First (-eighth) Reading for lantern exhibitions of travels in the Eastern Island World, China, Loo-Choo, and Japan

Front matter

FOR LANTERN EXHIBITIONS OF Travels in the Eastern Island World, China, Loo-Choo, and Japan. PLYMOUTH TO JAVA Mustratcbbit Sbiji .Subjects from gtafurc anir %\k. Reading and Photographs by F. W. SUTTON, R.N. LONDON: PUBLISHED BY W. F. STANLEY, 13, RAILWAY AITROACH, LONDON BRIDGE, S.E. FIRST READING. PLYMOUTH TO JA VA. LIST OF SUBJECTS. Part "First. No. r. Keyham Dockyard, Plymouth. A modern Ironclad, and several smaller Men of War. ,, 2. The Royal Albert Tubular Bridge, from the River Tamar. ». 3- ». .. >i .. >< Shore. „ 3^- ,, 3*. ,, 4. H. M. Line of Battle Ship, -'Renown ;" and the Sheer Hulk, off Devonport Dockyard. ,, 5. H. M. Line of Battle Ships, "Agamemnon," and " Sanspareil." ,, 6. H. M. 51-gun Frigate, the "Orlando." ,, 7. Plymouth Breakwater and Lighthouse. ,, 8. H.' M. Line of Battle Ship, "Gibraltar." ,, 9. ,, ,, ,, ,, "Edgar," and the " Galatea "—the Duke of Edinburgh's Ship — in Coruna Bay. ,, 10.

Landing Place, Bay of Funchal, Madeira. ,, n. Fort and Town of Funchal, Madeira. ,, 12. Suburbs of Funchal, Madeira. ,, 13. Landing Place at Porto Grande, St. Vincent, Cape de Verde Islands. , , 14. Porto Grande, St. Vincent, Cape de Verde Islands. ,, i4(Z. Neptune in Full Dress. ,, 14Æ. King Neptune and Amphitrite. ,, 15. Landing Place at Ascension. ,, 16. The Naval Hospital, Ascension. ,, 17. Green Mountain, Ascension. ,, i3. Town of Ascension. ,, 19. Ascension, from Green Mountain. ,, 20. An Officer's Residence at Ascension. ,, 21. The Officers' Mess, Ascension. ,, 22. The Landing Place at James Town, and Ladder Hill. St. Helena. ,, 23. The Valley and Heights behind James Town, the Briars, and Road to Longwood, St. Helena. ,, 24. Longwood, Napoleon's Residence at St. Helena. ,, 25. Napoleon's Favourite Walk, St. Helena. ,,26. ,, Tomb, St Helena. , , 27. , , , , with Cypresses and Willows planted by the Countess BertrancL ,, 28.

View of James Town and Harbour from heights above James Town Valley. Part Second. , , 29. Simon's Bay, Cape of Good Hope. ,,30. ,, Berg (Mountain), Cape of Good Hope. ,, 31. ,, Town, Cape of Good Hope. ,, 31*7. ,, ,, „ ,, Shows Beach and Boulders of Granite. ,, 32. Town of Algoa Bay, South Africa. ,, 33. Beaching a Smack, Algoa Bay, South Africa. ,, 33d. The Volcanic Island of St Paul's. ,, 33Æ. ,, ,, ,, ,, ,, from the Anchorage. ,, 33c. The Crater and the Outer Anch^rag^from the Summit. ,, 33^. The Frenchmen's Hut. ,, 34. Cocos Town at Port RoftK^^feeJi^f'^lands ; Coral Islands, in the Southern Indian Ocean. /Sfc& '^Sy^wivL C^ ,, 35. Mahometan Mo>«]ue anit Malay Congregation, Keeling Islands. ,, 36. Sunday School Children, and their School, Keeling Islands. ,, yf. Bantam Village, Keeling Islands. , , 38.

