The old shipmasters of Salem, with mention of eminent merchants

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http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924028839152

The Old Shipmasters
of Salem

With Mention of Eminent Merchants

By

Charles E, Trow

Author of " Prose and Verse," " Historical Sketches," etc.

They stood the storm when winds were rough,

But in a sunny hour fell off.
Like ships that have gone down at sea

When heaven was all tranquility. — Moore.

G, P. Putnam's Sons

New York and London

Xlbe Ifcnicherbockec ipcees

1905

CdPYRIGHT, igd^
BY

CHARLES E. TROW

Ubc ItnicFJcrbocfecr (5ress, View jgorft

In Memory of '
The Old-Time Shipmasters of Salem,

A CLASS OF men

TO whom, BECAUSE OF THEIR INTELLIGENCE,

INTEGRITY, AND SAGACITY,

CITIZENS OWE LASTING GRATITUDE,

THIS BOOK IS INSCRIBED

PREFACE

/y/I Y object in writing this book has been,
* primarily, to commemorate the char-
acters of that rare class of men, the Master
Mariners of Salem, who lived and flourished
in the long ago. I do not claim to have
given that biographical turn to my re-
searches which might be expected in such
a work, but my aim has been rather to take
a broader view of things. I have, therefore,
quoted from the old sea journals only that
which would bear directly on the life and
times which I have tried to describe. The
records of many other captains are as
noteworthy as those presented, but space
would not allow more extended reference.
To recount the brave deeds of all the old
captains would require many volumes.

C. E. T.

Salem, March 30, 1904.

CONTENTS

Chapter I

PAGE

The Early Commerce of Salem — Marine Society — East India
IWuseum and Peabody Academy of Science — The Old By-
Laws — Educational Advantages Offered . . . . i

Chapter II

Glimpses of the Old IWariners — IWore of the By-Laws — Founders
of the Marine Society — Grand Turk the First Salem Ship
to Visit the East Indies — Importance of the Foreign Trade
in 1790 — How the Mate Got "Square" with the Captain
— Captain Throws the Pilot Overboard .... 7

Chapter III

Were the Shipmasters Superstitious? — Goat in the Foretop —
Both "Watches" in Mortal Terror— Story Telling, Witti-
cisms, and Practical JoI<es — Captain Tucker's " Yarn " — The
Haunted Sailor — Ghost of his Former Shipmate . .18

Chapter IV

The Manifold Mysteries of the Sea — Story of Captain Frederick
Johnson, about the Man who Left the Ship Restless on a Raft
in the Night — News of the Death of Washington Received
— The Shipmasters Prominent in the Funeral Procession . 31

Chapter V

The Codfish a Potent Factor in the Eariy Commerce — Import-
ance of Salem, Commercially, as Compared with Boston
— Some of the Prominent Merchants — Captain Thomas
Perkins's Munificent Gift— Where the Old Captains Meet . 43

viii Contents

Chapter VI

PAGE

Journal and Record of the Ship George — Death of Greenleaf

Perley— The Mate's Poetic Tribute— Last of the Old Ship . 57

Chapter VII

Interesting Correspondence from the Salem Register — The Ships
Hazard (First and Second) — IWodel of the Frigate Constitu-
tion, etc. — Commodore Bainbridge's Visit to Salem in 18 13
— Captain Charles H. Allen's Voyages — The Ships St. Paul
and Mindoro — Last of the Indiamen .... 68

Chapter VIII

Fellow-Feeling among the JWariners — Love for their Native Land
and the American Flag — The Corsairs and their Atrocities —
War with Algiers — The Brave Commanders Decatur and
Bainbridge ........ 75

Chapter IX

Privateers in the Revolutionary War and that of 1 8 1 2 — Captain
Haraden and Other Brave Commanders — The British Navy
Crippled by American Privateers — Extracts from the Cap-
tain's Journal ........ 83

Chapter X

Cruise of the Famous Privateer Grand Turk — How this Ship
Escaped from Two British Frigates — Fight of the Ship Mont-,
gomery with an English Packet Brig — Bravery of Captain
Benjamin Upton . . .... 95

Chapter XI

Fight between the Chesapeake and the Shannon — Bodies of
Commander Lawrence and Lieutenant Ludlow Brought to
Salem from Halifax in Brig Henry — Crew and Officers All
Sea Captains — Impressive Funeral Services and Imposing
Procession — The Bodies Entombed in Salem . . .106

Contents ix

Chapter XII

PAGE

Captain Thomas Fuller — His Capture by Pirates in 1832 — The
Captain's Last Meeting with One of the Pirates — His Nar-
row Escape from Mutineers — Capture of Two Salem Ships
by Malays . . . . . . . • " 3

Chapter XIII

The Essential Qualities in a Shipmaster — Journal of Captain
Stuart — Ship Hard and Fast on Shore — Four of the Crew
Sick — The Situation Truly Deplorable — Supposed Pirates
Prove to be Friendly Dutchmen — One of the Sick Sailors
Dies — Again at Sea — Strenuous Experiences in Gales of
Wind — Visit from Captain Derby of the Ship Margaret
— Captain Carnes Discovers Pepper Growing Wild on the
Coast of Sumatra — Salem Monopolizes the Pepper Trade . 124

Chapter XIV

Voyage of Captain Nichols in the Ship Aotive — His Journal
Replete with Instructive Information — Description of the
City of Funchal — Catching Fish — St. Paul's Island — Pen-
Pictures of Colombo — Ceylon and its Coast — Meeting with
Difficulty in Finding Market for Cargo — Arrives at Madras
— George Cleveland's Notes on Nagasaki . . . 140

Chapter XV

stories of Shipwreck and Disaster — The Wreck of the Ship
Formosa — An Island Reached by Crew — Submerged at
High Tides — Sailors Build a Platform on Cocoanut-Trees
— Loss of Ship Humholdt — Captain Powars Tells a Thrill-
ing Story — The Mdf^arei Never Returned . . • '58

Chapter XVI

Short of Fresh Water Causes Alarm — Captain Williams's Inven-
tion to Make Salt Water Fresh — His " Still " Described by
him — Notes on his Voyage — In Shoal Water . .178

Contents

Chapter XVII

PAGE

Captain George Nichols Sails on Another Voyage in the Ship
Active — Inadequacy of Charts as a Guide for Mariners —
Slaughtering Seals — Strange Findings in Huts on Desolate
St. Paul's Island— Hogs and Fowls Roaming at Will-
Shooting Black Fish — Arrives at the Port of Muscat — The
Natives and the Government— On the Lookout for Pirates 185

Chapter XVIII

Dr. Nathaniel Bowditch— His Early Life in Salem— Difficulties
in Acquiring Knowledge — Test of Young Bowditch's Mathe-
matical Ability — His Voyages as Supercargo — Correcting Er-
rors in Standard Nautical V^^orks- Voyage to Lisbon in 1 796 196

Chapter XIX

More about the Life of Dr. Bowditch — He Continues his Journal
— Interesting Incidents in Connection with Obtaining a
Cargo — Notes on Manila — Thieves Rob Captain Prince of
$1000 — Pursued, they Lose the Money Overboard from their
Boat — Cargo Worth a Million Dollars . . . 207

Chapter XX

Voyage of Captain John White to the China Sea — Fight with
Pirates near the Straits of Banka — At Canjeo — Native Chiefs
Visit the Captain . . . . . . .217

Chapter XXI

Captain of the Franklin in a Sea of Trouble — Chiefs Demand
Presents — Captain Attends Reception by the Officials — He
is Tendered a Banquet — Difficulty in Getting Permission to
Ascend the Donnai River ... . . 234

Chapter XXII

Narrow Escape from Tigers — Startling Phenomenon — Pagoda
Dedicated to Evil Spirits — Natives Worship the Devil
through Fear — The Bewitched Dog-^Arrival of the Mar-
mion — Diplomacy of Mr. Putnam . . . . • 25 1

Contents xi

Chapter XXIIl

PAGE

Arrival of the Franklin at Saigon — Captain White's Graphic
Description of the Natives — His Visit to an Official's House
— Reception by the Governor — Description of Saigon 267

Chapter XXIV

Conspiracy to Defraud the Captain — Villainy and Turpitude of
Officials — Everybody Clamorous for Presents, from the King
down — Women Merchants — Remarkable Story about a
Tigress and a Puppy — Selling Wives to Creditors . . 285

Chapter XXV

Trying to Conciliate the Governor — Shameless Rogues — Extor-
tion by Officials in Paying for Measurement of Vessels —
Paying Charges at Custom-House in Copper Coin — Assailed
by a Shower of Stones — Trying to See who could Hold out
the Longer ... . . . 303

Chapter XXVI

Fight with Snakes in the Donnai River — The Viceroy's Quaint
Banquet Complimentary to the American Officers — The
Viceroy Helps his Guests by Cramming Food down their
Throats — The White Men a Curiosity to the Ladies of
Saigon — Difficulty in Obtaining Rice— Preparations to Repel
Pirates — Sailing of the Franklin — Arrival at Salem . . 320

Index 339

ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

Interior Peabody Academy of Science — Marine

Hall ...... Frontispiece

Models of Frigate Constitution (1813); Friendship
(1804); Ohio (1840); with othier American vessels and
foreign craft. Bath-tubs in the foreground brought from
the Indies a century ago.

Captain Frederick Johnson, master of the ship

Restless 14

Nathaniel Hawthorne 26

Born July 4, 1804. Died IVlay 19, 1864. Surveyor of
Port of Salem (1846-1849). From a photograph by
Brady.

Hawthorne's Birthplace, Union Street, Salem,

Mass 38

Elias Hasket Derby (1739- 1 799) ... 48

One of his ships {Grand Turk) in the distance. He was
a pioneer in the East India trade, and at the time of his
death was reputed to be the richest man in the United
States.

Elias Hasket Derby's house, erected in 1799 at a

cost of $80,000 60

Drawing from an old engraving.

xiv Illustrations

PAGE

Captain John Bertram (1796-1882), shipmaster

and merchant .7°

Captain Bertram was a philanthropist, and dispensed
large sums of money for charitable purposes. From an
oil painting by Edward Parker.

Captain Chas. H. Allen, commander of the St.

Paul, and other noted ships ... 84

The Gardner house, Essex Street ... 98

This house was built by Capt. John Gardner, merchant,
about the beginning of the last century. Now the resi-
dence of David Pingree, a retired merchant.

Battle between the Chesapeake and the Shan-

noUj ]une i, 1813 108

From the painting by J. C. Schetky,

Jacob Crowninshield, merchant and member of

Congress (1770- 1808) . . . .114

Mr. Crowninshield was appointed Secretary of the Navy
by President Jefferson, but declined the honor. From
an oil painting by Robert Hinkley.

William Gray (1760-1825) . . . .126

IWr. Gray owned, in 1807, fifteen ships, seven barks,
thirteen brigs, and one schooner, or one-fourth of the ton-
nage of the port of Salem. His stately mansion was sub-
sequently occupied as a hotel (the Essex Coffee House).
JWr. Gray was elected Lieut.-Governor of Massachusetts in
1810-11. From the original portrait by Stuart.

Ship America. Famous privateer in the War of
18 12. Built in Salem in 1804 by Retire
Becket 138

From a painting by Anton Roux, as the ship lay in the
harbor of Marseilles.

Illustrations xv

PAGE

Ship St. Paul. (Type of 1840.) . . .144

From an oil painting in possession of Geo H. Allen,
whose father, Chas. H. Allen, commanded the ship during
many voyages.

Clipper Ship 'Formosa, 1300 tons. (Type of
1870.) Lost on Tweeling Island, Allass
Straits, 1880. Silsbee, Pickman & Allen,
owners 154

From an oil painting in possession of Geo. H. Allen.

Captain Joseph Peabody (1757-1844) . . 168

Eminent as a merchant. From the original portrait by
Charles Osgood, a Salem painter of note.

Peabody Academy of Science, and East Indian

Marine Museum 176

Ship Margaret, that never returned . . .180

From an oil painting by Benj. West.

Col. Benjamin Pickman's house, erected in 1750,
now standing in rear of the Peabody Acad-
emy of Science 190

Col. Pickman was a successful merchant, and was largely
engaged in shipping dried fish to foreign countries. Re-
presentations of the codfish were painted on the front
stairs of his house.

Dr. Nathaniel Bowditch (1773- 1838) . . . 200

World-renowned navigator and author of scientific
works. From copy by Miss A. W. Woodbury. After
Charles Osgood. Essex Institute.

