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318
The Royal Mail: Its Curiosities and Romance
·
James Wilson Hyde
80
"A
mail
was
made
up
on
the
8th
January,
and
several
attempts
made
to
reach
the
island,
but
unsuccessfully,
until
the
10th
March.
Fair
Isle
was
in
the
same
predicament
as
Foula,
but
the
mail-boat
was
more
unfortunate.
A
trip
was
effected
to
Fair
Isle
about
the
end
of
December,
but
none
again
until
last
week.
About
9th
March
the
boat
left
for
Fair
Isle,
and
nothing
being
heard
of
her
for
a
fortnight,
fears
were
entertained
for
her
safety.
Fortunately
the
crew
turned
up
on
23d
March,
but
their
boat
had
been
wrecked
at
Fair
Isle.
During
the
twenty
years
I
have
been
in
the
service,
I
have
never
been
so
put
about
arranging
our
mails
and
posts
as
since
the
New
Year;
we
have
had
heavier
gales,
but
I
do
not
think
any
one
remembers
such
a
continuation
of
storms
as
from
about
the
first
week
of
January
to
end
of
February;
indeed
it
could
hardly
be
called
storms,
but
rather
one
continued
storm,
with
an
occasional
lull
of
a
few
hours.
I
cannot
recall
any
time
during
the
period
having
twenty-four
hours'
calm
or
even
moderate
weather.
If
it
was
a
lull
at
night,
it
was
on
a
gale
in
the
morning;
and
if
a
lull
in
the
morning,
a
gale
came
on
before
night.
The
great
difficulty
in
working
Foula
and
Fair
Isle
is
the
want
of
harbours;
and
often
a
passage
might
be
made,
but
the
men
dare
not
venture
on
account
of
the
landing
at
the
islands."
This
statement
gives
a
fair
idea
of
the
difficulties
that
have
to
be
overcome
in
keeping
up
the
circulation
of
letters
with
the
distant
fragments
of
our
home
country.
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