Part I

I MUST now ask you to imagine you are on board the Rattle snake, off Keyham Dockyard, in Hamoaze, Plymouth ; preparing for our long cruise. No. i. — Keyham Dockyard, with a Modern Ironclad, and several smaller Men-of-War. Keyham Dockyard is an enormous establishment, the plant of which is said to have cost upwards of £3,000,000 sterling. Here our largest ironclad and wooden ships are repaired. The one in the foreground is about to go into dock. Looking up the river (Tamar), you will see — No. 2.— The Royal Albert Tubular Bridge (chain suspen sion), by I. K. Brunei, which crosses the Tamar at Saltash. This is one of the greatest works of modern engineering skill. The height of the roadway is 100 feet above high-water mark, and the central pier So feet in, the water. At this point the Tamar is 2,240 feet wide.

Nos. 3, 3 A, and 3 B. — Views of the Royal Albert Bridge from the east to west shores. We are now steaming down the Hamoaze, passing — No. 4. — H.M.'s Line-of-Battle Ship the " Renown, ' and " Sheer Hulk," alongside of which the former is about to be dismantled and dismasted before being returned into the Steam Reserve. A short time subsequently she was sold to the German Government for a training ship. We are now passing Devonport Dockyard, where so many of our magnifi cent wooden ships of war were formerly built. Here are two of them — No. 5. — The "Agamemnon" and " Sanspareil." The Agamemnon was Sir Edmund Lyons' flag-ship, in the attack on Sebastopol during the Crimean war ; and since there was no keeping that dashing admiral out of the thickest of the fight, she was very much knocked about ; however, the wooden walls of glorious old England proved stouter than the stone ones of the Czar.

Previous to this attack, the Sanspareil was Sir Edmund's flag-ship, so both of these may be called historical ships. We are now in Plymouth Sound, and passing the guard ship of the day — No. 6. — H. M.S. "Orlando," a magnificent specimen of our 5 1 -gun frigates. She is wishing us (by flag signal) a prosperous voyage, and a happy return. We are now passing the celebrated — No. 7. — Plymouth Breakwater and its Lighthouse. This stupendous work was commenced in 1812; it is 1,000 yards long, and placed in the centre, across the mouth of the Sound, which is three miles wide. It is composed of a vast number of large masses of limestone, or marble, from the Oreston quarries, opposite Plymouth. It cost £2,000,000, and is a most efficient protection to the harbour. Here is — ■ No. 8.— H.M.'s Line-of-Battle Ship the "Gibraltar," coming to under sail, and about to be taken in tow — a cheaper way of getting "her into harbour than using her own machinery ; she has just returned from a long commission abroad.

We are soon out of sight of land, and all hands are on deck to see the last of our dear native shores. We found the Bay of Biscay almost as smooth as the Thames at Putney. Should you be compelled to cross this bay, do so in June ; but if you wish to see one of nature's grandest sights, cross it in December, when the westerly gales are blowing. Now we are in Corunna Bay, with several men-of-war in sight. Here is — No. 9.— H.M.S " Galatea," the Duke of Edinburgh's Ship, and H.M.'s Line-of-Battle Ship the "Edgar." Indicat ing our names by signal, we pass on to Madeira, where we arrive on the 17th of June, nine days out from Plymouth. Here is — • No. 10. — The Landing Place in the Bay of Funchal. Madeira is the principal island in the group, called the Madeira Isles ; it is of volcanic origin, forming an irregular mass of basaltic rock, and is situated in the North Atlantic, nearly due west of Mogador, in Africa ; its extreme length is about forty miles, and breadth about sixteen miles.

The remaining islands in the group are Porto Santo, twenty-three miles north-east, which has a circumference of fifteen miles, and the three " De- TLYMOUTH TO JAVA. sertas," eleven miles south-east, inhabited only by wild goats, rabbits, and enormous spiders. According to some authorities, the Madeira Isles were known to the ancients as the Purple Islands of Pliny. Others say they were discovered by an Eng lishman, who loved a lady far above him in station, and being unable to obtain consent to their marriage, eloped ; and when flying from England to Spain, they were driven by a tempest to Madeira, at that time uninhabited. They landed — in the mean time a fresh storm arose and drove the ship to sea. This Eng lishman, whose name is said to have been Macham, after a long residence, died on the island, and left a tablet, requesting that those who found it should build a church on the spot, to the glory of the Holy Saviour, to whom the parish church, down to the present day, is dedicated.