Birthplace of Nathaniel Bowditch, erected about

1750 212

House is still in a good state of preservation.

xvi Illustrations

PAGE

Captain Thos. Fuller, ninety-one years of age . 222

Captured by pirates in the brig Mexican, 1832.

The Jacob Crowninshield house, corner Herbert

and Derby Streets. Built about 1740 . .238

Philip English house, erected in 1683 and de-
molished in 1833. Mr. English was one of
the earliest merchants of Salem . . . 254
Drawing from an old print.

Ship Hazard I St. Built in Salem, 1799 . . 264

From water-color painting by M. Corne (1805). Pea-
body Academy of Science.

Ship Hazard 2d. (Type of 1850.) . . . 278

Ship Brooklyn. (Type of 1830.) . . . 288

From an oil painting owned by Geo. H. Allen.

Salem Custom House (built 1818), in which

Hawthorne planned his " Scarlet Letter '' . 298

Ship Mindoro, lying at Central Wharf, Salem,

1896 302

This ship was the last of the East Indiamen, and was
owned by Silsbee, Pickman & Allen.

Launching of Ship Fame near Crowinshjeld's

Wharf, Salem Harbor, 1802 . . . 310

From the original painting by Geo. Ropes. Essex
Institute.

The celebrated Ship George . . . .318
Drawing from the original painting owned by Geo. H.
Allen.

Salem Marine Bethel 330

INTRODUCTION

By Charles S. Osgood

'X'HERE are but few of the streets in Salem
^ that have witnessed such changes as
the now somewhat dilapidated Derby Street.
Once the court end of the town, with hand-
some houses lining its northern side, the
homes of some of those who have made
Salem famous in the annals of the country,
it has passed through various vicissitudes
of fortune until now it is like the scion of
some aristocratic family who has run through
his means and has taken to drink as a solace
for his misfortunes.

The stranger in town will probably walk
down Derby Street in search of reminiscences
of Hawthorne. On the way he will pass
the old house on the corner of Herbert
Street, built in the old days of Richard

xviil Introduction

Derby, and which still retains a quaint ex-
terior, somewhat fallen into decay, with
its garden where the old-fashioned flowers,
the hollyhock, the marigold, and the aster,
grew in almost hopeless confusion, and with
its "lean-to" covered with vines, hiding
the brown clapboards, and making a pictur-
esque and artistic picture. He will see the
more pretentious house on the corner of
Orange Street, formerly the residence of
Benjamin W. Crowninshield, Madison's Sec-
retary of the Navy, now occupied as a home
for aged women. He will probably mount
the steps of the Custom House, next door,
to view the scene of Hawthorne's labors,
an edifice built on the site of the mansion
house of George Crowninshield, the owner
of the famous privateer America, and whose
son George made a trip to Europe in the
yacht Cleopatra's Barge, the first American
vessel to cross the ocean solely on a pleas-
ure excursion. He will continue on until on
the corner of Turner Street he will see the
old Waters mansion, once the residence of
one of Salem's old families, now the haven

Introduction xix

of refuge of certain worthy old gentlemen,
who, after being buffeted about on the
ocean of life, have now drifted into this
quiet eddy and are calmly and peacefully
waiting for the next and last change in their
earthly career. He will turn down Turner
Street to see the "house of the seven ga-
bles." Far be it from me to suggest to the
credulous stranger that any doubt exists as
to this being the veritable house that was in
the mind of the novelist when he wrote his
famous story. Travelers are humbugged
the world over, and these little romances
rather add to the delights of travel.

But the visitor to Derby Street would
have seen it at its best during the days of
Salem's commercial prosperity with which it
is intimately connected. Here at its wharves
were docked the vessels which brought
from all countries tributes to Salem. How
like a dream it seems to the younger gen-
erations of Salem, this story of the old days,
when Salem merchants almost monopolized
the commerce with most of the far-away
countries ! Then the merchandise ware-

XX Introduction

houses contained silics from India, tea from
Ciiina, pepper from Sumatra, coffee from
Arabia, spices from Batavia, gum copal from
Zanzibar, hiides from Africa, and numerous
other products of the lands beyond the sea.
This commercial activity began with the close
of the War of the Revolution. When peace
was declared, the merchants of Salem found
themselves in possession of many large and
swift-sailing vessels which had been built
for use as privateers. These being too large
to be profitably employed in the coasting
trade, or on short voyages to other ports
heretofore visited by Salem ships, their own-
ers determined to open to distant countries
new avenues of trade and bring to Salem
the products of lands lying in the remotest
quarters of the globe. There was no lack
of seamen to man the vessels. The young
men of the town, fresh from service on the
armed ships of Salem, were eager to em-
bark in just such ventures as a voyage to
unknown countries offered. They had
served with Harraden in his daring exploits
off the coast of Spain, and had been with

Introduction xxi

West when, in the darkness of night, he cut
his prize out of a British harbor under the
guns of the enemy. What wonder that,
after wielding the cutlass and the boarding-
pike, they were not contented to put their
hands to the plow or to return to the daily
drudgery of the workshop. The spirit of
adventure was aroused, and the more dan-
gerous and perilous the undertaking, the bet-
ter it suited the temper of these wild and
courageous graduates from the deck of the
privateersman.

From the close of the War of the Revolu-
tion until the embargo in 1808, Salem was
at the height of her commercial prosperity.
The white sails of Salem's ships were un-
furled in every port of the known world and
carried the fame and name of Salem to the
uttermost parts of the earth.

It was the young men of Salem that offi-
cered her ships, sailing as captains at an age
when the boys of the present time are
scarcely over their school days. At the be-
ginning of one of the East India voyages
of nineteen months, neither the captain

xxii Introduction

(Nathaniel Silsbee), nor his first mate (Chas.
Derby), nor his second mate (Richard J.
Cleveland) was twenty years old, and yet
these boys carried ship and cargo, safely to
their destination, with imperfect mathemati-
cal instruments and with no charts but of
their own making, and returned with a cargo
which realized four or five times the original
capital. With no power to communicate
with home, the success of the undertaking
was largely in the hands of these youthful
captains. Their duty was not ended when
the ship arrived safely in port, for upon their
judgment and sagacity in buying and selling
depended the profits of the voyage.

In those early days, when a vessel left
Salem harbor, there was often nothing
heard from her until after the lapse of a year
or more she would come sailing back again.
To-day the earth is girdled with the tele-
graph, and the arrival of a ship in a foreign
harbor can be known at home almost within
an hour of her reaching port. Then foreign
prices were unknown and the result of a
voyage might be splendid success or ruinous

Introduction xxili

disaster ; now a voyage is merely a passage
from port to port with the market ascer-
tained beforehand at either end.

When Captain Jonathan Carnes set sail
for Sumatra in 1795, on his secret voyage
for pepper, nothing was heard from him
until eighteen months later he entered with
a cargo of pepper in bulk, the first to be so
imported into this country, and which sold
at the extraordinary profit of seven hundred
per cent. This uncertainty which hung
over the fate of the ship and cargo lent a ro-
mantic interest to those early voyages which
this age, with its telegraph and steamship,
has destroyed.

Derby Street in the days of Salem's com-
merce was full of bustling activity. The
wharves were crowded with vessels dis-
charging their cargoes, gathered from all
nations, or loading for another venture
across the seas. Sailors fresh from the dis-
tant Indies were chatting on the street
corners with companions about to depart
thither, or were lounging about the doors
of the sailor boarding-houses with that

xxiv Introduction

indescribable air of disdain for all landsmen
which seems always to attach to the true
rover of the seas. They were looked upon
by the younger portion of the community
with that curiosity which is so near akin to
awe, with which we regard those about to
start upon, or who have just returned from,
some uncommonly perilous undertaking.
The shops on Derby Street were full of
strange and unique articles brought from
distant lands. The parrot screamed at the
open door, and in the back shop the monkey
and other small denizens of foreign forests
gamboled at will, sometimes escaping to
the neighboring housetops, much to the
delight of the small children who gathered
to watch their capture with upturned faces
and expressions of intense interest in the
result of the chase.

Salem at that time was one of the princi-
pal points for the distribution of foreign
merchandise, over eight million pounds of
sugar being among the imports of the year
1 800. The streets about the wharves were
alive with teams loaded with goods for all

Introduction xxv

parts of the country. It was a busy scene
with the coming and going of vehicles, some
from long distances, for railroads were then
unknown, and all transportation had to be
carried on in wagons and drays. In the
taverns could be seen teamsters from all
quarters, sitting around the open fire in the
chilly evenings, discussing the news of the
day, or making merry over potations of New
England rum, which Salem in the good old
times manufactured in abundance.

All this has changed. The sail-lofts,
where on the floor sat the sailmakers with
their curious thimbles fastened to the palms
of their hands, busily stitching the great
white sheets of canvas that were to carry
many a gallant ship safely through storm
and tempest to her destination in far distant
harbors, and that were to be reflected in
seas before unvexed by the keel of an Ameri-
can vessel, are deserted or given over to
more prosaic uses. The ship-chandlers'
shops are closed, and the old mathemati-
cal-instrument maker has taken in his swing-
ing sign of a quadrant, shut up his shop, and.

xxvi Introduction

as if there were no further use for him here,
has started on the long voyage from which
there is no return. The foreign commerce
of Salem, once her pride and glory, has
spread its white wings and sailed away
forever.

Although commerce has sought other
ports and is no longer prosecuted here, the
influence of the old-time merchants and
shipmasters, whose energy and enterprise,
whose daring and far-sightedness, made
such an unparalleled chapter in the history
of Salem, still lingers with us. Salem to-
day owes to these men the high position
she holds in the world of science. Their
broad and liberal views, stimulated by con-
tact with all nations, prepared their descend-
ants for the good work which is now being
carried on in her midst. Their rare and
unique collection of curiosities, now in the
possession of the Peabody Academy of Sci-
ence, grows in importance each year, and is
one of the principal points of interest to visit-
ors. As such it will always remain, a per-
petual monument to the far-seeing and

Introduction xxvil

public-spirited merchants and shipmasters
of Salem.

For the Derby Street of to-day not much
can be said. Its glory is in the past. It has
played its part in history and must now be
content to remain as a commonplace thor-
oughfare, with nothing of interest about it
but the memory of its better days. In this
it does not differ from many a more famous
street, whose changing fortunes have left
it famous only in name.

The Story of the
Old Shipmasters of Salem

CHAPTER I

The Early Commerce of Salem — Marine Society — East India Museum
and Peabody Academy of Science — Tlie Old By-Laws — Educa-
tional Advantages Offered.

AS early as 1750, Salem was the principal

seaport in the Massachusetts Colony

for successfully carrying on the East India

trade. As a port, Boston was at that time of

small importance as compared with Salem.

That the men who commanded the ships
of that day represented a sturdy manhood
and were possessed of unflagging energy,
indomitable will, and undaunted courage, is
patent to every one who has examined into
their history, antecedents, and the events

2 The Old Shipmasters

connected with their lives. They sailed on
every sea from the frigid to the torrid zones,
and experienced all the vicissitudes incident
to a seafaring life. Some of these captains
commanded ships when they had barely at-
tained their majority. Such a one was
George Cabot — an ancestor of Henry Cabot
Lodge — who was subsequently a member
of the Provincial Congress, and later a
United States Senator.

In Salem great interest was early shown
in everything pertaining to the sea, and as
a natural outcome the Salem Marine Society
was formed. The petition to the General
Court for its incorporation was presented by
Jonathan Gardner and others, and the prayer
of the petitioners was granted in 1 772. The
first article of the by-laws reads as follows:

"The members of this society shall con-
sist of persons who now are or have been
masters or commanders of vessels; and also
of persons who now are or have been own-
ers of vessels; provided, that no person shall
be admitted as a member who has been
eligible more than seven years, or is more

Of Salem 3

than forty years of age, except by a vote at
a yearly meeting."

The object of the society was "to improve
the knowledge of this coast by the several
members upon their arrival from sea, com-
municating their observations, inwards and
outwards, of the variation of the needle,
soundings, courses, and distances, and all
other remarkable things about it in writing;
for the making of navigation more safe, and
also to relieve one another and their families
in poverty or other adverse accidents of life,
which they are more particularly liable to,
and have for this end raised a common
stock."

