Note: Translated by A. Estoclat. This translation begins: "When you part with friends on the threshold of a long journey, there are at least two chances of your never seeing them again; those whom you leave behind may not be there on your return, and you, who go away, may never come back. Such calculations, however, were far away from the thoughts of the sailors who were preparing to get under sail on board the Franklin, on the morning of the 15th of March, in the year 1875."