This is romantic, so people like to believe it. One fact, however, seems certain ; that is, that in 1418, the smaller island, Porto Santo, was discovered and taken possession of by the Portuguese, under Prince Henry of Portugal. One interesting tradition attached to this island, is that Christopher Columbus resided here with his father-in-law, Perestrello, " Governor of Porto Santo," before starting on the famous voyage which resulted in the discovery of the continent of America. The general aspect of the island is rugged and irregular in the extreme. Through the centre of it runs a chain of lofty mountains. Terrace cultivation is followed here, and extends to a height of 3,000 feet above the sea. The highest peak is at the western end (Pico Ruivo de Paul), estimated by Sir John Ross to be 6,097 feet above the level of the sea.

Funchal is the capital, and an archbishopric ; it is situated in a bay open to the south and east, but is partially sheltered on the west by the Loo Rock, on which stands — No. 11. — The Fortress — still occupied by a small force of the very small Portuguese troops, who are retained chiefly for saluting purposes. The only troops I saw there were these in the foreground — a group of children, generally met with in all parts of the world. The population of Funchal numbers about 20,000 natives and 500 British residents, the latter chiefly in valids. The natives are not celebrated for their beauty, but they are for their dirty habits and appearance. Boats full of them swarmed round us on our arrival, but none dare come alongside until the health boat had given us "pratique," after which the upper deck was soon transformed into a miniature fair for the sale of the indigenous industries and productions of the island, such as flowers made of feathers, embroidery, inlaid woods, walking sticks, etc., etc.

Another and more exciting amusement was provided by a number of semi-nude boys, of all ages, diving for money. These boys seem almost amphibious in their habits. Throw a sixpence into the water on one side of the ship, and a boy will instantly dive from the other, pass under the ship's keel, and invariably catch it as he comes up on the opposite side, they are so fleet in the water. To land at Funchal, it is necessary to employ the native boatmen. In most countries, when beaching a boat in surf, it is done stern foremost. Here, however, we found the boat floated in sideways, each wave carrying her onward towards the shore, until at last comes a long high one, when they turn the boat's head suddenly, and land it most skilfully, stern foremost, on the crest of the wave, and two men on shore at once hauled her up on wooden rollers to the dry beach.

On landing, I pitched my tent, and obtained this illustration — No. 12. — The Suburbs of Funchal, when a terrific thunder storm burst over the island, and drove me on board. The streets in Funchal, and roads in the suburbs, as you may see, are all leaved with round pebbles, and slope away from the centre on cither side. Disagreeable as these roads undoubtedly are, they must be built in this way, so as to serve as channels for the torrents of water that rush down from the mountains during the rainy season, the annual days of rain being 88, and inches of rain 30 ; mean humidity (saturation, 100), 72, ; annual mean temjnera turc, 66° ; max., 83 ; min., 46^5 ; mean daily range, 9/2 ; and north-east is the prevailing wind. What really makes the place so healthy, is that, in the strongest gales, not a particle of dust is seen.

Vegetables grow here in great luxuriance ; it is pleasant to have green peas and French beans at Christmas ; and the gourds, or pumpkins, grow to an enormous size. Fruits of almost every kind are found here ; but the fertility of the soil is even greater for flowers. A flower will grow anywhere, requiring little or no cultivation, and many of them are looked upon as mere weeds. But the staple products of Madeira are its vines and sugar canes ; from the former is manufactured the following wines — Madeira, Sercial, sweet and dry Malmsey, and tinto or red wine. Thirty years ago, 1850, 140,000 pipes were exported ; but the vines were almost destroyed in 1852 by the phylloxera, so that the export was only 5,000 in 1S80. On June 20, being completed with stores and fresh provisions, we bade good-bye to Madeira, and went on our briny way, making for St. Vincent, Cape de Verde Islands.

The day after we left Madeira, our ship was taken by the lea— that is, the wind shifted from north to south suddenly, and drove the ship backwards against the following waves ; fortunately the sea was not heavy, or we should have gone down stern foremost ; as it was, an enormous quantity of water rushed over the ship, deluging her fore and aft. Many ships sounder in this way. About five p.m. of the second day out from Madeira, we sighted the famous Peak of Teneriffe, towering above us into the clouds, about sixty miles away. This peak, 12,180 feet above the level of the sea, is in the Canary Islands. These Islands were celebrated in antiquity, under the appellation of the Fortunate. I tried to photograph the peak, but a lumpy sea shot my camera into the lee scuppers, and spoilt the attempt.

