Jacob Scheef letters (3) 17 May 1885

My husband's family are very fortunate as his great grandfather, Jacob Scheef travelled on holiday to Germany from Armidale, NSW from May to September 1885. While visiting remaining members of his family he sent many letters back to Australia and kept a diary of his time away from home.

Jacob Scheef - personal collection




John Elder    Adelaide
the 17 May 1885

My dear wife and children

I wrote to you from Melbourne and also I received a letter from you
of the same same content as the one I got in Sydney when I wrote last I was 
not yet in the city so could tell you nothing of it since I have 
seen a good deal of it Directly we were on the wharf I went and 
posted my letter and had one or two hours in the city the Sydney
is a fine city but is not a patch to Melbourne because the 
street are all two chains wide and are all straight the next 
day I went again and seen the Exhibition Building as well 
as the aquarium with all the fishes also the Museum and the 
Botanical Gardens and the Town in general  the country 
around the city is nice and green something Spring 
the 16 at morning 7 o’clock we left the wharf and outside 
again about twelve the same head wind again as from 
Sydney now arrived went to work again because we had 
same weather as from Sydney. We are about 100 now in the 
steerage amongst are 4 Germans, 2 Wurttemberg one 
Saxe one Holstein which comes from the Murray River 
has land there and comes back here again our steaming is 
the same there is always to be seen on the right land 
last night at dusk we passed Cape Ottway about 100 
miles from Melbourne we expect to reach Adelaide this 
evening where I will post this my health remains good 
and I don’t think you will receive another letter before 
3 weeks as they have coal that will bring us through the 
red sea so my next letter probably will be from Naples 
So I wish Good bye for the present and trust that you 
are all well and remain so.


Your loving Husband
and Father
Jacob F Scheef
it is very bad writing on board ship



The Melbourne Exhibition Building 1880 the south-west aspect of the main hall - Joseph Reed


In February 1885,  Australia's first aquarium opened in the Royal Exhibition buildings. It was reported in the Melbourne Punch on 14th May 1885 that the Aquarium is making very rapid strides in public favour judging by the number of visitors.  

If Jacob's wife Christina and his children had access to a newspaper reporting about the aquarium they would have had a better idea about what Jacob had experienced.

A charming bit of rock bound coast was first seen -mwith a strip of sandy, pebbly beach, all so real that the sea-lions disporting themselves in their little bay might readily believethat the great ocean lay before them to explore, if the chose. ... The water... is kept always in motion by the currents of air passed through it, to preserve the health of the fish. There are many varietis of them, from the silvery mullet, or whiting to the spotted flathead or flounder and the reddish gurnard. The schnapper and the sharks, which are kept in the larger tanks, are especially noticeable, and such 'novelties' as the grey skate, the stingray, the porcupine fish, and the toad fish, the zebra fish and the pig fish, are not wanting. The water is beautifully clear, and every fibre of the seaweed and particle of the rockwork - which is arranged with taste and fidelty - can be minutely examined. The spear-like fin of the blennies, the queer mouth of the sand-eel under the snout of the fish, the toothless condition of the dog fish, and the beautiful bird-llike plumage of the of the parrot fish are all clearly defined. The stone litter indefutigably keeps up his calling of trying to hit boulders to find food, and has not yet found out that the rocks are fixtures. The octopus is an uncanny looking object, and the 10 footed squid in its quiet retirement, finds it no longer necessary to eject ink to cover its retreat from an enemy.  The Argus, 25 Feb 1885 

Unfortunately, the octopus did not have a stimulating environment to thrive and Jacob did not have the opportunity to see it or the seals as they died before he visited the aquarium.

On 8 May 1885, The Geelong Advertiser reported their deaths.

One of the curious and most interesting tenants of the Aquarium was undoubtedly the octopus, but I regret to say that it is no more. The death first of the seals, and then of the octopus, seems to indicate that there is something wanting in the in the method of treating some of the inhabitants of the deep which have been taken captive.

The Hamilton Spectator on 16 May 1885 reported that the octopus at the Exhibition Aquarium has resisted its condemnation to imprisonment and celibacy, and spited its its guardians by dying. 

I wonder if this author opposed the captivity and confinement of the octopus? 

While at the Botanic Gardens, Jacob may have visited the Palm House. this artwork dates from 1881.

The Palm House Melbourne Botanic Gardens 1881





References

Melbourne Punch (14 May 1885) 'Amusements', Melbourne Punch (Vic. : 1855-1900).

Solomons, W.D., n.d., Jacob Frederick Scheef [photograph]. Armidale, N.S.W.

Scheef, J. (1885) Letter from Jacob Scheef to his wife Christina, 17 May. Located at the Heritage Centre, University of New England and Regional Archives, Armidale. 

The Argus (25 Feb 1885) 'The Aquarium at the Exhibition' , The Argus (Melbourne, Vic, : 1848 0 1957)

The Exhibition building, Melbourne, the south-west aspect of the main hall, (1880) [illustration], Museum Victoria, accessed 3 June 2023.

The Geelong Advertiser (8 May 1885), 'Melbourne From our own Correspondent', The Geelong Advertiser, (Vic, : 1859 - 1929)

The Hamilton Spectator (16 May 1885) 'Echoes from Melbourne'The Hamilton Spectator, (Vic, : 1870 - 1918), 16 May 1885

The Herald (12 May 1885)    'The Aquarium', The Herald (Melbounre, Vic. : 1861 - 1954).

The Palm House, Melbourne Botanic Gardens. (1881) [wood engraving], State Library Victoria, accessed 3 June 2023. 



 







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