, had re-watered
her, and laid in a generous supply of fruit, pigs, poultry, and other
necessaries; our crew were all on board, and there was nothing to detain
us longer in this Pacific paradise; we therefore got our anchor
forthwith, and stood out of the roadstead in the crimson wake of the
setting sun just as that luminary sank magnificently beneath the
horizon, painting the whole western sky with the flaming hues of his
dying effulgence.

There is but little more to tell, for the rescue of the _Golden Gates_
crew proved to be the last adventure that befell us on this
extraordinarily eventful voyage. We made a very rapid run across to the
China coast, and were detained but a short time in the Canton river,
freights happening to be rather high and tonnage somewhat scarce--for a
wonder--about the time of our arrival; I therefore met with no
difficulty in obtaining a freight, with quick despatch, and within three
weeks of our arrival we were once more at sea, this time Homeward-Bound!
I must not forget to mention, by the way, that almost my first act,
upon arriving at Hong Kong, was to write home two somewhat lengthy
letters--one to my mother, acquainting her with the successful result of
my quest, together with a full and detailed narrative of my adventures
since leaving Sydney; and the other to my old and trusty friend, Mr
Richards, acquainting him also with my success, and requesting him to
undertake certain rather delicate negotiations for me, as well as to
make certain preparations against the time of the _Esmeralda's_ arrival
in the English Channel. Our homeward passage was as prosperous as it
was uneventful. We were no sooner clear of our moorings than we caught
a favourable breeze that followed us all the way until we had rounded
the Cape of Good Hope and had caught the south-east trades, which in
their turn carried us right up to, and indeed a few miles to the north
of, the Line. Here we met with the usual light baffling airs, with
plenty of rain and perhaps rather more than the average allowance of
thunder and lightning. But this weather lasted only a trifle over
forty-eight hours, when a small easterly air came to our rescue and
fanned us along to the northward until we finally fell in with the
north-east trades, the beneficent influence of which carried us as far
north as the parallel of twenty-eight degrees. Here again kind Fortune
favoured us; for when at length the trade-winds failed us, the wind
gr