In these latitudes, winds are very baffling, and many calms are met with ; and since men-of-war may only steam on an emergency, it gets monotonous ; so on these calm days we amuse ourselves with a floating net, surface fishing, catching many of those beautiful shell fish — Ianthina, Atlanta, Clio, Pyrosoma, Planaria — the leaf fish — and many others that abound in these seas. On the 30th of June, at 10 a.m., we anchored in — No. 13. — Porto Grande, St. Vincent, Cape de Verde Islands. Here is a general view of it. The Cape de Verde Islands are a group in the North Atlantic, about three hundred miles west of Cape de Verde, the most western cape of Africa, between the Senegal River on the north and the Gambia on the south. During the African rainy season, immense quantities of organic matter float down these rivers to the sea, forming a feeding ground for many kinds of fish, large and small.

A hun dred miles off the coast the water is often like a boiling pot, lashed into this state by the fish. When we were there, we seemed to be sailing in a sea of porpoises ; scarcely any water could be seen. There were also several schools of whales in sight, and one huge monster made a dash at the ship, as if he intended to ram her ; he came within twenty yards — much too near to be pleasant — when he dived, and almost immediately appeared on the other side, snorting and blowing, apparently making fun of the state of excitement he had got us into ; for, as you can imagine, we all wondered what would happen if he should ram the ship. But to return to the Cape de Verdes. They were discovered and settled by the Portuguese in 1499. They consist of ten islands and four islets ; the islands arc Santiago, Sal, Mayo, Boavista, Boava, Fogo, St. Nicoloa, St. Luzia, St. Antonio, and St. Vincent.

These are mountainous in general, some of the peaks rising to a considerable height. They are also volcanic. The volcano of Fogo attains ah elevation of 9,157 feet above the sea. Santiago is the largest of the islands ; the best harbour being Porto Grande, St. Vincent, which is believed to be the crater of an old volcano. This is a great coaling station, though not so much used as it was before the opening of the Suez Canal. It is rather a hopeless-looking place for supplies — high rocky mountains, sandy slopes, and black volcanic beach, compose a scene of arid desolation. Still maize, rice, French beans, coffee, cotton, indigo, tobacco, orchil, cocoa-nuts, melons, and the usual tropical plants can be cultivated here in abundance ; yet we were told that 14,000 people, out of a population of 68,000, died of starva tion during the past two years.

Cattle are also reared, fowls are plentiful, and fish abound in the neighbouring seas ; energy seems to be the only article absent. We got some splendid hauls of fish in the ship's seine. On landing, we found the beach hot black sand — into which we sank to our ankles — composed of volcanic deposits, iron pyrites, and amber grains (amber is found on the shores of all the islands), over which we had a most fatiguing walk ; added to this was a strong wind, filled with cutting particles of sand. We were therefore glad to reach the consul's house, where this view is taken from. No. 14.— The Town of Porto Grande. We had great difficulty in getting provisions here ; and the first day's fresh water made a number of our men very ill. The scarcity and impurity of fresh water is a great drawback to this port, and is often the occasion of much and severe distress.

We did not know the water was so bad, and had filled our tanks ; however, we at once discharged it into the sea, and distilled some for our use. The manufactures are salt, leather, linen, soap, and pot tery ; the inhabitants are nearly all negroes, or half-castes. It was terrifically hot on shore, and we were told it would be much hotter soon. This was not very pleasant news, so we left Porto Grande on July 6th, rejoicing to get out of such a warm place. We had more surface fishing, and added many beautiful ocean shells to our collection. At 8 a.m. on the 22nd of July King Neptune hailed the ship, and ordered us to heave to ; he wished to come on board. The boatswain piped the side, and — No. 14 A — Neptune in Full Dress, accompanied by his two sons, all dripping and moist, on his gun-carriage chariot, drawn by four polar bears, complete even to their tails, was drawn on the quarter-deck in state ; he apologised for not bringing more of his family, begged we would excuse Mrs. Neptune (Amphitrite) not putting in an appearance, for it was a cold,^ damp night, but promised we should have the pleasure of seeing her to-morrow if it did not rain.

