All packages of baggage to be marked with the name of the passenger, and also with the words 'Wanted on the Voyage', or ' Not wanted on the Voyage', and must be in the dock, ready for shipment, at least two days prior to sailing.
The Company does not hold itself responsible from any loss, damage, or detention of luggage, under any circumstances.
I mentioned before that there were rules also covering basic rations. I have in my possession a copy of the actual rules handed to passengers, outlining what rations were allowed. It also lists the prices of the trip to Australia.
The trip itself usually commenced from Britain early in the year, when the weather was severe, and to people crowded into dank, airless quarters below deck, unused to the motion of the sea, the discomfort would be hard to imagine. Ventilation was poor especially when the hatches were battened down during heavy seas.
In those days a ship seldom touched port until she reached her destination. If things got really bad a call was sometimes made at Rio or Cape Town, but such visits were generally avoided if possible, owing to the very great dangers including desertion by some of the crew, and even some of the passengers - not to mention the high rate of port charges.
The arduous nature of the voyage was worsened by poor standard of accomodation on the ships. Assisted migrants were housed in the lower decks with only paying passengers living in the upper decks. Married couples and children under 14 were in the centre of the lower decks, with the single women and girls in the ‘after-berths’, and the single males and boys in the ‘fore part’ of the ship.
The assisted cabins were crapmed with only six feet and four inches of headroom. A meal ran the length of the ship. Married couples would have an upper bunk, and up to four of the children in the bunk below. The 18 inches allowed for each person was identical to that which had been used in the convict ships. As you can imagine there was little or no privacy. Men were able to have slatwater showers on the upper deck, but many women did not bathe during the whole journey.
These cramped, unhygenic quarters encouraged the speard of infection. It was not until the 1830s that strict regulations were introduced to reduce death rates. Many passengers died from diseases such as scarlet fever, typhus and cholera. It was also about this time that surgeons were appointed to travel with each ship. A surgeon in those days was akin to our present day practitioner . However, the pay was lousy and many appointees seem to be on the 'run' from the authorities. Many were reputedly drunkards. The medicine that they carried was minimal, and consisted of a few bottles of laudanum (a tincture of opium), some porter or stout brandy and occasionally a few 'luxuries' like oatmeal or arrowroot.
With these medicines, the surgeon had to treat bowel upsets brought about by the sudden change of conditions, aggravated by a complete change of diet - fresh food vanished completely after a week at sea, if it was provided at all. Boils ,almost invariably appeared in large numbers on almost everyone, and in a jerky cramped sailing ship, a broken bone was almost a common place; and although most information supplied to intending migrants stressed that it was not a wise decision for a woman to begin a trip pregnant, the surgeon was called upon to assist in the delivery of quite a few children.
Many of the children did not survive the voyage, indeed it was a matter of congratulation at the end of the voyage if there had been no deaths during the voyage, a feat very rarely achieved. Death at sea from what were, to all intents and purposes, unknown causes, was so common that it usually did not rate a mention, unless there were unusual circumstances. Not all the Captains were scoundrels and many made valiant efforts to ensure the comfort and safety of the travelers. The proof that some Captains were thoughtful efficient and did their best, is best demonstrated by the number of return visits they made. Bad ones seldom put in another appearance.
I mentioned before about the amount of rations a passenger could take on their trip with them, well these were usually eaten in their cabins, or some where in their section of the ship. Fire was a terrible risk in a wooden hulled sailing ship, therefore fire was to be used as little as possible. A galley to prepare food was frequently housed on deck with the cooking fire enclosed in brick.
It was almost the invariable practice for the mother or an elected member of a group, to draw rations weekly or twice weekly, whenever they were issued, and prepare a pudding dish, tie it in a cloth and dispatch it to the galley, at certain times, where it was boiled until supposedly cooked. Most ships were also equipped with a cook, who only cooked for the Captain and the crew, however if he was willing and able, he might oblige by baking some of the flour into bread - at a price - or even a cake, but this was the exception, not the rule.