Captain Perkins, of Topsfield, of whom
more will be said, presented to the society
the Franklin Building and the lot upon which
it stood. It was demolished some fifty years
ago and in its place an imposing structure was
erected, which is to-day very valuable prop-
erty. In this building the society have
reserved rooms for their own occupancy,
where the living members meet and keep
their possessions. Captain William B. Bate^

4 The Old Shipmasters

was for many years secretary of the society
and custodian of the historical collections.
Within the rooms are many interesting re-
minders of the past.

The East India Museum was founded in
1797. The membership of this society was
restricted "to persons who have actively
navigated the seas beyond the Cape of Good
Hope or Cape Horn." Its primary objects
were "to assist the widows and children of
deceased members, to collect such facts and
material as will tend to the improvement
and security of navigation, and to establish
a museum of curiosities of maritime interest
and importance." The collections of rare
articles were first deposited in the building
on the corner of Essex and Washington
streets; subsequently they were removed
to the Salem Bank building, and, in 1825,
to the East India Museum Hall, built espe-
cially for the society. In 1867 the building
was sold to the Peabody Academy of Sci-
ence. Although the shipmasters no longer
conduct the Museum or make nautical ob-
servations, the charitable objects of the

Of Salem 5

society are fully carried out, as there is a
large fund, the income of which is expended
for that purpose.

The Peabody Academy of Science was
organized in 1868, having received funds by
gift from George Peabody of London, a na-
tive of Essex County, for the "promotion
of science and useful knowledge in the
county of Essex."

The Museum now connected with the
above corporation, besides exhibiting the
many curiosities to be found there, serves
an educational purpose as well — it being a
place to which the teachers of Essex County
have access for the better qualifying of them-
selves for the important task of imparting
knowledge to their pupils.

Some of the departments contain collec-
tions of animals, insects, minerals, prehis-
toric relics, plants, etc. These have all been
catalogued, labeled, and systematically ar-
ranged. In the collections from foreign
countries may be seen implements of war
and utensils for domestic use, different spe-
cimens of art, statuary, pictures, marine

6 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

architecture, and other articles too numer-
ous to mention. Many of these precious
objects and mementos of departed days are
still the property of the old Marine Society
proprietors.

The Academy has at different times ex-
tended its usefulness by holding a summer
school of biology. It also supports a course
of lectures each year on natural history.
Academy Hall, opened in 1886, is both neat
and attractive. The number of visitors to
the Museum during the past ten years has
averaged annually about fifty thousand.

CHAPTER II

Glimpses of the Old Mariners — More of the By-Laws — Founders of the
Marine Society — Grand Turk the First Salem Ship to Visit the
East Indies — Importance of the Foreign Trade in 1790 — How
the Mate Got " Square " with the Captain — Captain Throws the
Pilot Overboard.

HTHE Master Mariners' characters, habits,
* with all those qualities which go to
make up a well-rounded life, were largely
formed by the discipline and experiences of
an ocean life, and while they were battling
with adverse elements, they were also
studying into the intricacies of logarithms
and mathematical calculations, mapping out
their course on a chart, and, not the least of
all, disposing of their cargoes — if not con-
signed — and purchasing merchandise for
home shipment. Their varied duties gave
them larger business ideas than were usu-
ally gained in the counting-room. Doubt-
less at times they were autocratic and lofty

8 The Old Shipmasters

in their bearing, but way down beneath the
surface a warm spot could always be found
by those with whom they came in contact,
and a kindly feeling often bubbled up as
naturally and spontaneously as the waters
from a crystal spring. Their apparent re-
serve was developed by enforced seclusion
from the outer world, and by incessant
communing with their own thoughts. They
were not unappreciative, however, of ser-
vice rendered, nor were they insensible to
the delights of social life. They could spin
yarns by the yard, or crack jokes when
occasion required, with the greatest gusto
imaginable. That they rendered important
service in their day and generation, not only
commercially, but in the War of the Revolu-
tion and that of 1812, cannot be denied.
They had correct business habits, hence
their transactions rarely resulted in litiga-
tion. As an illustration of their manner of
doing things, it is interesting to refer to the
following article in the by-laws of the
Marine Society:
"To provide for the relief of any mem-

Of Salem 9

bers or their widows, who may be reduced
by misfortune; and also for the investment
of the money of the society in no other
manner than in bond with collateral security
of land, under a good title and without in-
cumbrance, and at least double the value
of the sum let; as near Salem as may be,
and lying within the province."

Judging from another by-law, the Mari-
ners evidently considered card-playing and
swearing to be mischievous and dangerous
practices:

"That no member of the society shall at
the monthly meetings play or promote the
playing of cards, dice or other gaming what-
soever, as it is probable the same may be
of damage to themselves or some others of
the society. That if any member of this
society be guilty of profane swearing or
cursing, or non-attendance of the monthly
meetings, he shall for each of said offences
pay to the box one shilling."

Another article refers to individual mem-
bers "quarreling and disputing with one
another," and provision is made for the

lo The Old Shipmasters

"reference of such disputes to the society,
in order that they be decided with more
equity and much less cost." The inference
is that courts and lawyers were held in
wholesome dread by the Master Mariners,
and yet the records show that they were
not backward in consulting proper legal ad-
vice when they could not otherwise settle
matters.

The early meetings of the society were
held at the houses of the members, that of
Captain Jonathan Webb being frequently
spoken of in the reports of meetings. In
1790, the society "voted to meet hereaftef
at the house of Samuel Robinson," inn-
holder, and in 1793 "in General Abbot's
long room." In 1807, a hall was rented, but
in 1 8 14 the Essex Coffee-House became their
meeting-place and continued to be for some
time.

During the Revolutionary period, the so-
ciety lapsed into a state of inactivity, as was
natural, for nearly all its members were
engaged in the war. When peace came,
however, the by-laws were amended by

Of Salem 1 1

Congressman Benjamin Goodhue, and large
numbers joined, so that in 1800 the mem-
bership reached two hundred and twenty-
five. The society has always been patriotic.
One hundred and two of Its members served
in the Revolutionary War, forty-eight in the
War of 1812, six in both the wars named,
and four in these wars and also in the naval
war with France. Nearly all the members
who entered the wars served either as com-
manders or in other official capacities. They
were marked men wherever they went, and
always commanded respect.

Among the founders of the Marine Society
were Habakkuk and Dr. Nathaniel Bowditch
(father and son); George Cabot, the close
friend of Washington and of Hamilton;
George and Jacob Crowninshield, the
renowned merchants; Daniel Hawthorne;
Joseph Lee, who liberally endowed the
McLean Asylum, and who was the modeler
of the Caravan, the vessel that took the
first missionaries to India; William Gray,
who served as Lieutenant-Governor of
Massachusetts; William Orne, one of the

12 The Old Shipmasters

noted philanthropists of his time; and many
others who have left their impress on the
early history of the country.

The Grand Turk, commanded by Eben
West, was the first ship from New England
to visit the Isle of France, India, and China,
She cleared from Salem, November 25, 1785,
and returned in June, 1787, with a cargo
of tea, silks, and nankeens, having made
a most prosperous voyage. More tea was
landed in Salem that year than in any sub-
sequent year. Of fifteen vessels in Canton
in 1789, five of them hailed from Salem, and
ail but one belonged to Elias Basket Derby.

The brig William and Henry, Captain
Benjamin Hodges, owned by Gray & Orne,
arrived in Salem in 1790 with a cargo of
tea, which was among the first of such
cargoes imported in an American vessel.
Seventy-three ships, eleven barks, and forty-
eight brigs sailed from Salem in 1806, all
engaged in the foreign trade. In 1807, about
the same tonnage was represented in the
same trade. IVlany of these vessels were
built in Salem.

of Salem 13

To give an idea of the commercial im-
portance of Salem, we must refer to the
amount collected in imposts for the United
States Government from 1789 to 1870,
which foots up to 125,000,000. From 1 801 to
1 8 10, inclusive, the duties collected amounted
to 17,272,633.31. In 1825 and 1826, a little
brig of 223 tons (the Leander) landed
cargoes from Canton, which paid duties
amounting respectively to $86,847.47 and
$92,392.94. A ship of 287 tons (the Suma-
tra, Captain Charles Roundy), in 1829, 1830,
and 183 1, brought cargoes from Canton to
Salem, paying duties as follows: in the first
case, $128,363.13; in the second, $138,-
480.34; and in the third, $140,761.96— the
five voyages paying to the Government
the grand total of nearly $587,000 ! These
vessels were owned by the late Joseph
Peabody, an eminent merchant, who for
many years did a thriving business in the
foreign trade. The tide of commerce, how-
ever, finally turned in another direction, and
yet the coasting trade was small during the
early history of Salem as compared with

H The Old Shipmasters

that of to-day. The custom-house, as has
been well said by a gentleman conversant
with the old-time maritime industry, ''is
no longer the depository of invoices of the
rich and varied products of the East, and
the name of the surveyor has ceased to be
sent abroad marked on bales of merchan-
dise, as Hawthorne once said he smiled to
think was to be the case with his."
There were many quaint things said and

done by the shipmasters. Captain L

had a first mate who was at times addicted
to the use of strong drink, and occasionally,
as the slang saying has it, " got full." The
ship was lying in a port in China, and the
mate had been on shore and had there
indulged rather freely in some of the vile
compounds common in Chinese ports. He
came on board, "drunk as a lord," and
thought he had a mortgage on the
whole world. The captain, who rarely ever
touched liquors himself, was greatly dis-
turbed by the disgraceful conduct of his
officer, particularly as the crew had all ob-
served his condition. One of the duties of

Captain Frederick Johnson, Master of the Ship Restless.

Of Salem 15

the first officer is to write up the "log"
each day, but as that worthy was not able
to do it, the captain made the proper entry,
but added: "The mate drunli all day,"
The ship left port the next day and the
mate got "sobered off." He attended to
his writing at the proper time, but was ap-
palled when he saw what the captain had
done. He went on deck, and soon after the
following colloquy took place:

"Cap'n, why did you write in the log
yesterday that I was drunk all day ?"

" It was true, was n't it ? "

" Well, 'lowing 't was, it was a bad thing
to say about me."

" It was true, was n't it ? "

"Yes, but what will the owners say it
they see it ? 'T will hurt me wfth them."

But the mate could get nothing more
from the captain than, "It was true, wasn't
it?"

The next day, when the captain was
examining the book, he found at the bot-
tom of the mate's entry of observation,
course, winds, and tides: "The captain

i6 The Old Shipmasters

sober all day." He went on deck in high
dudgeon, met the mate — who saw that a
storm was brewing — and then another dia-
logue took place as follows:

"What did you mean, you rascal, by
writing in the log that 1 was ' sober all day,'
yesterday ? "

" It was true, was n't it, Cap'n ? "
' " You know 1 never drink liquors, and am
always sober, and of course it was true,"

The captain, upon second thought, real-
ized that the whole thing was a huge joke,
and his cooler judgment reasserting itself, he
desisted from further questioning of the mate.

If there was any one thing the shipmasters
were distinguished for above everything
else, it was in assuming a certain degree of
superiority over the common run of mind
and matter. They were sovereigns on the
sea, and why not on the land, was, doubt-
less, a pertinent query with them. In the
realm in which their lot w$s cast they
knew no baffling forces beyond winds and
tides, hence they did not easily brook oppo-
sition or defeat. If failings they had, this

Of Salem 17

characteristic was one of their greatest faults,
but, like the character immortalized by
Goldsmith,

"Their failings leaned to virtue's side."

In this connection it may not be inappro-
priate to relate a brief story of one of the
captains who was a man of stalwart frame
and a strict disciplinarian on board his ship.
He was leaving a port in a tropical sea in
company with another ship, and it soon be-
came a trial of speed between the two ves-
sels. Seeing that his opponent was slightly
gaining on him, he began to grow uneasy
lest his ship, which was considered a very
fast sailer, should get the worse of it. More-
over, he had not discharged his negro pilot,
a creature of amphibious tendency, as is
common with the natives of warm climates.
The captain was pacing the quarter-deck,
and it was noticed that he had a sheath
knife in his hand. Suddenly he sprang to
the taffrail and cut the painter of the pilot's
dinghy, and without pausing for a moment
seized the pilot and threw him overboard.

CHAPTER III

Were the Shipmasters Superstitious? — Goat in the Foretop — Both
"Watches" in Mortal Terror — Story Telling, Witticisms, and
Practical Jokes — Captain Tucker's " Yarn " — The Haunted Sailor —
Ghost of his Former Shipmate.

