he captain, who had remained
on shore all night, came to visit us, and to press us to make haste on
board. "I am resolved," says he, "not to lose a moment now the wind is
coming about fair: for my own part, I never was surer of a wind in
all my life." I use his very words; nor will I presume to interpret or
comment upon them farther than by observing that they were spoke in the
utmost hurry.

We promised to be ready as soon as breakfast was over, but this was not
so soon as was expected; for, in removing our goods the evening before,
the tea-chest was unhappily lost. Every place was immediately searched,
and many where it was impossible for it to be; for this was a loss
of much greater consequence than it may at first seem to many of my
readers. Ladies and valetudinarians do not easily dispense with the use
of this sovereign cordial in a single instance; but to undertake a long
voyage, without any probability of being supplied with it the whole way,
was above the reach of patience. And yet, dreadful as this calamity was,
it seemed unavoidable. The whole town of Ryde could not supply a single
leaf; for, as to what Mrs. Francis and the shop called by that name, it
was not of Chinese growth. It did not indeed in the least resemble tea,
either in smell or taste, or in any particular, unless in being a leaf;
for it was in truth no other than a tobacco of the mundungus species.
And as for the hopes of relief in any other port, they were not to be
depended upon, for the captain had positively declared he was sure of a
wind, and would let go his anchor no more till he arrived in the Tajo.

When a good deal of time had been spent, most of it indeed wasted on
this occasion, a thought occurred which every one wondered at its not
having presented itself the first moment. This was to apply to the
good lady, who could not fail of pitying and relieving such distress. A
messenger was immediately despatched with an account of our misfortune,
till whose return we employed ourselves in preparatives for our
departure, that we might have nothing to do but to swallow our breakfast
when it arrived. The tea-chest, though of no less consequence to us
than the military-chest to a general, was given up as lost, or rather
as stolen, for though I would not, for the world, mention any particular
name, it is certain we had suspicions, and all, I am afraid, fell on the
same person.

The man returned from the worthy lady with much expedition, and bro