Neptune asked the usual questions, — where from, how long out, where bound, and how was his good sister's (Victoria's) health ? drinking it in champagne. He then produced a chart, and said we were within his realms, and requested to know how many sons he had here ? and telling the captain he should come on board in the morning and adopt the remainder, he quaffed another bumper to the health of his good sister Victoria, and took his departure, amid the growls of the bears and splashing of water which lubricated the wheels of his chariot. We crossed the line at 7 a.m. next morning ; the hair was put across the field glass of the telescope, to show the unsophisticated and Verdant Greens the line. At 10 a.m. — No. 14B.— King Neptune and Amphitrite were received with all honours, Amphitrite was gaily attired in a straw hat decorated with a bunch of feathers, just from the hen-coop, two flags for crinoline, and three mast hoops for expanders.

Neptune was accompanied by his doctor, with a formidable display of boluses and black draught ; the barber, with his assistant carrying a deck bucket of lather, a shaving brush — very much like a whitewash brush — and a pair of razors, Nos. 1 and 2, No. 1 warranted to corrugate the face ; and his Grand Vizier — who knew every one already adopted — to prevent imposition. Only twenty-four out of one hundred and ten had previously crossed the line. The usual sail was slung in the waist of the ship, and filled with about six feet of water, in which wallowed and growled the bears that drew Neptune's chariot. Neptune, wearing a long blue cloak, with a very liberal oakum wig and beard that half covered him, a gilt paper crown, and tin trident, with a flying fish impaled thereon, took his station on the bridge, with his Grand Vizier, Doctor, and Barber close at hand.

The Vizier called the name of the in dividual wanted, and he was marched to the bridge, blindfolded between two of Neptune's followers, and perched on the rail, facing the king of the seas, with his back to the sail containing the water. The victim's character was first inquired into, on which depended 9* the razor to be used ; and the barber commenced operations by smothering him with a lather made of oatmeal and soap. In the meantime the doctor asked him to show his tongue, when the end of the brush was popped into his mouth. Finally, he was tipped backwards into the sail, to be ducked and hauled under water by the bears, afterwards assisting to half-drown those who had to follow him through the ordeal. The whole affair caused much fun and amusement, and turned the mono tony of our daily life into one of great jollification.

I regret to say the negatives of the above were broken in transit, and these illustrations were obtained from the remains. The following evening we saw the Southern Cross. Here we again had baffling winds ; and fearing we should not reach Ascension, we were put on a short allowance of water. On the 26th July the sea was full of beautiful Hylea, etc. ; and after dark it looked like a sea of liquid fire or molten metal. At noon of the 28th a very large fish was reported alongside ; the sea was beautifully clear, and the fish — about twenty feet below the surface — could be very plainly seen. At one time he seemed to be trying his speed with us— we were going about six knots under sail ; of course he easily beat us. He was a huge monster, quite fifty feet long. He made a thorough examination of the ship below water.

A Lloyd's surveyor could not have done it better. The screw propeller, however, seemed to puzzle him ; he rubbed his great nose against it several times, as if trying to sniff out what it was. The fish remained with us until dark ; one of the seamen called it a blue fish (whale). The natural histories on board gave no de scription of it, although we were provided with a good Government library. At 5.30 a.m., 30th July, we anchored in Clarence Bay — No. 15. — The Landing Place, Ascension. A volcanic island. Approached from the sea, it has not a very striking appearance ; but, owing to its peculiar and predominant Rufus colour and desolate aspect, it is not a little remarkable (it is known to sea men as the Cinder). Sloping rocks of the roughest lava, broker here and there by sandy bays, stretch along the shore.

The island consists of an irregular series of conical hills of various heights, above which towers Green Mountain, 2,800 feet high, whose summit is crowned with a few trees and green fields, that offers a strong contrast to the other hills, which are reddish or brown, according to the colour of the ashes and cinders of which they are composed. Ascension is off the west coast of Africa, about 8° south of the line, and 800 miles from St. Helena. It was discovered on Ascension-day, early in the sixteenth century. It was a solitary heap of rocks and ashes, and long uninhabited ; about eight miles long, with an average breadth of six miles. Yet from the excellent position of Clarence Bay, it was frequently resorted to by homeward-bound ships. The south-east trades blow almost direct to it from the Cape of Good Hope.