'T'HE sterling worth of the old captains is
* not overestimated in these chapters.
" But they were superstitious," says the as-
cetic, whose mentality is circumscribed by
dwarfed ideas of men and things. It is
doubtless true that they believed in omens
and prognostics, and possibly had a rever-
ential dread of the mystic or unknown ; yet
they were far from being fanatical. It may
be that they believed in the direct interposi-
tion of supernatural powers in certain ex-
traordinary events. It can, however, be
truthfully said of them that whatever they
had to accomplish, first and foremost was
the controlling thought :

"On reason build resolve,
That column of true majesty in man."

i8

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 19

It is quite true that sea life is not now
wholly divested of the belief in old-time evil
omens, and to-day it holds good, as for-
merly, that if a shark follow a ship for sev-
eral days it is a sure sign that some one of
the crew will soon die or other disaster
follow. Many dark superstitions, however,
in the light of a broader education, have
been swept away, on the sea as well as on
the land.

The goat in the "foretop" of the ship
Ringleader will serve to illustrate the belief
in ghosts by sailors. This story is a true
one and was told by one who can vouch
for its authenticity. The Ringleader at the
time was in command of Captain Richard
Matthews of Salem. One dark, stormy
night, all hands were called to shorten sail.
Orders were given in quick succession to let
go the topgallant halyards and to clew up
fore and aft, and to let go the foretopsail
halyards. The watch on deck sprang into
the shrouds to furl the foretopgallant-sail,
but they had only reached the foretop when
they turned and came down precipitately,

20 The Old Shipmasters

some by the halyards on the run. The
mate asked what the matter was, but
received nothing more than some incoherent
mumblings from the sailors about a ghost.
He ordered them up again, supplemented
with expletives which no refined society
would tolerate.

They would not budge an inch. So the
other watch was ordered up, but with the
same result. The mate then thought he
would go up himself and find out what the
matter really was. He ascended as far as
the foretop, as the rest had done, and
stopped. He also saw a ghost or some
supernatural object, and was about turn-
ing to come down, when his ears were
greeted with a familiar cry. He at once
fathomed all the trouble ; it was the voice
of the old billy-goat, a regular passenger and
the butt of all the fun and pastime on board.
He had ensconced himself in the coil of the
foretopsail halyards, and when they were
let go, he suddenly went up in the coil of
rope without even a murmur of disapproval,
and had lodged safely where he was found.

Of Salem 21

A rope was quickly bent onto him and he
was lowered to the deck. It was a narrow
escape for Mr. Capricorn. On the same
voyage, the Ringleader, while butting into a
heavy cross-sea, "scooped in" over her
bows a shark, which was brought home and
can now be seen in the Museum. •

Story - telling, witticisms, and practical
jokes were not infrequently enjoyed by the
Master Mariners. In 18 — , a Salem ship was
in the harbor of Batavia waiting for a cargo,
and as time was hanging heavily on the

hands of her master. Captain L , he

visited a place of amusement one evening by
way of diversion, and there met with an
astute French captain, whose egotism and
national pride knew no bounds. He fre-
quently drifted off into the Munchausen in
his glorification of his native land, and the
city of Paris in particular, portraying, as
with the brush of an artist, the beautiful
parks and public squares of that city.

"That is nothing compared with my na-
tive city, Salem," blurted out Captain L .

"We have a 'Common' encircled by a

22 The Old Shipmasters

double row of trees one hundred and fifty
feet in height and ten feet through their
trunks. Tropical flowers bloom the year
round in this magnificent inclosure. I saw
a man take a ladder one day and go to the'
center of the Common, and what do you
suppose he did ? "
" Me no tell, monsieur. Me ask you."
"Well, he raised the ladder up to a per-
pendicular position, and then went to the
top of it," replied the captain.

" Ah ! oh ! my ! vat more duz him do ? "
" He pulled the ladder up after him, and
then went to the top again."

At this last remark from the captain the
Frenchman subsided and appeared to be in
a meditative state of mind; and it was not
known for a certainty whether he took ex-
ception to the captain's statements, or was
really trying to figure out mentally the spe-
cific gravity and staying qualities of the
man, ladder, and surrounding atmosphere.

Captain Tucker was, to outward appear-
ance, a rough-cast man, but beneath his old
pea-jacket — which was rarely thrown off for

Of Salem 23

a finer coat— a truer heart never beat. In a
word, he was careless about his personal
appearance. Being in Bombay, the port to
which his cargo was consigned, he met two
Salem captains, one of whom remarked:
" Captain Tucker, why don't you spruce up
a little when you come ashore ? "

"What's the use? Nobody knows me
here," was the rejoinder.

Somewhat over a year afterwards the
same captains met Captain Tucker on Essex
Street, Salem, on his arrival from a voyage,
and the former remark: "Why don't you
spruce up when in port ? " was addressed
to him.

" Everybody knows me here, and what 's
the use dressing up ? " was the prompt reply.

The captain's friends saw that he was in-
corrigible, and they ever after refrained from
remarking on his personal appearance.

Some of those who had commanded ships,
after quitting the sea, settled down upon
small farms in the suburbs of Salem, and
their chief delight and occupation was in
visiting the village grocery, where they often

24 The Old Shipmasters

spun their yarns to the wonderment of the
country folk. They told of ghosts, of pi-
rates, of storms and of shipwreck, and of
many other perils of the sea. One evening

Captain T launched forth with some of

his experiences. Said he: "I touched at
Patagonia on one of my voyages, and 1 ever
after gave that latitude a wide berth. In a
few minutes after we had dropped anchor
our deck was alive with Patagonians, and I
tell you they were strapping fellows — about
eight feet high. They walked around as
independently as though they owned my
ship, even to the last gang-plank. They
were chewing tobacco, and, I dare say, each
one had half a pound of the weed in his
mouth. But this was not the worst of it.
They spit upon my deck, which had been
holystoned as white as snow, and every
time they let fly the filthy liquid it made a
spot as big as the top of that stove " (point-
ing to one about two feet across the top).

" Did you say anything ? " interposed an
old farmer.

What the d 1 could 1 say under the

((

Of Salem 25

circumstances ? They were a wicked look-
ing set and had but one eye, and that was
in the center of their forehead."

" Guess they could n't wear ' specks ' very
wpll," interposed an incredulous matter-of-
fact man, who sat upon a flour barrel drum-
ming the sides with his heels. This remark
rather started the captain's ire, who said:
" I wish you 'd been there and seen their
piercing eye, you would n't talk about
' specks ' ! You 'd have been scared clear
to your toes and jumped overboard, 1 dare
say."

The captain's stories were not all extrava-
ganzas. But, granting that they were, they
served a purpose, and usually were nothing
more than simple raillery to "take out the
conceit" of some presumptuous "land-
lubber."

Speaking again of ghosts, an old sailor re-
cently told the following story, the facts of
which came under his personal observation.
Tom — for by this name he will be desig-
nated — sailed from Salem for Sumatra in
1838, in the ship Sumatra, Captain Peter

26 The Old Shipmasters

Silver being in command. Among the crew
was a strange, eccentric fellow whom no-
body could fathom, for the reason that he
appeared to be at all times beyond " sound-
ings." He was reticent and manifested a
morbid condition of mind, and never entered
into that jollity which at times obtains on
shipboard, even under stress of weather, or
a short allowance of "grub." Another
peculiarity of Jack Breton was his desire
to have some one in his company. He
never would, if he could possibly help it,
remain on any part of the deck or in the
rigging alone at night. If the order were
given to "lay aloft" in the night to make
or shorten sail, he, invariably, was the last
one to leave the deck.

While the ship was lying in the port of
Callao, on the voyage in question, an "an-
chor watch " was set and Tom had occasion
to call Jack to relieve him. Neither en-
treaties nor threats could induce him to go
on deck until the mate had helped him along
with the toe of his boot. Jack was in a tre-
mor of fright and his condition induced Tom

Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Born July 47 1804. Died May ig, 1864. Surveyor of Port of

Salem (1846-1849).

From a photograph by Brady.

Of Salem 27

to remain with him, but he gave no reason
for his strange conduct.

Going on shore the next day, Tom in his
rambles fell in with some men-of-war's men
from an American frigate lying in port. One
thing led to another, and in some way Tom
incidentally alluded to Jack Breton, his ec-
centricities, etc. One of the party, an in-
telligent fellow, after reflecting a moment,
said that he thought he knew Breton, and
he felt almost sure that he could give his
history, which might account for the man's
oddities.

"It was twenty odd years ago," began
the man-of-war's man, "that a boy named
Jack Breton sailed with me in an American
man-of-war. He was idolized by the crew,
and one man in particular named Crozier
was the boy's constant companion. For
'Jacky,' as he used to call him, he would,
with his needle, make fancy stitching on his
shirt collars, work ' Turk's heads,' and teach
him how to tie fancy knots. His life seemed
to be bound up in that of the boy.

" It was in this very port," continued the

28 The Old Shipmasters

narrator, " that a crime was committed
which probably made Breton, if I am right
in the man, what you represent him to be.
Crozier and a shipmate got liberty to go on
shore, which privilege they availed them-
selves of, taking Jack, the boy, with them.
I remained, with others of the crew, on
board. The next morning the port was all
astir with the report that an American sailor
had been murdered the previous night, but,
as a matter of course, the crime was laid to
some desperado of the native population.

"Crozier and his companions not having
reported on shipboard, an officer from the
frigate went on shore to see if he could find
any trace of them. About noon he came
across Crozier, but there was a wildness in
his eyes and something in his demeanor
which puzzled the officer. He could get
nothing definite from him as to the where-
abouts of his two companions. The officer
returned to the ship with Crozier, and an-
other officer and several of the crew went
on shore to search for the lost ones. At
last it was thought that the sailor reported

Of Salem 29

murdered might be the missing seaman.
On visiting the authorities, all doubts were
removed. The man was found with his
skull crushed. But where was the boy?
He was found two days after concealed in a
warehouse on the wharf No information
about the murder could be elicited from
him, and when taken to the ship he cried
bitterly. To make a long story short, a
confession, through threats of punishment,
was extorted from him. His story was that
Crozier and his shipmate got into a drunken
quarrel, when the first-named struck him
on the head with a stone. The boy tried
in every way to shield Crozier, and there is
no doubt that the latter did not know, in
his drunken obliviousness, that he had killed
his shipmate. A court-martial was con-
vened, and Crozier was sentenced to be
hanged at the yard-arm. As he passed by
the boy, on his way to execution, he said
to him:

" 'You have sworn my life away, and I
will never leave you as long as you live ! ' "

Tom parted with his new-made friend.

30 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

who had related the strange tale, and who
promised to visit the Sumatra the following
morning to see if the Breton he had once
known and the one on board were one and
the same. When he came on deck, almost
the first man he saw was Breton, and turn-
ing to Tom he said in a whisper:

"That's the man!"

Breton tried to avoid his old shipmate,
but when he found that he was recognized
he talked freely over old times, and informed
him how true Crozier had been to his word,
declaring that he could not be alone for a
moment without seeing him, and that he
always appeared in a defiant, threatening
attitude.

CHAPTER IV

The Manifold Mysteries of the Sea — Story of Captain Frederick Johnson,
about the Man who Left the Ship Restless on a Raft in the Night —
News of the Death of Washington Received — The Shipmasters
Prominent in the Funeral Procession.

'T'HE verities of life to those who "go
* down to the sea in ships " establish the
fact that there is hardly anything connected
with the "wild waste of waters" too ex-
travagant or too absurd to believe. Captain
John S. Sleeper's old-time Tales of the
Ocean may appear to some as extrava-
ganzas, yet those stories of adventure re-
flect in every syllable and word the spirit of
truth. There is always a fascination about
the ocean and its deep, unfathomable mys-
teries ; therefore, it is not strange that many
dreamers, as they sit by their own quiet fire-
sides and pbre over the stories of those who
have battled with wind and wave, become
infatuated with the desire to leave home and

31

32 The Old Shipmasters

friends to brave the hardships and dangers
so inseparably connected with a seafaring
life. To them the ocean loses none of its
charms, although they may read from day
to day of storm and disaster upon its broad
bosom, and have a realizing sense of the
truth embodied in the lines of the poet :

" He that in venturous barks hath been
A wanderer on the deep,
Can tell of many an awful scene
Where storms forever sweep."

