By this time the weather, from the sun being so far advanced in the
northern tropic, was become intolerably hot, which, joined to the heavy
rains that soon after came on, made us very apprehensive for the health
of the fleet. Contrary, however, to expectation, the number of sick in
the ship I was embarked on was surprisingly small, and the rest of the
fleet were nearly as healthy. Frequent explosions of gunpowder, lighting
fires between decks, and a liberal use of that admirable antiseptic,
oil of tar, were the preventives we made use of against impure air; and
above all things we were careful to keep the men's bedding and wearing
apparel dry. As we advanced towards the Line, the weather grew gradually
better and more pleasant. On the 14th of July we passed the Equator, at
which time the atmosphere was as serene, and the temperature of the air
not hotter than in a bright summer day in England. From this period,
until our arrival on the American coast, the heats, the calms, and
the rains by which we had been so much incommoded, were succeeded by a
series of weather as delightful as it was unlooked for.
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