Most groups of passengers also elected, from amongst themselves, people to perform the menial tasks of cleaning quarters and drawing water. It was usually done on a roster basis and changed regularly so that most took a turn. The bunks on the ships were not very big. Depending on the width of the ship there would be two or three rows of bunks constructed along the length of the vessel, in tiers two or three high. These were no more than upright pieces of timber between deck and deck head, with box like containers fixed in them. These open boxes were about 5' to 5'6" long and between 2' and 2'6" wide. Sometimes each tier was separated by a space, but some ships referred to place two tiers together alongside each other. This system permitted the inclusion of a few more bunks in the same space. In the middle, if there was room, mess tables were fitted, offering the passengers the only public area below deck.
Sanitary arrangements were elementary . Water closets were sometimes fitted in the larger ships, and consisted of a hole cut in the side of the ship where it overhung the sea, usually in the square stern, or perhaps in the bluff bow, but more often than not, a bucket was used. Washing facilities were also extremely limited. Most passengers would have to make do with salt water drawn from over the side, and wash the clothes in a bucket.
Most of the men travelling were expected to assist with hoisting the sails, pumping the bilges, or filling the already used water tanks, and this at least provided some exercise. On special occasions the quarter deck would have been thrown open for a dance (depending on the weather of course), and on a fine Sunday, it was normally used for the obligatory church service, while on some fortunate ships a concert or two was arranged.
If there was a fair run it would have been three weeks or so before the weather allowed the general use of the decks, as the ship was passing down the Atlantic in the vicinity of the Equator. This part of the journey, was not the most enjoyable and comfortable. Once the ship got down to the latitudes below Cape Town the high winds and towering seas once more forced lengthy stays below decks, although most, by now had become accustomed to the motion and were not liable to sea sickness. After this, passengers could enjoy weeks of reasonable weather, until they arrived at Port Phillip Bay.
To the right is a copy of a photo of Station Pier in Port Philip Bay.
Following extensive research I have been able to trace the ship that John Jewell and his wife Elizabeth came to Australia on was the "Caduceus". Unfortunately there is little information about the Caduceus; I can tell you that she was a roomy ship of over one thousand tons, and was one of the first vessels charted by the Shaw, Savill Co. Unfortunately I have not been able to locate any photographs of the Caduceus.
Nothing of an eventful nature occurred on any of her voyages, with the exception that she experienced a very severe gale in the English Channel and had to put into Spithead for three days, on a trip to New Zealand.
Despite the fact that I know the Caduceus sailed to Australia, I can find no information about any of her trips, except that it is recorded that she sailed 5 times to New Zealand, twice under Captain Cass, once under Captain Holten, and twice under Captain Roberts.
During my research I did discover a copy of the original log which lists certain information about the trip, including a log of all passengers. According to the log, the Caduceus left Plymouth on the 16th of October 1869 bound for Melbourne, and arrived on the 8th of January 1870. On board the ship were a total of 328 males, 73 children, and 9 infants (less than 1 year old). They had enough provisions to last 140 days. I had hoped to include a copy of the log here, unfortunately it is not 100% and therefore was not able to be scanned clearly. I can however send you a copy. Simply e-mail me at bruce@dcscomp.com.au.It is worth noting that all the people listed in the log came to Australia as unassisted passengers, which means they paid their own way.
I have also discovered that the Caduceus, was also carrying assisted passengers. Their names appear on a separate log. It seems they were servants, or relatives of people already living in Australia, as their fares were paid for by people in Australia.
I mentioned before that according to information on the Caduceus it made 5 trips to New Zealand. Not only did it make the trip as shown in the log, but during my research I came across a copy of a log, listing passengers that travelled on the Caduceus, from Plymouth to Melbourne, arriving on 1st July 1863.
Finally, whilst I can not accurately describe what the trip for John Jewell and Elizabeth was like, hopefully the story I have related above will give you some idea of what it was like for them to sail to Australia.
If you would like more information, have a look at "The Tide of Emigration to The United States and to The British Colonies"
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© Jewell Family History Centre
Last Updated 18th August 1996
On the left is an example of the type of ship used to carry passengers to Australia. The journey to Australia was long and hazardous. During the nineteenth century, at least 26 ships were lost, with the route covering 13,000 nautical miles. From the start of passenger ships to Australia, there were of course regulations covering the amount of space to be made available to each migrant, basic rations, and water allowances. Generally this was worked out by the Captain, who literally ruled the roost.