Notwithstanding all this, air-castles will
still be built, and the spirit of adventure con-
tinue to animate the human mind. In con-
nection with this line of thought. Captain
Frederick Johnson once related a story con-
cerning one of his voyages to China in
the ship Restless. On the outward voyage
the ship touched at the Isle of France.
The days went by and nothing of unusual
interest occurred until the Java coast came
in view. The usual story-telling and sing-
ing took place of an evening among the
sailors as they were seated upon boxes or
sea-chests in the forecastle. Among the

Of Salem 33

number was a good-looking young English
sailor who entertained those about him on
the evening in question with a picture of
the easy life one could lead by ingratiating
himself into the good graces of some tribal
chief on shore and marrying his daughter.
The rough treadmill life he and his associates
were leading was given due attention. He
seemed to long for change, but he doubtless
little dreamed of those

" Fierce extremes, extremes by change more fierce,"

as his thoughts strayed out to the dimly
outlined land which appeared like an island
in that distant summer sea on which he
sailed. After the watch below had joined
in the song "Rocked in the Cradle of the
Deep," all "turned in" to dream of home
and the loved ones there. At midnight, the
Englishman, with others, relieved the watch
on deck. It was a clear still night, with
scarcely a breath of wind, and no sound was
heard, save that produced by the sails as
they lazily flapped to and fro, and the dull
monotone of the ropes running back and

34 The Old Shipmasters

forth in the blocks. It was a night in which
dreamers give up to dreams and build
air-castles.

The red streaks of morning were at last
painted on the eastern sky, the watch be-
low had been called, but where was Ben-
son, the English sailor? The man at the
wheel, it was also learned, had not been
relieved by him. Search was at once insti-
tuted, but no trace of him could be found
anywhere on the ship. The mate sharply
questioned the watch, thinking that vio-
lence had been used in connection with the
sudden disappearance of Benson. Every
nook and corner of the ship, both above
and below, was searched, but without sat-
isfactory result. One sailor went into the
forecastle to renew investigations, and upon
opening the chest of the missing man found
that his best clothing and some books were
gone. This was a clue. He reported his
discovery to the captain. Another said that
Benson must be aloft, but the thought,
doubtless, did not occur to him as to what
he (Benson) could possibly want of his

Of Salem 35

books there. He was not satisfied, how-
ever, until he had gone up to the fore- and
main-tops and made thorough search.

At this juncture the ship's carpenter made
his appearance and reported that two of his
heavy planks and several joists which he
had taken from the hold to the deck for
repairs on the previous day were missing.
Here was another and more promising clue,
by which the great mystery was to be un-
raveled. It was now definitely settled that
the man had constructed a raft in his watch
and had noiselessly lowered it over the side
of the ship and made good his escape.
This theory was substantiated by pieces of
rope which were found near the location
of the missing plank.

The foolhardy embarkation of Benson on
the wide ocean with but a few planks be-
tween himself and death seemed appalling
to his shipmates. Conjectures as to what
prompted the venture were rife. His for-
mer associates on shipboard held various
and conflicting .views. One said that Ben-
son was "gone on a woman " in the Isle of

36 The Old Shipmasters

France, and that he had escaped from the
ship hoping to find passage back to the ob-
ject of his adoration. Another averred that
the reading of fictitious works had turned
his head and made him crazy. The third
" spokesman " advanced, apparently, a more
reasonable theory, and that was, that he
had gone to seek his fortune and a life of
ease among the natives on shore, and cited,
to strengthen his point, the missing man's
desire to marry some chieftain's daughter,
and thus rise to fame and importance, ' The
captain was unwilling to proceed on his
voyage until all hope of finding his missing
seaman was gone, hence he ran "off and
on" during the entire forenoon, before he
gave orders to square and brace up the
yards, and make sail for his destined port.

About six months after the incident re-
lated above, the Restless, on her return voy-
age, made the port of Sumatra, to see if any
tidings of Benson had been found. From
the American Consul it was learned that
a man bearing his description, but who
gave his name as Brown, had been found

Of Salem 37

soon after Benson's disappearance from the
ship by some boatmen at a point along
the coast. He was entirely stripped of his
clothing, and was in a nearly starving condi-
tion. He said that he was a castaway sailor,
and related his experience with the natives.
Preparations were being made to kill him
when he made his escape. As noAmerican
vessel was in port at the time, the consul
had sent Benson to Holland in a Dutch
ship.

The experiences of those who follow the
sea for a livelihood are many and varied,
as has been said. Meeting with Captain
George Upton one day, he soon drifted off
into story-telling. " There was one little in-
cident," said he, "which happened on one
of my voyages which somewhat amused
me, being, as it was, an illustration of the
prying curiosity of English shipmasters."
The captain continued:

" Many years ago (1838), when I was in
command of the bark Chalcedofiy, while
passing from the N. E. to the S. E. trade
winds in north latitude near the equator

38 The Old Shipmasters

— a track of ocean known to navigators as
the 'doldrums,' — we were flying a kite
from the mizzenmast-head, for the amuse-
ment of some children who were pas-
sengers. While they were enjoying this
diversion, we fell in with an English ship.
They sent a boat on board in charge of the
first mate, apparently for some special pur-
pose, but what it was did not at first appear.
The officer in charge asked me if we could
spare him some tobacco, which was sup-
plied him. His movements, with a frequent
glance aloft, convinced us that the ' to-
bacco ' was not the object of his visit. After
a little hesitation he addressed himself to me
with an inquiry about the kite flying over
our stern, saying: ' Will you please tell me
the object or use of that ? ' I informed him
that it was flying to please the children.
' Thank you,' said he; ' our captain sent me
on board to ascertain its use, thinking it
was some contrivance to get the longitude,
you Americans are so full of inventions.' "

Salem was deeply stirred on receipt of
the news of the death of Washington. A

o
"a

o
"a.

m

o

J3

Of Salem 39

public meeting was held and an address
sent to the " respectable Marine Society of
the town of Salem," with the request that
they would concur and unite with the
citizens in some public demonstration.
The address closed with the significant
words: "The concurrence and assistance
of the Marine Society are peculiarly requi-
site on this occasion." The address was
signed by John Page, John Punshard, and
Jonathan Waldo of the Military Society.

The first intelligence of Washington's
death was brought by a passenger on the
stage from New York, and was received in
Salem on Monday evening, December 23d.
The next day, by order of the selectmen,
the bells were tolled at sunrise, the shipping
displayed their colors at half-mast, minute-
guns were fired on the Common by a
detachment of artillery, and business was
generally suspended. The pupils of Mrs.
Rogers, a celebrated teacher, wore a badge
of mourning presented by her, consisting
of a rosette and bracelet with the initials,
" G. W.," in a circle with a heart appended.

40 The Old Shipmasters

A town meeting was held on Monday,
December 30, at which it was voted to
"adopt suitable measures to testify our
deep sorrow for the loss the community has
sustained by the death of General Wash-
ington." It was also voted:

"That the town will erect an handsome
and durable monument to the memory of
General Washington, and that the commit-
tee before named be directed to ascertain
the expense necessary for this purpose."

The funeral honors were paid on Thurs-
day, January 2, 1800, by a public procession
formed as follows: The town officers, the
Marine Society, the clergy of the town,
with the orator, Rev. Dr. Bentley; the
Independent Company of Cadets, Abel
Lawrence, commander, acting as escort.
The procession moved through several
streets to the North Meeting-house, which
then stood on the corner of North and
Lynde streets, where the Rev. Mr. Barnard
"addressed the Almighty in a suitable,
pathetic, and affecting prayer, and the Rev.
Dr. Bentley pronounced an elegant and

Of Salem 4^

classical eulogy." During the moving of
the procession minute-guns were fired by a
detachment of Captain Gould's artillery.

The Marine Society, as stated by a news-
paper writer of that day, was a very con-
spicuous feature in the funeral procession.
And a subsequent writer adds, in noting
the occasion: " Those shipmasters of the old
school were a sturdy race, faithful and fear-
less, and their stalwart forms and rolling
gait and weather-beaten countenances —
with the remembrance of their experiences —
could not fail to make a sensation, even in
those days when such sights and reminis-
cences were as familiar as household words.
Many of them had been distinguished naval
heroes in the War of the Revolution, and all
were of a type and mold now nearly
obliterated by the changes and triumphs of
the advancing years. A daguerreotype
view of the society as it appeared on that
day would now be a treasure well worth
preserving, but Daguerre was then a school-
boy and his valuable art was all unknown.''

Thirteen years later the Marine Society

42 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

again appeared in a public procession, at the
funeral of the commander and lieutenant of
Vat Chesapeake, killed in the fight with the
Shannon, of which an account is given in
another chapter.

CHAPTER V

The Codfish a Potent Factor in the Early Commerce — Importance of
Salem, Commercially, as Compared with Boston — Some of the
Prominent Merchants — Captain Thomas Perkins's Munificent Gift
—Where the Old Captains Meet.

C ALEM began a trade with the West India
^ Islands in 1670, and with the Leeward
Islands somewhat earlier. The staple ex-
port was dried codfish, the vessels returning
with cargoes of sugar, molasses, etc. Fish
were very plentiful in Massachusetts Bay in
"ye early times" ; in fact, Salem's harbor
and rivers swarmed with them, and it is
hardly possible to doubt that dried codfish
first gave Salem her maritime importance.

Trading with the West Indies first gave
the early settlers an idea of the advantages
to be derived from commerce. They saw
that the exchanging of their products for
those of other nations was an industry upon

43

44 The Old Shipmasters

which would eventually hinge the growth
and development, not only of their own
immediate communities, but of the whole
country. Yes, it was the codfish that
played an important part in promoting the
growth of Salem, and not only Salem, but
every seaboard town and city in New Eng-
land! Is it, then, a matter of wonder that
an effigy of that fish is suspended in a con-
spicuous place in the Massachusetts House
of Representatives ? One of the wealthiest
of Salem's old-time merchants — Benjamin
Pickman— had such an affection and affinity
— no pun meant — for the cod, in remem-
brance, it is presumed, of what that fish
had been to him in the accumulation of his
riches, that he caused to be painted on the
sides of the stairs in the front hall of his
house exact representations of it. This
house was built in 1750, after the old Colo-
nial style, and it stands to-day in the rear
of a store on Essex Street, near the East
India Museum building.

The importance of Salem about the begin-
ning of the last century, and for years after,

Of Salem 45

was such as to give the Indies and other
distant countries the impression that it was
the largest port of the United States. It is
related as a fact that one of the native mer-
chants of Calcutta had a map suspended on
the walls of his office upon which were
only two names, Salem and Boston, and
that the word Salem stretched nearly across
the map, while Boston was designated by a
mere dot.

From the close of the Revolutionary War
to the embargo preceding the War of 1812,
the commercial prosperity of Salem was at
its height. The three most prominent mer-
chants of that period were Elias Hasket
Derby, William Gray, and Joseph Peabody.
The larger part of the shipping of Salem
was in their possession, their ships were
found on almost every sea, and cargoes from
distant climes found a port of entry at Sa-
lem. As has been well said: " They " — the
shipmasters and merchants — "made the
name of Salem familiar wherever trade
penetrated or civilization ventured."

Captain Reynolds, who made a tour round

46 The Old Shipmasters

the world in the United States ship Potomac,
writing of Salem in 1835, says:

"When peace arrived and our inde-
pendence was acknowledged, the merchants
of Salem were among the first to explore
new channels of trade, disdaining to con-
fine themselves to the narrow track of a
Colonial commerce. With a few errone-
ous maps and charts, a sextant, and Guth-
rie's Grammar, they swept round the Cape
of Good Hope, exhausted the markets of
the isles of France and Bourbon, and, push-
ing onward, entered the Straits of Babel-
mandeb and secured the trade of the Red
Sea. They brought from Madras, Calcutta,
and Bombay the best of their staples, and
had their choice of the products of Ceylon
and Sumatra."

The enterprise, keen sense of right, and
honor of the old merchant princes suggest
the truth and application of that maxim of
Bacon's:

' ' I hold every man a debtor to his profes-
sion, from the which as men of course do
seek to receive countenance and profit, so

Of Salem 47

ought they of duty to endeavor themselves
by way of amends to be a help and orna-
ment thereunto."

They were not only an ornament to their
profession or calling, but were ever mindful
of the multifarious duties imposed upon
them, and kept their honor bright by a faith-
ful discharge of the same.

