August 6, 1834
Nice weather; brisk, favorable wind. At eight o’clock [our speed was] eight and a half knots. We sighted two ships, one of them French; we raised the flag, [but the French ship] was far away. About noon, another ship. Friendly sunshine; favorable, brisk wind. At three thirty we sighted three ships, at five o’clock, five; all were distant. We steer toward the center of the [English] Channel. Weather and wind nice. The wind brisker in the evening. We saw seven or eight ships. At nine thirty a three-masted ship was within speaking distance. We called to [those on board] with a speaking tube. It was the Congress out of New Orleans, which had come from there in 48 days and was bound for Liverpool. At noon, our latitude [was] 49°5′, our longitude 7°48′. The wind was [from the] southwest today.