Delayed departure

10th [December, 1823]

Waited on the wharf till 12 o’clock noon. I had the mortification to return. According to promise went to General Lewis and had all the kindness renewed which I experienced at his house in the country. At 7 o’clock in the evening took leave of Dr Hosack [who Douglas will never see again], and Mr Hogg saw me in the small boat, the ship having hauled out before dusk. Ship “Nimrod”

12th – went under sail at daylight, having a keen frost and pleasant fresh breeze: sent a letter on shore to Dr H[osack] and D. C[linton] by the pilot who left us at midday. Our view of Long Island and New Jersey closed with the night and we beheld the land of Columbia no more.

So, finally, Douglas is on his way home. He can feel justifiably pleased with himself. He has met his mission objectives, of bringing back new varieties of fruit trees for the Horticultural Society and has collected new species of other plants. But, arguably more important, he has demonstrated that at only 24 he can comport himself well in all levels of society and be a great ambassador for both the Society and the United Kingdom. Well done Douglas.

PS - he's not home yet; there will be one more entry about the ducks etc!

And here is a view of the ship, Nimrod, on which he made his way home. 

 Nimrod had previously been to Canton, China and Buenos Aires where she picked up hides for the American tannery industry. In "Stratford and the Sea; Lewis G Knapp, 2002"  her Captain, John Sterling, records that at their anchorage [off New York, I believe] the ship was unloaded of 15,000 evil-smelling hides. Unless the ship was given a VERY thorough cleaning Douglas may have had a malodorous journey home! 

Reading the legend more closely it looks as though this is a sister ship to the Nimrod but, nevertheless, it's a good representation of the sort of vessel on which Douglas was travelling.