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Theodore Strange to Edward Harris Strange 22 Feb 1863 Montevideo 2nd mo. 22.1863 My dear Papa I have not written by the last two mails not being sufficiently acquainted with the times of their sailing. I stopped in the hospital for two weeks and then came aboard. The coals were not quite out when I came. We are almost loaded now & expect to sail by next week. We are loaded with dry hides for New York & shall carry about 15,000. Soon after the coals were loaded we went ashore on liberty. One was sent ashore first she never came back. So the next Sunday three other men & myself went ashore on liberty leaving the bozen [sic] & cook & a carpenter from a large ship on board. The Captain was aboard another ship. The boat was to come ashore at 7 o'clock we was there before 7 & we waited, but no boat came. We got another boat to take us off when we came aboard we found that the boat had not come back. We looked to see if they had taken their clothes & we found they had & had taken a whole lot of the others clothes besides all my white linen a pair of trousers jacket &c. The mate was discharged that we came out with & we were without a mate for some time at last we got a mate but he stopped about a fortnight and then was discharged. We have got one now that I expect will stop with us, a regular slave-driver, he was second mate for a large barque lying a little way further down that went ashore on the English bank & is about a wreck. The natives were going to kill the sailors & plunder the ship when a man of war hove in sight when they all run off. They are getting the cargo out as well as they can. She is called the Adamantine. We have shipped two hands and shall ship the rest tomorrow. We have had to stop a long time waiting for the boat - sometimes till 10, 11, 12 &c. o'clock which I think is very unreasonable as we were turned at 5 or a little after. Captain has bought me some clothes & a pair of boots 5 Patagones, & 2 blue shirts 5 Patagones & I shall want some trousers & shoes. None of those shoes that I brought out nor my sea boots could I wear by being too small. I don't like the Captain at all. It is not likely that I should get to like the sea & get on at all, when I can never get a kind word from nobody, nothing but rocks, curses, & kicks. I am kicked about worse than a dog. I hardly expected to get any letters here as I do not know whether thou knew the directions. I may get some by this next mail which comes in next Saturday. We sent up our top gallant mast the other [day]. As we were sending it up the heel rope parted & down it came on deck luckily it did no great damage. We sent it up all right the next time we sent up our top-gallant yard the same yard & have the Royal ready for sending up. We finished loading yesterday & today have been getting the boat into its place, lashing provision casks &c., & shall most likely sail the beginning of next week, having been here eleven weeks. I have not heard much news about how things are getting on in North America but hope they have come to an end. I can't think of anything else at present so farewell for the present from one who tries to do better I am thy affectionate Son Theodore Strange

22 Feb 1863

From: 1863 To: 1863

No. of pieces: 1

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Strange, Edward Harris,
Strange, Theodore

civil ships, hospitals, cook, carpenter, bosun, clothing, trade and industry overseas, Montevideo, New York City