My name is Elizabeth Haywood, I am 13. We all know 13 is the unlucky number, and this sure was unlucky for me. Last year I had an apprenticeship for shoemaking, but I barley got paid anything. This meant I had to turn to stealing to sell things and survive. One day, sneakily I stole a bonnet and a shawl. Soon,I got caught and my sentence was 7 years in New South Whales.
The boat ride was really terrible. It took over 6 months. I was riding on the Charlotte, with over 700 other prisoners. After a while, we stopped in Rio de Janeiro, it was hot and humid. We also stopped in the cape of good hopes. By this point about 15 people had died. Days went on, endless with staring into space. After 2 more months, we got to a place called Sydney Cove.
We were put in groups to work in. I worked as a wool spinner with some other children. Days were long and hard. At night I scoff my food and go to bed. This pattern repeats over and over. Once or twice a minute, I hear screaming from the sound of soldiers beating prisoners. Every night, I think about life back in London. Now in New South Whales, I think that my life is better here.
We are put to work, but we have shelter, and 2 or sometimes 3 meals a day, but that’s all we need. I will be 20 when my sentence is over but I might stay here.
The link to the video we based this on is here.
