‘From E.M.G. Australia & New Zealand’ [1863-1864]. Ninety six page diary, handwritten by Grace,

‘From E.M.G. Australia & New Zealand’ [1863-1864]. Ninety six page diary, handwritten by Grace, covering the voyage from Liverpool, his arrival in Melbourne and the first few days in Melbourne, period covering 14th October 1863 to 22nd December 1863 and the distances covered each day are listed. Grace begins by describing his journey to Liverpool, his boarding the S.S. Great Britain and setting sail on the 15th October at 9am. ‘The great delight at present is to promenade on deck...which makes my headache. A good many people writing their last epistles to departing relatives. Found my prints all right at the George, but had no time to open them, so do not know what they are like. The photographs of us that is the 12 which McLean took, Parr told me were so bad, he was obliged to send them back’. The journal then covers social life onboard, the progress made day by day ‘We had up on the masts, before we let down the screw, sixteen thousand square metres of canvas’, he describes the passengers on board in detail (72 passengers in total) ‘3 or 4 of them are members of the Melbourne Cricket Club, one of them Mr Campbell has been President of the club 2 or 3 times. He says the last time, the first day of the match there were over 25,000 people paid to go in to see the match....11 is the other Miss Younghusband with a very small waist and broad in the shoulder but most awfully ugly, squints all over the place and has a chin like an elephant, but she sings quite fairly.... 43 is Mrs Moore a pretty good sort only you want to follow her with a coal scuttle and broom to pick up all the H’s she drops.... 47 is Mr Franklyn who is the editor of the Herald in Melbourne.... All the people onboard number 865 persons’, feeling very ill [sea sickness], gatherings on his finger and a boil on his nose ‘My gathering getting worse likewise the boil on my nose right at the end of the proboscis. It has hailed again today. It has snowed and hailed everyday the last 5 or 6’....’Julius Caesar has the gout again rather severely’, activities played on board including quoits, long jump, whist etc, islands passed including Madeira, Canary Islands etc, sighting of whale, flying fish, albatrosses, whale birds, porpoises etc, the death of a boy on board ‘Last evening a child about 5 years old died of dysentery so they sewed him up in canvas and tied a cannon ball to his feet and tossed him overboard at half past two in the morning’, an entertaining mock murder trial, the Captain falling and hurting himself ‘the Captain was walking by the intermediate stairs looking up when he fell down them. He has hurt his nose a good deal, taken a little skin off and shook him (9th November)... The Captain has appeared with two black eyes and some plaster on his nose, otherwise very well indeed (11th November), magic lantern shows ‘Then came Johnny Gilpin [John Gilpin was featured as the subject in a well-known comic ballad of 1782 by William Cowper] which I did in a marvellous style, made them all laugh a good deal’, a concert for the Captains Birthday including Caffyn playing solo cornet (14th November), Tarrant fishing for birds ‘Tarrant had great fun fishing for birds with a long line baited with a small piece of pork on a fish hook’, celebration of his own Birthday (27th November) ‘I stood treat for our table, 3 bottles of champagne, 4 of Moselle and 3 of port and 4 bottles of Brandy for the stewards which cost me - cricket £3-5-6’, Grace describes a poem written by Mr Moore on the occasion of nearing Australia, the four verse begins ‘There’s the cricketers bold the Eleven of England, a fine set of fellows as ere crossed the sea,I hope to see them with bat and ball in hand, astonishing the natives of proud Austra-lee’, gales and storms going into the Heads at Melbourne ‘It was blowing a gale and a tremendous sea. On the lay to for a coupe of hours but kept drifting towards the shore. The Captain then tried to steam out again but it was useless, the wind and the sea being so strong against us so the Captain was obliged to do what he had never done before, that is to pilot himself inside the Heads because there we should have a pilot, it being so rough outside that they were obliged to go inside for shelter as no vessel could live on the sea outside. As we were going in the breakers on each side of us were tremendous. It was most awfully nervous work, the waves at times 20 or 30 feet above us’, floods in Melbourne ‘The floods are something awful in Melbourne... they have never experienced such a gale... since 1849... A great many of the streets under water, the railway...under water’, meeting old and new acquaintances both on board ship and at Marshall’s Hotel ‘Sydney Woolley was introduced to me on board. He is the Vice President of the Melbourne Cricket Club. He seems a very nice fellow but they all seem very warm hearted... Mallam came on board, the one that came home for the other Eleven [the first tour of Australia]’ and the welcome in Melbourne and the first few days ‘We all got into an open first class carriage and came to Melbourne. The way we came 9 miles without stopping but at the station there were more than a thousand people assembled. The cheering was immense... The Mr Biddell the Secretary of the club read a very complimentary address and George Parr replied in a very few words to the purpose. Then champagne and that sort of thing’. ‘We then walked down to the ground. It is very soft but it will soon get hard but it is a most beautiful ground. They have nearly finished the stand to hold 3,000 people. They are going to practice this week and then only on the sly. I could not hold a bat yet, my finger not yet being had, very tender’. ‘All the Eleven are domiciled at Marshall’s two in each room. I strolled around the town which is certainly a very nice one. One great objection is that all the sewerage runs down each side of the street open. It is pumped out of tanks every night. They want us to practice on the sly where no one can see us but next week I intend to practice on the Melbourne ground’....’At 2 o’clock I went to see the Richmond play the County of Bourke’.... ‘I went into Melbourne in the morning and found they wanted me to have my likeness taken in the group. I then went down with Sydney Holley to meet the Albert men from Sydney, a lot of our Eleven went down to Brighton to practice. The boat did not get in from Sydney till past 5. George [Gilbert] is looking jolly and well with his moustache and beard. He has 3 children now. He made 168 the other day and had a bat presented to him’. ‘they were going to practice on the Richmond ground so I went along with them to make a beginning. It is a pretty good ground. I had a dozen balls then they all went out to field in their places and their regular bowlers each one taking it in turns to go in. The first ball I had was a runner, it took my middle stump flying. I did not go out but was bowled by shooter 3 or 4 overs afterwards. I only hit one well. Fielded till they had enough. I bowled a little. We had lunch then went over to the Melbourne ground where there were about 200 looking on. I had some slogs there and blistered my hand but could not play well at all’. The journal covered in slightly stiffened wrappers made from two pieces of what appear to be ledger paper, with tears, wear and loss, stitched with thread at the spine with title handwritten to front wrapper with the inner pages with odd exceptions in good/very condition. - cricket This description has been edited, please contact the auctioneer for full description.