ENPages That Mention Yarmouth
Robert Suggate journal and commonplace book, 1874-1878.
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Pages
70 Sumatra
72 Sailors' Leave on Shore at Canton
73 Pulo Penang or Prince of Wales Island
74 Seamens' work when at Sea
75 Singapore
76 The Thames
77 The River Arun and Arundel
78 The Yare River
79 The Tyne River
80 From Newcastle by Land
82 Brighton
84 A new Night-Mare
89 Hastings
90 Lowestoft
92 The Norfolk and Suffolk Broads
95 The Range of Cliff from Lowesloft to Yarmouth
97 The Robin and the Snake
99 The Sea-Side walk from Gorleston Haven.
101 Tunbridge Wells.
102 Gravesend
103 The Pelican Island
104A Exeter, Exmouth, and Sidmouth.
104 Bath
105 Calne
106 Stamford
108 Ipswich
109-110 Southwold
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lasted longer when I was a boy, hedges and ditches to be repaired, whilst if time could be spared a day was allowed for rabbit hunting, and wildfowl shooting, and oh! when the 'Broad' was frozen over, the pleasure of flying over the ice with my old skates. And thus the seasons went and came, bringing toil but many, many pleasures with them, and all was bright and prosperous, but a change was coming. My uncle returned from sea and commenced practice of his profession as a surgeon in the little town of Beccles, about seven miles from where we lived, from him I heard about the sea and the sailors, ships, and foreign countries, and I longed to be a sailor. My old boat although not at all adapted or built for the purpose, I tried to bring into sailing trim, one of the sheets of my bed I fixed up in her for a sail which took her across the 'Broad' in a strong wind to my great satisfaction, and great fright of a neighbor who stood looking on, with threats to acquaint my father with my daring, believing the boat would capsize, but I never heard that he put his threat in execution, if he had I well knew a flogging would be my lot. My sisters' shawls also, whenever they accompanied me in my boating excursions, were sure to be hoisted off their shoulders on to a jury mast rigged on to the boat for that purpose, causing much wonder to dear mother as to how the garment got into the damaged state, which was sure to be the result. However 'go to sea' I would and got my fill of the hardships to be met with on board the collier trading from the northern ponds with coals from Yarmouth +c, and cargoes of flour for London.
One morning at my request my father
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in that respect only caused fun for my companions.
We ran through Yarmouth roads and stood for the North with fair and pleasant weather, for all night, when a calm came on and continued for many hours the sea was as smooth as glass. We had numerous of the duck tribe round us, some with their brood of young with them, and so small that they appeared to have only just left the shell, but we were in sight of land and they would doubtless find shelter among the rocks and boulders by the shore, and they were already as cunning as their mothers in diving when anything was thrown at them. We had light breezes and calm all the way, and at times the sea was full of that truly singular animal of the Medusae family commonly called the Jelly fish, they floated along with the tide in a very stately manner with their long arms or feelers hanging down, but when any attempt to capture them was made unless the operation was very dexterous, they took the alarm very soon and quietly receded from the surface, and sunk out of sight. They were of all dimensions from a foot to a few inches in diameter, of beautiful colours and so numerous that the ship almost seemed to float in living jelly.*
As we drew near the mouth of the Tyne river we hove overboard some of our ballast to spare the expense of working it out when in the river, we went over the bar with a fair wind, got out the remainder of the ballast in the usual manner and were
*In the Geological Museum of Dresden there are some fossil Medusae!
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soon ready to take out turn under one of the wooden spouts, or shoots, to have our hold filled with coals, brought down from the pit's mouth in little square wagons on iron tramways, at that time the only form of railway in use.
In waiting our turn at the 'spout' we spent a Sunday at Shields, and getting leave from the Captain to go on shore, having never before been far from home I had much to look at. I soon left the black dirty town of Shields behind me and struck into the country enjoying the beautiful sunshine and the song of the birds, and was sorry when night coming on made it necessary to seek my close sleeping berth on board the vessel once more. I had a great wish to see the famous old town of Newcastle about eight or ten miles higher up the river than Shields, but want of opportunity forced me to defer it until my next voyage.
As soon as we were full of coals we dropped down with the tide took a pilot and went out of the harbour and found a very heavy sea outside, and we being very deep in the water we were continually under water, every thing washed off the decks and not a dry thread about us. The cooking coppers stood on deck but we could keep no time there, our work was harder now the sails required a deal of attention, and I was obliged to stand my watch and not take my share of the ship's duties as far as my stomach would allow me, with the men, except taking the helm, and wondrous short my four hours watch below, 'Starboard watch', to which I belonged [illegible?] to be called before I had closed my eyes ten minutes, however we reached Yarmouth harbour all in due time discharged coals, and again took cargo for London, and such with slight variations is the routine on such vessels, and in the winter
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part of the time and seemed to be amused at what was going on and I saw him stop to look and speak to No1. as we called him, the Chief Mate, but all the officers took good care to keep out of the reach of the water that was flying about in all directions, in the neighborhood of the waist of the ship. They probably enjoyed the sport as intensely as anyone in their youthful sailorhood.
In trying to get away after his exit from the sail of water one man had broken his toe and was long lame in consequence but that was an accident, no real suffering can result from the water alone which is dashed about, any old dress is worn for the occasion and the water is warm enough although not very clean, it takes some time however to free the hair from the grease and filth. Some Maltese sailors that we had on board and not standing in very high favours with their shipmates, suffered severely, as I saw the marks of the razor on their chin for long afterwards, and one was in the sick list in consequence for sometime.
Some people have expressed their disbelief that our noble and manly "hearts of oak" which our sailors are supposed to be made of (the ships are made of Iron now) would carry their sports and amusements to such an extent, but I have given as an exact account of the ceremony as it was possible for a person in my position to get at, and there are plenty of my shipmates still alive that can vouch for its correctness, one smart little fellow who was on that voyage captain of the mizen top, was afterwards long master of a fine Smack sailing out of Yarmouth harbour, and whose name was Womack. We had fine and good men on board real sailors, and I know entitled to be called