Coachroaches and Seasickness
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| When seas were very rough |
What would you find more difficult about the four month journey to the Canterbury Settlement? Cockroaches or rough seas?
On board the Charlotte Jane, James Edward Fitzgerald edited a ship’s newspaper called The Cockroach which included in its first issue a poem:” The Meditation of a Cockroach”. Just as there was no escape on the ships from these insects there was no avoiding the terrible weather which threatened life and possessions.
Listen to the first verse of Edward Fitzgerald’s poem, and Edward Ward’s diary entry on October 29, 1850, which tells a tale of a sleepless stormy night.
Meditation of a Cockroach
Just because you were in first class didn’t mean that life at sea was comfortable. It was sometimes very difficult, including dinner in the ‘cuddy’ during stormy weather. This scene illustrated by C. J. Staniland, though not an illustration of one of the Association’s ships, helps us imagine the problems of dining aboard ship when seas were very rough.
See also >>
Our Journey | Packing – What would you take? | Rich and poor | Are you hungry? | Cockroaches & seasickness | From deck to cabin | A girl’s diary