Sunday 17. Visited Mathew Smith & 2 of his callisters sisters. Had a good visit at meeting in the evening.
Monday 18. I spent the day at 42 [THIS WAS THE ADDRESS OF THE BRITISH MISSION IN LIVERPOOL]. Got tickets to go on board Underwriter for New York. [p. 189]
Tuesday 19th. Mersey River Collingswood Dock, Liverpool. At 9 we went on board ship. Read some instructions from S. [Samuel] W. R. [Richards], Henry Harriman was appointed by S.W.R. [Samuel W. Richards] Captain Im 1st; T.R. King 2nd.
Wednesday 20. Laid in dock all day. Wind so strong that we cannot go to sea.
Thursday 21. At 3 o'clock hauled out into the Mersey River took steam tug "United Kingdom" & went out into the Channel Tug left us at 5:30.
Friday 22. St. George Channel. Wind northwest, very rough.
Saturday 23. Hugging the wind all day to deep clear of the Irish Coast. [p. 190]
Sunday 24. Most of the passengers sick. Passed Cape Clear in the p.m.
Monday 25. Underwriter wind northwest 12 knots squally.
Tuesday 26. Wind northwest steady breeze.
Wednesday 27. Breeze northwest.
Thursday 28. Captain Roberts spoke a ship 98 days from Cairo bound for Cork. Wind light.
Friday 29. One third of the way to New York. Wind now light.
Saturday 30. Wind north. Found some Germans among the crew. Many games. The captain & mate taking part. [p. 191]
Sunday 31. Ship Underwriter. Pleasant day all very quiet on board. Getting along slow. Meeting in the evening. All bore testimony. Monday Feb. 1 [p. 192]
February 1858, Monday 1st. Underwriter. Wind light. Sick all the p.m. & night with a severe headache & numbness.
Tuesday 2nd. Wind southwest 7 knots - pleasant morning. Wrote up journal. Headache some better.
Wednesday 3rd. High northwest wind.
Thursday 4. High southwest wind, gale shifted to northwest the tiller rope broke but through the promptness of the officers the ends were caught before they raise through the blocks.
Friday 5. Wind high. Sea very rough. Wind southwest. Sea very rough Mountians of water. [p. 193]
Saturday 6. Ship Underwriter. Strong northwest wind slipped up & nearly broke my neck.
Sunday 7. Gale still continues. The sea looks grand & awful. One vast sea of foam & mountains. Only tossing about making no headway.
Monday 8. Wind northwest by west.
Tuesday 9. Wind shifted southwest squally day & night. Called up at 12 to help take in sail.
Wednesday 10. Wind northwest sailing 9 knots.
Thursday 11. Latitude 33º, 30" Longitude 40º 30", 8:00 p.m. cry of man overboard. One of the sailors while furling the flying jib fell off [p. 194] ship sailing 10 knots. The ship was immediately hove too, the life boat lowered, Mr. Cooper, 1st mate, 2 mate & 4 men went a mile or two astern to look for him but returned in about an hour unsuccessful. Their boat being full of water the buoys only keeping her from sinking. While hoisting the boat on board just as the last man had stepped out the rope parted & the boat fell overboard the captain, Mr. J.P. Roberts cried "cut her loose" & she drifted astern bottom up. I am satisfied the officers & crew done all they could to save the man but the sea was so rough & the night so dark that it was impossible to do anything for the poor fellow. He was from London. [p. 195]
Friday 12. Underwriter Strong breeze sailing just all night wind from southwest but calm this morning.
Saturday 13th. Tacked ship. Breeze light. Read the "Paacher." [UNCLEAR]
Sunday 14. Sea quite rough making no progress & it seems as though the fates were against us. We have westerly winds all the way.
Monday 15th. Rainy, very rough head winds.
Tuesday 16. Sailing northeast rough.
Wednesday 17. Wind southwest. Split jib sail under close reefed top sail. [p. 196]
Thursday 18. Underwriter. Very rough head winds. Prayer meeting in the evening. Commenced letter to Francis.
