Published in "Homeward Bound after Thirty Years." A colonist's impressions of New Zealand, Australia, Tangier and Spain ... With Numerous Illustrations. 1892
Sydney: The Inner Harbour
The first question that greets a new arrival in Sydney is, “What do you think of our beautiful harbour?” and the unfortunate one may have to answer it a hundred times. The story goes as a joke against the Sydney people that one irate skipper who had been teased in this way on a former trip sailed up the bay with a large placard rigged at the bow:—
. . . We have admired your beautiful harbour . . .