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334 record time of 63 days, the same time as the record passage of the James Baines, from Liverpool to Melbourne fourteen years before. She had a fast run of 21 days to the equator; on the three days before and after crossing the line she made 202, 140, 228, 271, 288, and 293 miles—an unusual rate of speed for that part of the ocean. Her best days' runs were made on January 3d and 4th—330 and 326 miles; her log records on both days "northerly, strong," so that it may be assumed that she had as much fair wind as she needed. Her log records nine days during the passage when her runs were over 300 miles, and five days of less than 100 miles. The entries on December 9th and 10th are: "Northwesterly, fresh gale, 240 miles," and "southwesterly, blowing a gale, 224 miles." These were fair winds. An analysis of this log leads to the conclusion that the Thermopylæ was a very fast ship in average weather at sea, but in heavy weather could not be driven at a high rate of speed for a vessel of her length, probably on account of her small breadth and low foreboard.

She next made the run from Newcastle, New South Wales, to Shanghai in 28 days, which is the record between those ports. On this passage large days' runs are not to be expected, but on one day she made 300 miles, and she showed the same fast averages in moderate weather as before. There was great excitement in the hongs at the coast ports of China in this year (1869) when it