#9 Addressed to Mr. Henry Hirst, Heptonstalll near Halifax, Yorkshire
Board Ship Portsmouth 16th May 1796
Honour’d Father & Mother
I write to you once again informing you that we this day Embarked here for Gibraltar, after only one days Notice,
you mentioned that you heard our Regiment was coming down to Yorkshire, and that they would not send any of the men that had been Prisoners in France abroad again, but now you see to the contrary, for we have Men with us that have not been 5 days from France but at the same time it is very hard after being Prisoner so long, but God Almighty is our only guide,
the Name of the Vessel I am in is the Coverdale of London, and the other two belonging to our Regiment is the Minerva and the Countess if you ever happen to see them in the Papers,
the Name of the Vessel I am in is the Coverdale of London, and the other two belonging to our Regiment is the Minerva and the Countess if you ever happen to see them in the Papers
William Hirst – 16 May 1796
as for what I was mentioning to you in my last letter I will let you know the Particulars when we get to Gibraltar how it may be done, excuse me at present as we are for Sailing immediately. Please do give my love to my Wife and Child, to my Brothers and Sisters, and all my inquiring Friends, I am very sorry to hear of my Aunt Thomas of Clifton being Dead, but it is a Debt that we must all pay, so I conclude and remain your Dutifull Son
Wm. Hirst
NB Please to direct for me in Capt. Thompson’s Company 37th Regiment Gibraltar or Elsewhere
The William Hirst Letters 1787-1798 
I would not want to be heading for Gibraltar in a British warship in May 1796. Think of how nasty the daily rations would be, let alone the sanitary facilities onboard, let alone “the deliberate increase in the chances of death” (to quote WH Auden, “Spain 1937”)
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Yes!
“The daily rations issued to each soldier in the British Army during the Napoleonic Wars were as follows:
1½ lbs Bread or Flour, or 1 lb of Ship’s Biscuit
1 lb Beef, or ½ lb Pork
¼ pint Dried Peas
1 oz Cheese or Butter
1 oz Rice
5 pints Small Beer, or 1 pint Wine, or ½ pint Spirits
Those women who were lucky enough to be listed on a company’s ‘strength’ were permitted ½ of a daily ration and children allowed a ¼ but neither where allowed the alcohol. The weight of the meat included that of bone. It was also a common practice for soldiers to pool their rations, known as ‘messing’ with the benefit that larger and better cuts of meat could be given to a mess to be shared amongst its members.” From https://www.95th-rifles.co.uk/research/rations/
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