ven to a near connection of my own, and a member of parliament, that
my name would certainly stand on the First Lord's list, to be sent out
to India in his Majesty's ship Volage, of which I had the farther good
fortune to be appointed junior lieutenant. A change at the Admiralty
was then confidently expected; and I took every care, as I thought, to
have it arranged that my name should not be omitted when the new
First Lord came into power. Little dreamed I that, in the _melee_ of
official patronage and personal favour which shortly afterwards took
place at headquarters, my poor name would be dropped out altogether.
The provoking consequence was, however, that I had the mortification
of seeing sundry capital vacancies in India pass by, one after
another, which, had I occupied even the very low place on the fresh
list which I had filled on the old one, might have secured my
promotion several years sooner than it came.

The old Volage, in which we sailed for India, I am forced to confess,
was one of the least good-looking of all his Majesty's ships and
vessels then afloat. But by this time I cared not one fig for the
looks of my ship, though, a month or two before, I should have
considered it a point of honour to maintain its beauty. I was
delighted beyond measure to think that, at length, I was on the right
road to promotion; and this satisfaction was more than doubled by
finding the East was the region in which that great prize was to be
sought for.

Although the men-of-war and their convoy sailed from Spithead on the
25th of March, they did not reach Madeira till the 19th of April. It
is always more teasing to be delayed at the outset of a voyage than at
any other stage of its course, just as it is mortifying and hurtful to
be checked in the commencement of a profession. Upon this occasion we
had a fine rattling easterly breeze for eight-and-forty hours after
starting, which swept us all, dull sailers and good ones, merrily out
of the British Channel. This fair start is always a grand affair,
whatever succeeds; for if the prevalent westerly wind catches a ship
before the channel is left well behind, she may be driven back to
Plymouth or Falmouth, and all the agony of bills, news, leave-taking,
and letters, has to be endured over again. Whereas, if she once gets
the Lizard Light some fifty leagues astern of her, all these worrying
distractions may be considered at an end. A totally new world--the
"world of waters"--is