2nd Jan 2012

"By God, Darwin", I roared. "But doesn't this just remind you of going round the Cape?" I wasn't sure if he had heard me above the howling wind, so I loosed off both barrels in the general direction of the orchard, both to get his attention and to ward off any would-be scrumpers. He came lolloping over. "The Cape, Darwin! Do you see? The Cape, I say!"

I like to get up in the rigging on days like this, so we had been up on the battlements for most of the morning, admiring God's bellows as He tried His damndest to blow Inverary back whence it came. He was putting up a good show too, there hasn't been a wind like this up here for some time. Damn fine ballooning weather, but bloody silly weather for much else. You can see for miles up here, and I could make out Larkins' bothy even today, sandy coloured against the dull green of the hillside. I thought to myself that weather like this would be a shock to his system, blast him.

Pollard joined me for luncheon (goose) as she does not begin her full range of activities until after Epiphany, she tells me, and she started on to me again about the cottages. "But solid foundations and basic sanitation will in years to come be recognised as the origins of a more productive workforce," she argued. I don't think it will do, and I told her so. "It will never do" , I said, but I don't think I have heard the end of the matter. After port I informed the Duchess that I had papers to attend to and retired to the library.

Most of the afternoon had been taken up with planning my next voyage, so I had my maps out when Darwin came in with a telegram towards nightfall. It seems that there has been some damage done in the area by the weather, possibly some villagers missing, but it was all very vague. "This is not news", I growled. "Darwin, this is flim-flam. I deal in facts, man, facts!" I have had him saddle Belgrano, and I am going to ride over and take command of the situation myself. It will allow me to give the hounds a run out as well, so two birds, and so on.