Page:Travel letters from New Zealand, Australia and Africa (1913).djvu/493

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11 A. M. all the emigrants were on deck, chattering as usual. . . . The chief steward gave us declaration blanks at breakfast; which means we are nearing New York. . . . We are in communication today with five other steamships, and Cape Race. The cost of a wireless message of ten words to the United States is marked on the bulletin board as $3.80. . . . Every day of the voyage we have had a different fish for dinner; apparently as fresh as when caught. I shall long remember the King fish as the best of the lot. The butter is also surprisingly fresh, considering the fact that no farmers can come in with a fresh supply. I shall always remember my voyage on the "Canada" as the most endurable I have ever made; and in my time I have been a passenger on two dozen different ships. The passengers are quiet and polite, and there has been no talk of Sports; no games of any kind are played, and it has been an ideal voyage in all respects, except two days of bad weather. . . . The barber, a German, intends to quit. He says he likes the French crew; that he gets along better with them than he got along with his own countrymen on some boats, but he is not earning as much as he thinks he should. A small passenger list is pleasant for the passengers, but disastrous to the ship's employees. . . . We had artichokes for dinner today. I wonder where the idea originated that they are good to eat? They seem to be very popular in Italy; I saw great stacks of them in Naples and Palermo. . . . One of the women passengers appeared at dinner tonight wearing an automobile bonnet and gauntlet gloves. I do not bother myself much about taste in women's dress, but