Dickens returned from his second American tour aboard the Cunard steamship Russia. He sailed from New York on 22 April 1868 after completing the demanding reading tour that had begun in late 1867.
The journey marked the end of Dickens’s second visit to the United States. Unlike his first American tour in 1842, this trip was centred on public readings from works such as A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, and Dombey and Son. The appearances were financially successful but physically exhausting, and Dickens’s health was already under strain.
During the voyage he wrote enthusiastically about the Russia, praising its speed, comfort, order, and careful management. The ship reached Liverpool on 1 May, and Dickens arrived in London the next day. His favourable comments helped make the vessel notable in accounts of his return.
A later maritime history can cause confusion: the ship was built as Russia in 1867, later sold to the Red Star Line, and renamed Waesland in 1880. It continued in service under that new name until it sank after a collision in 1902. The answer to the quiz question is therefore the ship’s original name, Russia.