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On Monday the 18th June 1855 I left Edinburgh (Scotland) at 6.30 A.M. by the train for Perth, which city is situated on the river Tay 45 miles N.N.W. from Edinburgh. My object in visiting this section of Scotland was on account of owning a rice plantation on Savannah River which formerly belonging to Mr McAlpin, a Scotchman, had been named "Gowrie" after one of the most highly cultivated portions of Scotland, viz: the "Carse of Gowrie". Leaving the Station at Edinburgh immediately we passed through a long tunnel which pierced on of the numerous hills upon which the city of Edinburgh is built. This tunnel being on an inclined plane we were let down by ropes, the engine or locomotive not working until we had again found our level, and were in open air, all of which was worked so nicely that many in the train with whom I conversed seemed to know nothing about it. I was not in an Express Train so that we were stopping at every little Station to take in passengers, two of which are between Edinburgh and Granton, a small port on the Firth of Forth. Habit, we are told is second-nature. I who had never been in so high a Northern Latitude (Edinburgh is 55 degrees 57' 20" N.) found it very cold for the season of the year. I had on all of my thickest winter clothes with my heavy overcoat and yet was shivering at that, and still as we approached the Firth of Forth what should I see but a number of Scotchmen bathing in the sea apparently having a delightful time. In June 1851 I returned from China to America by crossing the North Pacific Ocean from Wang-po to San Francisco on the Peruvian bark "Linda", Capt. Antonio Aguilar. Aguilar was a Spaniard from Malaga and although a very good mathematician and very correct in taking observations, still a practicle [sic] knowledge of the seas he had not. He was at a loss to know by what course he should cross the Pacific, for although he had gone from Mazatlan to Manila, in which case you simply follow the N. E. Trade wind, still he had never made the return passage, and knew nothing of the nature of the winds north of the tropic. After passing the Bashee passage and clearing the China sea for upwards of two weeks we kept tacking and beating against head winds, with frightful storms of the coast of Japan &c, (See Journal) Aguilar became discouraged: he asked me what I thought of it. I told him that I had with me on board several valuable books which treated
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