In those days letters were deposited in corked bottles in the crevice of a rock near the landing-place for the next vessel that visited the island. This crevice to the present day is called the post office. The East India Company subsequently planted a small settlement here ; and, when Napoleon Bonaparte was at St. Helena, the place was regularly garrisoned to guard against any attempt on the joart of his followers to rescue the deposed emperor. 800 miles seems a long way off for a guard-house ; it is now a sanatorium and naval victualling station for supply ing the West African squadron. There is also here a small dockyard and factory for making good the defects in the ships and their machinery when they do not require docking ; these are the stores and workshops. In the distance can be seen the top of Green Mountain.

The landing here is always difficult ; mere steps cut in the rock is the only landing-place. Nothing artificial would stand against the well-known great waves of the Atlantic, which often set in here, even in fine weather, in the form of terrific rollers with broken crests ; and it can never be predicted when they may make their appearance. Near to the landing-place, on the opposite side of the victualling yard from the town, is — No. 16. — The Receiving Hospital, where the patients are de tained until a favourable opportunity occurs to remove them to the main hospital or sanatorium on Green Mountain. The whole of Ascension is an erupted mass, the antiquity of which can only be judged of by the worn condition of its surface ; but it is entirely the product of a once active, but long since extinct, volcano.

Green Mountain, the culminating point, is probably the parent cone, around which a great number of secondary cones and craters are clustered, the rough lavas of which run sloping to the beach round the greater part of the island. From this hospital, which is slightly elevated, the view was most striking : a deep and broad valley in the foreground, where the surface of the ground is covered with rough and sharp-pointed cinders, with a large heap here and there (on which the houses are usually built), which look like the product of a myriad 1 furnaces, and to which the black country of Staffordshire is a trifle. Surmounted by a verdant and fertile height — No. 17. — Green Mountain — on which may be descried mea dows and pastures, is like the Delectable Mountain seen afar oft by the pilgrims.

It must not be supposed, however, that the sur face of this island, excepting on Green Mountain, is absolutely without vegetation. The cinders in many places are incrusted with white and grey lichens. There is also a deep green incrust ing lichen on the sea shore. Many spots also in the water-courses, which are formed on the slopes of the hills during the brief and uncertain wet seasons, are quite cheerful with patches of bright green, and several flowers spring up here and there which have escaped from the gardens. On Green Mountain I also found two species of grasses, an aster with scented leaves, a very handsome yellow poppy with prickly white-veined leaves, and a large-flowered plant which is known on the island as the Madagascar rose, and is reported to have been imported from thence.

No. 18. — The Town of Ascension, or settlement of George Town. It is not an imposing-looking one. In the foreground is a portion of the victualling yard. Between it and the town is the turtle pond ; just a little of it can be seen over the low-roofed house where the turtle are butchered. Here these animals are kept in store ; for Ascension, barren and desolate as it is, has yet one product in which it is not excelled by any part of the world — viz., turtle. The sandy bays of the island are visited by great numbers of these unwieldy and valuable reptiles, which, entirely marine and oceanic in their habits, visit the shore solely for the deposition of their eggs, and are secured on these occasions by being cut off from their retreat to the sea and turned over on their backs. — -when they are utterly helpless — and conveyed at leisure to the reservoir provided for their reception.

No one but the Government authorities is allowed to interfere with this source of emolument ; and the turtle forms a staple article of food upon the island, being served out twice a week to residents and men-of war in harbour. They are also supplied to merchant ships, at the rate of £1 10s. per cwt. When I was there, the ponds con tained eighty-two animals, many over four cwt. each. These ponds, two in number, are, as you see, on the sea beach, each about sixty feet square and about four feet deep ; the sea is allowed to wash into them through two grated channels, and the turtle can be seen swimming about, ever and anon raising their stupid-looking heads above the surface and snorting out a jet of water. The settlement of George Town is entirely naval in its character, being formed of a number of departmental officers and marines (the marines arc the workmen in the dock and victualling yards) and their families, who are all borne on the books of H.M.S. ''Flora" at the Cape of Good Hope.