Captain Philip English was among the
early and more prominent shipmasters and
merchants of Salem. Captain English was
born in the Isle of Jersey, and came to Salem
about the year 1670, and in 1675 he married
the daughter of William Hollingworth, a
Salem merchant. He soon entered com-
mercial pursuits, and prospered to such an
extent that he built the grandest house in all
Salem. His wife was over-elated by their
prosperity and forgot her humble friends of
former days; she was called "aristocratic,"
and the prejudice thus engendered against
her doubtless led to her being "cried out
against" for witchcraft. Both Mr. English
and his wife were thus accused. From 1 694
to 1720, Mr. English sent vessels to New-

48 The Old Shipmasters

foundland, Cape Sable, or Acadia to catch
fish, and shipped the products of this enter-
prise to Barbadoes, Surinam, Spain, and
other countries. Captain Richard Derby,
soon after the retirement of Mr. English,
became a shipmaster, trading with Cadiz,
Malaga, and other foreign ports. He sub-
sequently settled down as a merchant.

Dr. Edward A. Holyoke, writing of the
commerce of Salem in 1749, says: "The
commerce of this town was chiefly with
Spain and Portugal and the West Indies,
especially with Eustatia. The schooners
were employed on the fishing banks in the
summer, and in the autumn were ladened
with fish, rum, molasses, and the produce
of the country, and sent to Virginia and
Maryland, and there spent the winter retail-
ing their cargoes, and in return brought
corn and wheat and tobacco."

Elias Hasket Derby in 1775 cast in his lot
with the Colonists and fitted out many pri-
vateers. Later on Mr. Derby was prosper-
ous and accumulated a large property —
nearly a million dollars — in his maritime

Elias Hasket Derby (1739-1799).

One of his ships {Grand Turk) in the distance. He was a pioneer in the

East India trade, and at the time of his death was reputed to

be the richest man in the United States.

Of Salem 49

ventures. The ship Grand Turk in 1784
made the first voyage to the Cape of Good
Hope. She was in command of Captain
Jonathan Ingersoll.

William Gray flourished during the later
years of Mr. Derby's business career. He
was born in Lynn in 1760, but removed to
Salem at an early age. In 1805 he was
probably the largest shipowner in the coun-
try and traded extensively with Canton and
ports in India. Salem had at this time in
active service fifty-four ships, eighteen barks,
seventy-two brigs, and eighty-six schoon-
ers, five ships building, and forty-eight ves-
sels " round the cape."

Captain Joseph Peabody was a success-
ful shipmaster and merchant. He was born
in Middleton in 1757. He sailed in E. H.
Derby's Bunker Hill, which vessel did ser-
vice as a privateer in the Revolutionary War.
In 1782 he made atrip to Alexandria, and on
his return the vessel was attacked by the
enemy and he was wounded. After peace
was restored, he was promoted to a com-
mand in one of the vessels of the Messrs.

50 The Old Shipmasters

Gardner, and soon realized a sufficient sum
to purchase the vessel known as the Three
Friends. His vessels made thirty-eight voy-
ages to Calcutta, seventeen to Canton,
thirty-two to Sumatra, forty-seven to St.
Petersburg, and thirty to other foreign ports.
It is said that he shipped at different times
seven thousand seamen and advanced thirty-
five to rank of master who had entered his
employ as boys.

Captain John Bertram, of later date, was,
perhaps, second to no one as a shipmaster
and merchant. He was a shrewd but square-
dealing man, and always was on the qui
vive to get the best end of the bargain. In
1824, he, with others, chartered the schooner
General Brewer, and, in company with Cap-
tain W. B. Smith, sailed for St. Helena,
When a few days out, he met the brig
Eli:(abeth, of Salem, Story, master, also
bound for St. Helena. Captain Story came
on board the General Brewer and took tea
with Captain Bertram. Each was desirous
that the other should not know his destina-
tion. They announced that they were bound

Of Salem 51

to Pernambuco. Captain Bertram suspected,
however, that the Elizabeth was bound to
St. Helena, and he was extremely anxious
to arrive there first and dispose of his cargo.
When night came on, in order to lighten his
vessel, he threw overboard his entire deck
load of lumber, and by crowding on all sail,
day and night, arrived at St. Helena, dis-
posed of his cargo to good advantage, and
was sailing out of the harbor just as the
Eli:(abeth arrived. From St. Helena Cap-
tain Bertram went to Pernambuco on his
way to Salem, in order, it may fairly be pre-
sumed, to keep his word good, as he was
an "exact man."

Among the noted merchants were also
John Turner, George Crowninshield, Edward
Kitchen, Thomas Lee, Benjamin Pickman,
Timothy Orne, Joseph Cabot, William Orne,
Nathaniel West, Pickering Dodge, Joseph
Lee, Gideon Tucker, Robert Stone, Dudley
L. Pickman, Jeramael Peirce, Aaron Wait,
Nathaniel Silsbee, Nathaniel L. Rogers,
Robert Brookhouse, Robert Upton, David
Pingree, Thomas Hunt, Tucker Daland,

52 The Old Shipmasters

Michael Shepard, Stephen C. Philips, Ed-
ward D. Kimball, and Charles Hoffman.
Several of the above named had been ship-
masters. They had a formidable rival in their
commerce with foreign nations, namely,
the rich East India Company, incorporated
by Queen Elizabeth in the sixteenth cent-
ury. This company had for its head Joseph
Child, at one time doing the menial work
in a London counting-room, subsequently
the privileged associate of royalty. King
Charles 11. accepted a gift from him of ten
thousand guineas. This company held in
its powerful grasp the whole trade of Eng-
land with the Indies, and sent forth its auto-
cratic edicts, commanding its subjects in
India to disregard even the votes of the
House of Commons.

The Marine Society, as has been observed,
was an institution of great importance to the
master mariners and others. Frequent be-
quests have augmented its treasury so that
it is at the present time self-supporting. It
has a clear title-deed to the Franklin Build-
ing, one of the best blocks in the city, a gift

Of Salem 53

from one of the early shipmasters and mer-
chants of Salem — Captain Thomas Perkins,
—whose name has been mentioned in con-
nection with his munificent gift. Mr. Per-
kins was an intelligent, active, and resolute
man, and did much in the way of fitting out
privateers in the Revolutionary War. He, at
different times, was commander of the priva-
teers Spitfire and Thrasher, in the last-named
capturing six prizes in a single cruise. He
was an associate officer with the late Joseph
Peabody on the letter-of-marque hng Ranger,
Captain Simmons, when that vessel was
attacked in the Potomac River, in 1782, by
three British Tory barges, which were he-
roically repulsed, the enemy losing in killed
and wounded, more than fifty men. Messrs.
Perkins and Peabody were subsequently
partners in commercial business for many
years. Later on, Michael Shepard, another
of Salem's esteemed merchants, was asso-
ciated with Mr. Perkins in business.

Captain Perkins, after retiring from active
business, returned to his native town, where
he died November 24, 1830, at the age of

54 The Old Shipmasters

seventy-two years. Above his grave is an
unpicturesque stone, bearing the following
inscription :

IN MEMORY OF THOMAS PERKINS, ESa,
AN EMINENT MERCHANT.

"His Industry, Temperance and Enter-
prise Raised him From Poverty to Immense
Wealth, which he enjoyed without Pride
or Ostentation, and dispensed with Justice
and Benevolence.

"He was Diligent and Faithful in Business,
Pure in his Life and Conversation ; of a
Sound and Vigorous Mind, and of an Integ-
rity and Fortitude which neither Prosperity
nor Adversity could shake or corrupt.

"He was an affectionate Son, a kind
Relative, and a firm Friend.

"He was a Christian above sectarian
prejudice, and a Man above Fear and with-
out Reproach.

" He was born in Topsfield, April 2d, 1758,
and died Nov. 24th, 1830."

It cannot be well conceived how an
epitaph could be stronger worded ; but

Of Salem 55

doubtless it was a tribute which Mr. Per-
kins fully merited after his long and useful
life.

The Marine Society in 1890 had a mem-
bership of fifty, the ages of the members
ranging as follows : Two over eighty ; ten
between seventy and eighty ; sixteen be-
tween sixty and seventy ; seventeen be-
tween fifty and sixty, and five under fifty.

In the north end of the Franklin Building,
on the first floor, is a large room formerly
occupied as a store, but after the old cap-
tains' "manifest" had clearly demonstrated
"shortages" in rent sundry times through
the migratory propensity of tenants, they
resolved to occupy the room themselves,
and, acting in accordance with this idea,
they removed their furniture and valuables
from a room which they had occupied
above. In this room of a pleasant after-
noon may be seen a coterie of the old cap-
tains, most of them well on in years. But
they never grow old in the common accepta-
tion of that word. Their minds have not
been dulled through their rough-and-tumble

56 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

experiences with the world. As they meet
together they love to recall the past. Many
who were wont to grace this room with
their presence have sailed their final voy-
age, to a port from which they transmit no
log-" reckoning" to guide others on the
unknown sea they have crossed.

CHAPTER VI

Journal and Record of the Ship George — Death of Greenleaf Perley —
The Mate's Poetic Tribute— Last of the Old Ship.

'T'HE old log-books are now held as pre-
cious souvenirs by the descendants of
those who kept them in the long years ago.
The writer has before him a journal of the
ship George, celebrated for her many suc-
cessful voyages to the Indies. The names
of Samuel Endicott, master, and William C.
Lamb, first officer, are entered upon the first
page. The entries in these books, made
from day to day,— the distances run, some
days covering two hundred miles or more,
the "baffling winds," "flying clouds,"
" strong gales," " moderate breezes," etc.—
are of interest. The entry for May 25, 1822,
is as follows: "At i p.m. weighed anchor
and sailed from Salem harbor. At 2 dis-
charged the pilot. At 3 Thatcher's Island
bore N. 1^ E., distance 7 miles, from which

57

58 The Old Shipmasters

I take my departure. Latitude by obs., 42°
7' N." The mate added at the bottom of
his " remarks" the following: ',' God send us
safe to our distant port and return." It is
not to be wondered at that the first officer,
or mate, was in a serious frame of mind,
when it is remembered that he was entering
upon a voyage to Calcutta, from which he
would not return for a year or more. The
next day's entry was: " Light baffling winds.
At 2 P.M. spoke the ship Catherine from Cal-
cutta, bound to Boston ; 1 1 3 days out. Took
in and set studding-sails, as occasion re-
quired." The direction of the wind, courses,
and other necessary details were also en-
tered. The above is a sample of the daily
entries, varied, of course, to suit the con-
dition of things. The ship arrived at Cal-
cutta on the 22d of August, eighty-nine days
and five hours from Salem. She sailed for
her home port December 19th, and reached
it after a passage of one hundred and one
days, loaded with the rich goods of the
East. The George again sailed for Calcutta
the following June. The first day out the

Of Salem 59

mate was inclined to be a bit poetical, so he
wrote on the margin of his log :

" The topsails fill — embrace the wind —
And cast the George to sea ! "

This was another profitable voyage, and
there were many of the same kind which
followed. A few days before leaving Cal-
cutta, which was on the 14th of February,
1824, Greenleaf Perley, one of the crew,
died, and Mr. Lamb, the mate, who, as is
seen in many places in the journal, was
quite expert in the use of the pencil or pen,
devoted one whole page of the book in
drawing an elaborate headstone. On the
space at the top a weeping-willow is repre-
sented, and beneath the name and age of
deceased are some tributary lines. There
was not space sufficient on the tablet for
the five verses he composed, so they were
in part written at the bottom. The first
verse reads as follows:

" The youth ambitious sought a sickly clime,
His hopes of profit banish'd all his fears ;
His was the generous wish of love divine,
To soothe a mother's cares and dry her tears 1 "

6o The Old Shipmasters

Mr. Lamb, doubtless, was a very efficient
officer, but he never rose to the distinction
of master. This was not necessarily to his
discredit, as it was occasionally the case
that a first officer in every way qualified to
sail as captain would not assume the care
and responsibility of that office. It was
sufficient testimony to his ability and relia-
bility to know that he was able to obtain the
"billet " of first officer of so famous a ship.

