Saturday 16th April 1853

"Aden" Image copyright of P&O Heritage

This morning my fellow occupant of my cabin brought me the welcome intelligence that we had passed the Straits of Bab el Mandeb at 4 o’clock...On rising... at 6 I saw land to the left- the southern coast of Arabia. We kept in sight of land more or less during the day; at 12 o’clock we had run 106 miles in the preceding 24 hours and we cast anchor off the Hotel at Aden at 9h 45 o'clock...

...The East India Company’s steamer Auckland (a vessel of war) was lying close at hand waiting to convey the mails and passengers from the Bentinck to Bombay. The Captain and other officers from the Auckland and from the shore came on board almost immediately after our arrival and all was now bustle and confusion on board our ship. The luggage had been brought on deck during the course of the day, that is, that belonging to the Bombay passengers and now these passengers were busying themselves in getting it transferred to the Auckland by means of small boats, as well as bidding adieus, and transferring themselves. It was good moonlight and the deck had been the resort of the passengers during the whole evening, for as we approached Aden rockets had been discharged giving warning of our approach and answered, and as we neared our port two guns were fired. Our delay had been giving rise to apprehensions amongst those who were waiting our arrival.

Eighteen passengers, including four ladies, the half of those on board, left us in order to proceed to Bombay. The captain of the Auckland went off with two of the ladies at the last to take care of them, and two or three of our remaining passengers followed in another boat to take care of him...Two or three cabins were all the vessel could afford, and four ladies had gone on board; as I believe there was only one bed in each cabin the accommodation would of course be rather deficient and how the gentlemen were to be accommodated was a problem our reporters could not solve. According to all accounts it was one of the worst vessels any of the passengers had seen provided for that part of the voyage and the character of the commander made the matter no better. The Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation company have no vessels on that part of the route and the E I Company’s service appear to consider it their principal business to be to carry the mail, without troubling themselves about passengers....



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The full journal will soon be published by Annet House Museum, Linlithgow. Waldie's journey to India forms a key feature of the museum's Waldie exhibition.