And one that fits right in with Rivendell, IMO. *Two Years Before The Mast *by Richard Henry Dana.
I'm re-reading this after many years. It's the account of a 19-year-old Boston college student who, in 1834, dropped out of college to sign up as an ordinary seaman (whence "before the mast:" the crew who were neither officers nor specialists lived together in the forwardmost part of the ship -- this was inferior real estate because it leaked and rolled more -- while officers and carpenters and stewards and such lived aft) on a merchant ship on the pre-Gold Rush California cowhide trade -- bringing in trade goods, picking up -- in this case -- 40,000 dried hides plus 30,000 horns plus tallow to bring back east. The trip required sailing around South America. Among other interesting bits: the utter poverty and viciously hard and dangerous work required of the crew: sailing around the Horn in a violent winter gale, climbing to reef topsails on iced-over spars in inadequate clothing without gloves; -- at night. The 40,000 hides were processed and loaded by hand, of course. The presence of many Kanakas (what Hawaiians, or Sandwich Islanders, called themselves) on ship and on beach; apparently there was a steady trade between coastal California and Hawaii. And in particular: What is said to be the best description of pre-Gold rush, Mexico-territory coastal California and its Californio and Indian populations. What an almost paradisal primeval wilderness the California coast must have been then! Dana's description of the Californio Hispanic people is both sympathetic and amusing; typical was a very Spanish disdain for manual labor combined with great desire for "honor" even at the expense of bankrupting oneself to maintain appearances in extreme poverty. Frankly, I find it more appealing than the Yankee obsession with "business." Hana writes in a surprisingly "modern" way, that is, simply and free of ornament; though modern writing is certainly not guaranteed to be clear even if devoid of ornament. He *is* very clear and direct, and his direct style is even eloquent at times. Certainly his prose lacks the overwrought complexity and, especially, the sentimentality typical of the time (though there are different sorts of sentimentality). And, the author is a sympathetic character -- that's not an essential requirement for very readable travel prose; Paul Theroux writes entertainingly and with perception, but his books are diminished by his very obvious misanthropy and willful "quirkiness." OTOH, many travel books -- and bicycle travelogues sin often in this regard -- fail to interest simply because they are unimaginative and dull. Hana is neither misanthrope nor poser nor dullard. Available for Kindle for free at Amazon (you can pay more and get chapters and nice cover, possibly illustrations): https://www.amazon.com/Years-Before-Mast-Richard-Henry-ebook/dp/B0082XP72S/ref=sr_1_4?crid=3Q5DOX7IZUYWQ&keywords=two+years+before+the+mast&qid=1560753976&s=gateway&sprefix=two+years+b%2Caps%2C192&sr=8-4 -- *------------------------------------------------------------------------------------* *Still 'round the corner there may waitA new road or a secret gate,And though we pass them by today,Tomorrow we may come this wayAnd take the hidden paths that runTowards the Moon or to the Sun.* --- J.R.R. Tolkien ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, and letters that get interviews By-the-hour resume and LinkedIn coaching Other professional writing services Expensive! But good. http://www.resumespecialties.com/ Patrick Moore Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/CALuTfgsWPAei9_gss4QGVdb4xS%3D7r%2Bf80eKNL%3DsQOigGaMx_8Q%40mail.gmail.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