Friday 19th. Very rough night. Topsail yard broke. Main sail split cross jack torn. Wind northwest.
Saturday 20. Pleasant day. P.M. wind changed to southeast. Got up cross jack.
Sunday 21. Fair wind & pleasant day got up main sail. Sailing on our course 10 knots. Passed 2 ships on the opposite tack.
Monday 22. Wind shifted to west. Cold.
Tuesday 23. Cold. Sailing 10 knots northeast calm p.m. [p. 197]
Wednesday 24. Underwriter cold with snow from north. [-]
Thursday 25. Calm. Breeze at 4:00 p.m. Rainy.
Friday 26. North wind, quite pleasant.
Saturday 27. Wind northwest 2nd mate Mr. Jarvis jumped on to Philip Margetts & had a knock down. Light wind all the p.m.
Sunday 28. Wind very light all day. [p. 198]
March, Underwriter, Mon. 1st. Long 62º. Fine day, shot cufield [UNCLEAR] several times & made some good shots.
Tues. 2nd. Wind fair sailing west 11 knots part of the day, sounding 41 fathoms; p.m. 37 fathoms.
Wed. 3rd. Wind northwest very cold. 42 fathoms. Steamer passed us.
Thurs. 4th. Very cold, wind northwest. Met steamer from New York.
Fri. 5th. Cold.. Snowstorm from the north. Captain said 135 miles from New York City & wind contrary.
Sat. 6th. Very cold wind west & prospects poor for getting ahead.
Sunday 7. Cold & clear. Wind still from the west.
Mon. 8. Wind fell & the morning [p. 199] sailing on our course, fished anchors ready for anchoring. Noon foggy with a heavy snowstorm. Sailing under close reefed fore & main topsails.
Tuesday 9th. Cold & clear with head winds, sailing southwest at 12 o'clock to north. Lighthouse at 8 seen off the Jersey Coast or Fire Island.
Wednesday 10. at 8:00 a.m. got a pilot on board, 2 hours took a tug landed at Castle Garden at 4:30, [-] pay $3.33 daily. Stopped at Walker's Hotel.
Thursday 11. Spent the whole day looking for T.B.H. [POSSIBLY Stenhouse] & S.W. Richards
. Found them at 3 p.m. Went to Crystal Minstrels in evening. Found O. Horsenbach & J.J. Ruban. [p.200]
Fri. 12. Saw a lot of emigrants [-] of west at the York & Erie Station. Spent most of the day with Octave & Ruban. Went to Williamsburg & saw Octave's aunt.
Sat. 13. B. Snow left for Boston. I left for Burlington, Iowa.
Sun. 14. At 7:00 229 miles from New York at 3:00 p.m. stopped for the night at Dunkirk.
Mon. 15. 461 miles from New York small town on the shore of Lake Erie in Pennsylvania, 1
0 left for Cleveland. Had to stop all night.
Tues. 16 - at 6:40 left for Toledo arrived 6:40 p.m. & left for Chicago. Had to stay all night.
Wed. 17. Took express for Burlington arrived 8:30. [p. 201]
Tues 16. At 6:40 went to the station & left for Toledo. Arrived 8:00 p.m. & left for 9:
30 for Chicago.
Wednesday 17. [- - -]on the road arrived at 11:30 p.m.
Thursday 18. At 8:45 took a train for Burlington & arrived at 8:15 p.m. put up at the Burlington house.
Friday 19. [- - -] Boston. Spent the day looking about town waiting for [-] to come [-].
Saturday 20. Rained nearly all night. [-] several brethren who left New York City before us but took [- - -] to [- -] walked to [- - - -] in the mud. [p.202]
March 1858. Iowa.
Sunday 21. Spent the day making arrangements for leaving tomorrow. . . . [p.203]
Wednesday 21. G.S.L. City. Arrived in Great Salt Lake City. . . . [p.216]
BIB: Smith, John Lyman, 1828-1898. Autobiography and diaries 1846-1895. [LDS Church Archives, Ms 2072, vol. 2, pp. 189-203, 216; Acc. #27
179] (CHL)
(source abbreviations)