Thursday, December 26th, 1867

Day after Christmas Day. My head ached so bad yesterday I lay on the sofa most of the day, but as it was Christmas I thought I must eat some dinner, which consisted of a couple of boiled chickens with oyster sauce, piece roast pork and boiled ham, green peas, boiled rice and potatoes. Minced pies and plum pudding of course. The mariners had a couple of young pigs roasted and plenty of plum puddings. So did not fair amiss altho we were 13 weeks at sea. Well we have at last, the lord be praised, got round this horrible place Cape Horn. We are now going three knots, you would suppose she was going thirteen the way she is diving, pitching and tossing about. Still we are making westing, which is bringing us nearer our port of destination. I am beginning to feel as if I wanted to go ashore, it is nearly two weeks since I was on deck, that is far more than a minute or two at a time. No wonder I have a headache. We shall soon have warm weather again. I shall be glad of it so I can go on deck again. Christmas day was a gloomy day for us, rained most of the day. We are now about six thous. five hund. miles from San Francisco.