′ | ° ′ | | | |June 26|48 06S| 34 44E|Var. and stiff rain and sleet. | 315 | | 27|50 06 | 42 19 |Wind N.W., fresh and squally | 330 | | | | | with hail, very cold weather.| | | 28|50 54 | 49 16 |Wind W.N.W., squalls with | 263 | | | | | hail showers. | | | 29|50 34 | 56 34 |Wind N.N.W., squalls, entire | 286 | | | | | fore part of ship covered | | | | | | with ice. | | | 30|52 03 | 63 50 |Wind N.N.W., fresh with hail | 287 | | | | | squalls; very cold, air 19°. | | |July 1|51 39 | 71 21 |Wind N.N.W., fresh, with hail | 286 | | | | | squalls, latter part light, | | | | | | air 19°. | | | 2|50 29 | 72 26 |Wind S.W., first part calm, | | | | | | latter part heavy gales and | | | | | | heavy sea. | | | 3|50 12 | 80 30 |Wind W.S.W., first part heavy | 312 | | | | | gales, latter part fresh | | | | | | breezes, high sea, freezing. | | | 4|49 25 | 88 30 |Wind variable, fresh gales and | 300 | | | | | heavy sea, freezing, rain | | | | | | and sleet. | | | 5|49 13 | 95 00 |Wind N.N.W., first part light | 288 | | | | | and heavy rain, latter stiff,| | | | | | with heavy squalls. | | | 6|48 38 |104 15 |Wind W.N.W., strong gales | 400 | | | | | and squalls, heavy sea. | | | 7|47 25 |112 44 |Wind variable in strength and | 299 | | | | | direction. | | | 8|46 38 |119 44 |Wind N.N.W., stiff and squalls,| 350 | | | | | with rain. | | | 9|45 09 |129 18 |Wind N.N.W., strong and | 357 | | | | | squally, with rain. | | | 10|42 42 |134 38 |Wind N.N.W., fine weather. | 334 | | 11|40 36 |139 35 |Wind N.W., heavy squalls and | 245 | | | | | rain. | | | 12| | |Wind N.N.W., fine weather. | 300 | | | | | Made King’s Island at 10.50 | | | | | | p.m., crossed bar at | | | | | | 11.50 p.m. | | +-------+------+-------+-------------------------------+-----+