It is interesting to note the following brief
record of the George. Her average outward
voyages to Calcutta were one hundred and
fifteen days in length, and her homeward
passages averaged one hundred and three
days. She was built in Salem in 1814, for a
privateer, by a company of ship-carpenters
whom the war had thrown out of work.
They had learned to build well, and they
had every motive in this instance to do their
best. But the war closed, and the un-
launched ship was converted into a " mer-
chantman " by the addition of another deck,
launched and sold. She was designed by
Christopher Turner, who had built, in 1801,

o

o

00

3
o

W

Of Salem 6i

for the Crowninshields, the sloop Jefferson,
thought to have been the first pleasure-
yacht ever launched in America.

The ship was named the George for Captain
Joseph Peabody's third son. Captain Pea-
body named a ship for every member of his
family. It was quite the fashion of the day
to name vessels thus. Captain Samuel Page
of Salem had ten children and had a ship
named for each of them.

The George measured in length no ft. lo
in., beam 27 ft., depth of hold 13 ft. 6 in.,
and, according to the measurement of that
day, 328 tons, equal to a present measure-
ment of about 228 tons. She took out specie
to secure her return cargoes, which con-
sisted mainly of indigo, with some piece-
stuffs of silk and cotton fabrics.

On her first voyage she sailed May 23,
181 5, and entered her home port again June
13, 18 18. Hardly a man on board was
twenty-one years of age. Samuel Endicott
of Beverly, who was on her first voyage an
able seaman, sailed on her second voyage as
second officer, and as first officer on her

62 The Old Shipmasters

third and fourth voyages, becoming master
on her fifth voyage.

Her supercargoes were : Samuel Barton,
nine voyages ; Samuel Endicott, two voy-
ages ; James B. Briggs, two voyages ; Eph-
raim Emmerton, Jr., two voyages ; Daniel
H. Mansfield, two voyages ; George W. En-
dicott, one voyage. Francis W. Plckman
and Augustus Perry each sailed one voyage
as clerk. In 1821, every man on board but
the cook could read and write, and he could
read. All but four understood navigation
and ' ' lunars. " They were not only of native
stock, but of the best blood of New England,
and quite fitted to profit by the opportunities
for discipline and instruction which made
the ship, under such officers as sailed her,
a school of seamanship equal to the best.
Her drill and appointments were worthy of
any navy in the world, and when her uni-
formed crews manned the captain's gig for
the interchange of courtesies between her
officers and their visitors in foreign ports, the
appearance they made elicited no little
praise.

Of Salem 63

Captain R. B. Forbes says that in his
early days on the ocean the George was
known as the " Salem Frigate." Her cooks
and stewards were black, and no yachtsman
of to-day carries a more famous cook than
London Ruliff or Prince Farmer, nor a better
steward than William Coleman or John
Tucker. The stories of her unrivalled speed
are countless, and her triumphs over rivals
and companion ships fill a bright page in
the history of Salem. Great odds were re-
peatedly laid in wagers on her speed, but
she never disappointed her backers. Forty-
five of the graduates of this training-school
became shipmasters, twenty chief mates, and
six second mates. She paid into the Treas-
ury of the United States, in duties on im-
ports in her twenty-one voyages, the sum
of $651,744. In 1836, she won her "free-
dom suit " of colors,— a fine set of silk flags
and signals presented by the Binian mer-
chants of Calcutta, and now in the hands
of S. Endicott Peabody, of Salem.

She was furnished with the best of the
old-time appliances, steered with a tiller, all

64 The Old Shipmasters

hands weighing anchor with the hand wind-
lass, cables, and standing rigging, all from
Salem "ropewalks." Such was the good
ship George — never beaten because fast in
light winds. Even famous clipper ships
with a record of over three hundred miles
a day could not outsail her. Her best run
(in 183 1) from the Cape of Good Hope to
the equator was twenty-two days ; from the
equator to Salem, nineteen days ; from the
Cape to Salem, forty-one days. This is be-
lieved to be the quickest passage from the
Cape to a North Atlantic port ever made
under canvas.

The George had her vicissitudes. In 1827,
she was chased by a schooner, a three-mast-
er — a rare rig in those days, — which proved
to be a slave-pirate, but she escaped with
ease. Twice she encountered terrific gales
and was badly wrecked, first, in Massa-
chusetts Bay in the dreadful snow-storm of
March, 1823— the worst storm in a genera-
tion, — and again in the Indian Ocean, a year
later, when a hurricane drove all hands
below but one man who was lashed to the

Of Salem 65

helm. On her arrival at Pernambuco in
September, 1828, forty days out of Salem,
she was leaking from ten to twelve hundred
"strokes" per hour. Her cargo was dis-
charged and she was stripped, hove down,
and her planking and copper sheathing re-
newed, all within forty-nine days, and at a
cost of nearly double the I5248 paid for her
hull when on the "stocks." In 1834, she
returned aleak in ballast from Gibraltar,
where she had lain seven months waiting
in vain for a cargo of quicksilver, her keel
loose, only five copper bolts holding, with
sheathing started and seams open. A silver
service of five pieces was presented to Captain
Balch by the commander and passengers of
the British ship Heroine, in recognition of
aid rendered in the Indian Ocean, after the
hurricane of October 29, 1836.

Finally, the George arrived from Calcutta
May 17, 1837, and was sold for the South
American trade. She sailed from Salem for
Rio de Janeiro, on her last voyage, in Sep-
tember, but not before her surviving officers
had stood on her quarter-deck once more,

66 The Old Shipmasters

and had enjoyed together a social hour in
her familiar cabin. If the list of guests at
this unique gathering could be produced, it
would be found to contain many of the best
names that have graced our commercial an-
nals. Freighted with the regrets of all who
recalled her in her prime, the famous craft
left this port for Rio de Janeiro, where she
was condemned, sold, and broken up on her
arrival. So the "line-of-battle-ship," the
"ocean-greyhound," the "Cup-defender,"
the Argonaut of trade — all alike find their
last haven in the junk-shop!

The picture of the George, reproduced on
another page, was the work of Edmund
Stone of Beverly, who sailed before the
mast in her from July, 1820, until April, 1821,
and who is the only person known to have
made a drawing of her. The names of the
captains who commanded the George at
different times, and the number of voy-
ages they sailed, are as follows: William
Haskell, one; Thomas West, three; Sam-
uel Endicott, seven; Thomas M. Saun-
ders, four; Jonathan H. Lovett, Jr., four;

Of Salem 67

Benjamin Balch, Jr., two; Jefferson Adams,
one.

The above record of the George is only one
of the many remarkable ones that might be

given

CHAPTER VII

Interesting Correspondence from the Salem Register — The Ships Ha:(-
ard (First and Second) — Model of the Frigate Constitution, etc.
— Commodore Bainbridge's Visit to Salem in 1813 — Captain
Charles H. Allen's Voyages — The Ships St. Paul and Mindoro —
Last of the Indiamen.

A CORRESPONDENT of the Salem Regis-
*^ ter, writing under date of May lo, 1 877,
to that paper, says:

" I find in the Salem Impartial Register of
May 14, 1 80 1, the following item :

"'The ship Haiard, Capt. Richard
Gardner, arrived at New York on Friday
last, in ninety days from Bengal, and forty-
five days from the Cape of Good Hope.
Left at the former port (Calcutta), ships
Adventure, Parr; Cyrus, Leach; bark Eli^a,
Lander.'"

This correspondent further remarks: "Can
any better passage than this, if equal to it,
be found in these times of clipper ships?

68

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 69

There may have been an equally short or
shorter passage, but the writer does not recall
any from many years of general familiarity
and notice of passages from east of the Cape
of Good Hope, or many in less than forty -five
days from the Cape, or even in that time.
The present bark Ha:{ard, nov/ twenty-eight
years old, and named after the old Hazard,
had made many voyages east of the Cape,
and several short passages, but was never
less than forty-seven days from the Cape to
Boston, her shortest time from there. The
old Ha:{ard was a noted sailer in her day.
She once made the passage from New York
to the harbor of Rio Janeiro in thirty-one
days. She made the passage from New
York to Java Head in seventy-seven days,
and completed the voyage by returning to
New York after an absence of only seven
months and five days. She also made
a voyage from New York to Rio Janeiro,
thence to New Orleans, and back to Boston
in two days short of four months, with full
cargoes each way."
In the east hall of the Peabody Academy

70 The Old Shipmasters

of Science are several full-rigged models of
ships of historical interest — a memorial
of the early commercial supremacy of
Salem, and a reminder of the work of the
East India Marine Society. Among the full-
rigged models are the Friendship, built in
1797; the brig Camel, captured from the
British in the War of 181 2; and the United
States frigate Constitution, the last a gift
from Commodore Hull in 181 3. From the
last-named model a national salute was fired
at the dinner in Hamilton Hall, given in 18 13
by the Salem Light Infantry to the gallant
commander of the old ship — Commodore
Bainbridge. The model was evidently dam-
aged by the performance, as a receipted bill,
now in possession of the Museum, shows
that a year later it was repaired by " British
prisoners of war" then held in Salem — "a
bit of kind-hearted irony on the part of the
old Salem sea-dogs who then conducted
the Museum," said a citizen.

The ship Mindoro, owned by Silsbee Pick-
man and Allen, the last of the many "mer-
chantmen" from Salem, which once proudly

Captain John Bertram (1796-1882), Shipmaster and Merchant.

Captain Bertram was a philanthropist, and dispensed large sums of

money for charitable purposes.

From an oil painting by Edward Parker.

Of Salem 71

sailed the seas in nearly every habitable part
of the globe, was "docked" at Derby
wharf in 1894. She was built in 1864, but
looked as trim and clean as when she came
from the builder's hands. As the ship moved
majestically up to the wharf, commanded
by Captain Charles H. Allen, Jr. — her first
and last commander, — the scene was grand
and inspiriting, calling up the long-slumber-
ing past. The Mindoro never left the wharf
again until she was sold in 1896. Soon after
the transfer of ownership, — the new pur-
chaser evidently having no regard for senti-
ment, — ^the brave old ship, so symmetrical
in form and appointments, was "stripped"
and degraded to a humiliating service — that
of coal carrier, to be "tugged " around by a
cheap and insignificant craft.

Captain Charles H. Allen went to sea
when in his "teens" and soon rose to the
position of master. He, at different times,
commanded some of Salem's most famous
ships. Captain Allen sailed from Salem as
mate of the Brookline, on July 2, 1833, and
was accompanied down the harbor and

72 The Old Shipmasters

nearly twenty miles out to sea by some of
the leading citizens, they returning in a pilot
boat. Among those present were Hon.
Stephen C. Phillips, merchant, and subse-
quently mayor and Member of Congress ;
Rev. John Brazier, pastor of the North
Church ; Rev. James W. Thompson, of the
First Church ; Rev. Charles W. Upham,
author of the History of Salem Witchcraft;
Captain Kennedy, master of the Brookline
on a former voyage ; Captain Lovett of
Beverly, and Mr. J. Porter Felt. Mr. John
Felt, a brother of the last named, related
to the writer that all the guests experi-
enced the utmost enjoyment of the trip
with the exception of the Rev. Mr. Brazier,
who suffered from sea-sickness. There
were those of the party, however, who
were so uncharitable as to attribute the
cause of his illness to the Rev. Mr. Up-
ham's cigar !

Captain Allen came from a seafaring
family, his father having been a shipmaster;
and three of his brothers "followed the sea."
William E. died in Gambia, Africa, while

Of Salem 73

mate of the brig Quill; Joseph A. died in
Havana, being mate of a ship ; and George
F. was lost overboard, in a gale of wind,
from the ship Celestial.

Captain Allen took command of the ship
Brookline in 1836, and of the ship St. Paul
in 1844, and completed five voyages in the
latter, but on the sixth she was lost in the
Straits of St. Bernardino. She was one of
the last Indiamen in a long line of celebrated
predecessors. Her hulk now lies stranded
on a desolate shore, and the ebbing and
flowing tides play in and about her decaying
timbers. This old ship was a typical craft
of the early part of the last century, stand-
ing high out of the water and having imita-
tion "port-holes " painted black on a wide
band of white. She really looked more like
a man-of-war than a merchantman. The old
craft still lives in the memories of some who
were school-boys sixty years ago, and who
used to climb her rigging and be proud of
their achievements.

Captain Allen returned from the sea in
i860, having rounded out fifty years of

74 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

service, and died in Salem in 1899 at the
age of eighty-nine years.

