Land ahoy!

1824

January 1st-3rd – On the morning of the New Year, I had the gratification of seeing the rocky shores of Cornwall and with a continued steady wind came to an anchorage off Dover on Saturday morning.

4th-10th, [January, 1824] – Gained the Downs on Sunday evening, where we lay becalmed for two days. Entered the river [Thames] on Wednesday evening, and had the pleasure of arriving safe at London on Friday morning having had a highly interesting journey.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ That is a very brisk passage across the North Atlantic in mid-winter, only three weeks from setting sail to sight-of-land at Cornwall, although it's another ten days before he disembarks in London.

And what of the ducks? Last heard of being seasick just out of New York I was of the view that Douglas ate them, along with the pigeons and quail. Not so, although it didn't end well for the pigeons. In a letter to Clinton, Douglas laments that he “most stupidly had put them in the same cage” and they had fought each other to death. But the quail and ducks seem to have survived and went to the Earl of Liverpool while the deceased pigeons went to anatomist Joshua Brooks

Homeward bound

13th-31st December, 1823 – [Douglas is on his way home] In the morning the wind from the north-east produced a heavy sea. In Lat 39, long 72, the water in the Gulf of Florida stood at 83deg Fahrenheit.

That’s a remarkably high temperature, and you’re not in the Gulf of Florida, Mr Douglas. The water will be the Gulf Stream, emanating from the general area of Florida, but even so that is very warm for the middle of December. If the reading is correct, which I doubt very much.
My ducks were very sick for two days and ate nothing, the pigeons and quail continued well. On the morning of the 14th a favourable wind sprang up which continued to the end of the month with scarcely any alteration. Our passage was such as did not admit of an observance of the holiday [Christmas Day &c.]