Cutty Sark in such a short undergarment caused Tam to cry out "Weel done, Cutty-sark", which subsequently became a well known catchphrase. Originally, carvings by Hellyer of the other scantily clad witches followed behind the figurehead along the bow, but these were removed by Willis in deference to 'good taste'. Tam o' Shanter riding "Meg" was to be seen along the ship's quarter. The motto, "Where there's a Willis away", was inscribed along the taffrail. "The Tweed", which acted as a model for much of the ship which followed her, had a figurehead depicting Tam o' Shanter. "Cutty Sark" was destined for
Clipper route "Cutty Sark" made the fastest passage on this route by a clipper, in 72 days. "Thermopylae" made the slightly shorter passage from London to Melbourne, , in just 61 days in 1868–69. The following map traces the outbound route of the 1874 voyage from London to Adelaide, South Australia, of the clipper ship "City of Adelaide", which today is the world's oldest surviving clipper ship. The latitudes and longitudes are obtained from the surviving diary of 21-year-old passenger James McLauchlan. The return passage continued east from Australia; ships stopping at Wellington would pass through the Cook Strait, but otherwise this