Note. — The following information touching the ship St. Paul is
from a citizen who well remembers her . ' ' The St. Paid, whose
measurement was about 463 tons, was a fine ship, built at Boston in
1833. Her stern was broad and square, in which were several large
windows, and above them were quaint carvings representing St. Paul
on the Isle of Malta shaking the viper from his hand. The figure-head
of the ship consisted of a striking bust of St. Paul. She made four-
teen voyages to IWanila and was lost in the last one in the Straits of
Bernardino. When in port at Manila the native boatmen used to
cross themselves whenever they passed the bow of the vessel, out of
reverence to the great Apostle the figure-head represented."

.d-

CHAPTER VIII

Fellow-Feeling among the Mariners — Love for their Native Land and
the American Flag — The Corsairs and their Atrocities — War with
Algiers — The Brave Commanders Decatur and Bainbridge.

'T'HE Marine Society, as has been stated,
* furnished many naval officers for the
Revolutionary War, and for that of 1812.
These men were not only hardy and cour-
ageous, but they were possessed of good
judgment, could be relied on in every emer-
gency, and had a strong fellow-feeling for
each other. No American suffering injus-
tice in a foreign port, however humble his
condition, ever appealed to the old captains
in vain. They were ever alive to the calls
of distress, and stood ready, at all times, to
rescue the perishing, even at the sacrifice of
their own lives. The American flag was a
rich heritage to them, and they held and

protected it as a sacred trust. It floated

75

76 The Old Shipmasters

from the main peak of their vessels at home
and abroad. An insult to the flag was a
personal insult to them. Whenever and
wherever it was assailed,

"They rushed to meet the insulting foe,
And took the spear, but left the shield."

As early as 1785 the Algerine corsairs be-
came troublesome to nearly every European
government in the capture of vessels and
their crews, and subjecting the latter to
slavery for the purpose of extorting ransoms
from their respective governments. These
outrages were at last extended to vessels of
the United States. Officers and crews sail-
ing under the American flag were captured
by the barbaric Algerines and held as pris-
oners, and every indignity imposed upon
them.

The Marine Society was the prime mover
in an undertaking which not only taught
the Algerines better manners, but eventu-
ally relieved the suffering natives from a
thraldom which had become destructive
and intolerable. On the 29th of November,

Of Salem n

1792, the Marine Society, realizing the con-
dition of affairs, took the following action :

''Voted, That the committee of corre-
spondence be desired to write Congress to
know if anything can be done for our poor
brethren prisoners that are confined at Al-
giers." From the old records it is learned
that in 1785 the corsairs captured two
American vessels — one of which was from
Salem— and held their crews, demanding
that a stipulated sum be paid by the United
States Government for their release. Fol-
lowing this act, other crews were taken in
the same way by these barbarians, and con-
signed to servitude. Sums ranging from
$2000 to $4000 per capita were demanded
for the release of the crews.

European governments had been in the
habit of acceding to the extortions of the
Dey — in order to protect their seamen — and
paid him annual tribute. In 1805, the
United States Government, following the
example of European governments, effected
a treaty with the Dey, who released the
captives on the payment of fixed amounts of

78 The Old Shipmasters

money, and an agreement by the Govern-
ment to pay him an' annual sum. The
amount to be paid down was |8,ooo,ooo,
with an additional consideration of the
present of a frigate worth 1 100,000. The
amount of annual tribute was to be 125,000.

The record shpws that in 1 794 the officers
and crews of five American ships, five brigs,
and three schooners were held as captives by
theAlgerines. Out of thirteen masters, eleven
mates, two supercargoes, four second mates,
and eighty-four seamen, only four had been
redeemed in February, 1794. The plague
soon after visited Algiers, and out of one
hundred and twenty-six captives only eighty
survived.

"Notices were posted in conspicuous places
in Salem, on February 10, 1795, requesting
the people to attend a meeting to be held
at the Court-House, on the evening of that
day, of which the following is the text :

" For the purpose of taking into consid-
eration the unhappy situation of the unfor-
tunate prisoners at Algiers, and to devise
some method for carrying into effect a gen-

Of Salem 79

eral collection for their relief, on Thursday,
the 19th day of the present month. The
meeting is called by the desire of the rever-
end clergy and other respectable citizens of
this town, who wish to have some system
formed that will meet the acceptance of the
inhabitants previous to the day of contribu-
tion. The truly deplorable fate of these
miserable captives loudly calls for your com-
miseration, and the fervent prayers they
have addressed to you from their gloomy
prisons ought to soften the most adamant-
ine heart. They intreat you in the most
impassioned language not to leave them to
despair, but, as prisoners of hope, let those
of them who still survive the plague, pesti-
lence, and famine, anticipate the day that
shall relieve them from the cruel scourge of
an infidel, and restore them to the arms of
their long-bereaved friends and country. It
is hoped the humane and benevolent will
attend, that charity may not be defeated of
her intended sacrifice in the auspicious festi-
val, when the New World shall all be assem-
bled, and the United States shall offer up

8o The Old Shipmasters

her tribute of Praise and Thanksgiving at
the altars of God,"

This was a day of national thanksgiving,
ordered by proclamation of President Wash-
ington ; hence considerations of a public
nature prevented the movement from being
carried into effect. But there is no doubt
that the action of the Marine Society and its
memorial to Congress prompted the Gov-
ernment to act in the matter. Subsequently
the Government effected a treaty with Al-
giers, as has been stated, by paying annual
tribute, and the prisoners were released. It
was not long, however, before the Mediter-
ranean pirates committed further outrages,
more American vessels were captured, some
of which hailed from Salem. The efforts of
the Government to protect its seamen seemed
to be of no avail. The Algerine officials
paid but little attention to remonstrances,
and, instead of trying to protect American
commerce, connived at the depredations of
the marauders. At last forbearance ceased
to be a virtue with the American Govern-
ment, and on the 2d of March, 1815, war

Of Salem 8i

was declared against Algiers. It was of but
a few months' duration, however, and De-
catur and Shaler, the American commission-
ers, concluded a treaty on favorable terms.
As the American squadron, which had con-
quered the Algerines, lay at Gibraltar, an
officer on board of one of the vessels wrote:

" It was a proud sight for an American to
see in a British port, just at the close of a
war with her, which the English thought
would have been the destruction of our
navy, a squadron of seventeen sails, larger
than our whole navy at the commencement
of the war. . . . You have no idea of the
respect which the American character has
gained by our late wars. The Spaniards,
especially, think we are devils incarnate; as
we beat the English, who beat the French,
who beat them— whom nobody ever beat
before, — and the Algerines, whom the devil
himself could not beat."

It was thus that the disgrace of paying
tribute to the Algerines was wiped out by
Decatur and Bainbridge. The United States
was the first nation to free herself from this

6

82 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

subjection. The Dey very reluctantly gave
up the idea of extorting tribute from the
Americans, fearing that other nations would
take advantage of it. He gave the commis-
sioners to understand that it was not the
amount of the sum he was particular about,
but that the receipt of something annually
from the Americans would add to his secu-
rity, if it were only a little powder. Com-
modore Decatur observed that he thought
it very probable that, if he (the Dey) insisted
upon receiving powder from the Americans,
his wishes would be fully gratified, but he
must expect to receive balls with it.

Salem merchants, shipmasters, and crews
were among the greatest sufferers from the
piratical captures of the Algerines, and it
was largely due to the united and persistent
efforts of the members of the Salem Marine
Society that the Government was at last
moved to take decisive action.

CHAPTER IX

Privateers in the Revolutionary War and that of 1812 — Captain Hara-
den and Other Brave Commanders — The British Navy Crippled by
American Privateers — Extracts from the Captain's Journal.

T ETTERS of marque/ or commissions au-
^ thorizing privateers to make war upon,
or seize the property of, a nation upon the
high seas, were issued by European nations
at an early period. Private vessels of two
nations at war with each other were de-
barred from destroying property or in any
way interfering with legitimate commerce,
unless granted letters-of-marque. Acting
without such authority was considered
piracy.

Naval warfare is not a pastime, nor is it
necessarily a duel of honor between two
warring powers in settling a dispute. This

' Letters-of-marque were abolished among European nations at the
Treaty of Paris in 1856.

83

84 The Old Shipmasters

being true, the destruction of war-ships and
the lives of men is recognized as lawful by
every nation engaged in war. Therefore, it
is both absurd and illogical to deprive a na-
tion, thus belligerently engaged, from crip-
pling an antagonist in every way possible,
even by the employment of privateers. By
this, war is not made more cruel. That
is a humane policy which aims to bring
hostilities to a close in the shortest time
possible. It is plain, then, that the most
effective agencies should be employed.
Had it not been for the privateers in both
the Revolutionary War and that of 1812,
this country would have experienced greater
loss and more suffering, and the result —
certainly in the Revolutionary War — might
have been different. Our improvised navy,
manned largely by the hardy fishermen from
Salem, Marblehead, Beverly, and other sea-
port towns, was most destructive to the
navy and commercial resources of Great
Britain. The navy of the Colonists at the
Revolutionary period did not pretend to
cope in open sea with the line-of-battle

Captain Chas. H. Allen, Commander of the St Paul, and
other noted ships.

Of Salem 85

ships of that country ; but the brave and
intrepid Yankee fishermen, many times in
their fishing " smacks," captured by ruse or
stratagem Britain's most formidable ships.
They were ever on the alert for an opportu-
nity to " cut out " from a hostile fleet some
straying frigate, and scores of times did they
succeed.

In the War of the Revolution the Colonists
were poorly equipped to measure strength
with the enemy, more particularly on the
sea. Our commerce was nearly ruined, and
it was all-important to success that the
commerce of Great Britain should suffer
likewise. At this period the merchants and
master mariners of Salem turned their ves-
sels into privateers. During the war, one
hundred and fifty-eight vessels of all kinds,
fully equipped and manned, were sent out
from Salem. These vessels had an arma-
ment of two thousand guns, and the aggre-
gate of the crews ran up into the thousands.
They took four hundred and forty-five
prizes in the war, and the vessels lost by
the Americans were less than fifty.

86 The Old Shipmasters

Among the brave officers who com-
manded privateers w^ere Jonathan Haraden,
Thomas Benson, John Carnes, John Derby,
Benjamin Crowninshield, John Felt, Simon
Forrester, Joseph Waters, Thomas Perkins,
S. Tucker, and William Gray. There were
also other well-known names in this con-
nection.

Captain Haraden, after rising to the posi-
tion of lieutenant in the navy, took com-
mand of the General Pickering, a. ship of
1 80 tons, and carrying fourteen six-pound-
ers, and a crew of forty-five men. In this
ship he sailed in 1780. Soon after leaving
port, he was attacked by a British cutter of
twenty guns and sixty-five men. After a
combat of two hours his opponent escaped.
As he entered the Bay of Biscay he fell in
with a British privateer of twenty-two guns
and sixty men. The meeting of the vessels
was in the night, and Captain Haraden
ran alongside unobserved, and commanded,
through his trumpet, the immediate surren-
der of his opponent or he would sink him.
This demand was complied with at once.

Of Salem 87

Nearing the port of Bilboa, a vessel was
seen coming out which the captured captain
said was the Achilles, an English ship of
forty-two guns, and one hundred and forty
men. "I sha'n't run from her," was the
cool reply of Captain Haraden. The Achilles
retook the prize, and as night drew on de-
ferred further attack until morning. At day-
break the Achilles proudly bore down upon
the Pickering, but the captain of that vessel
was not caught napping. The fight lasted
three hours, at the end of which time the
British ship was compelled to withdraw.
The Pickering immediately gave chase, but
the British ship being the lighter escaped.
Captain Haraden returned, recaptured his
prize, and took her into Bilboa.

The late Robert Cowan, who was on
board the Pickering at the time of the fight,
said that "the General Pickering, in com-
parison with her antagonist, looked like a
longboat beside a ship," and that " he (Cap-
tain Haraden) fought with a determination
that seemed superhuman ; and, although in
the most exposed positions, where shot flew

88 The Old Shipmasters

around him in thousands, he was all the
while as calm and steady as amidst a shower
of snowflakes. "

On one of his cruises Captain Haraden
fell in with the king's mail-packet on her
homeward trip. The two vessels closed in
upon each other, and after four hours of
desperate fighting, Captain Haraden was
compelled to haul off to repair damages.
Having put his ship in the best condition
possible, he loaded his cannon with all the
powder he had left, and ran down to the
packet, and hailing the captain, said: "1
will give you five minutes to haul down
your colors, and if they are not down at
the end of that time I will sink you."
The colors came down in just three min-
utes. This act is but an illustration of the
daring spirit which inspired the captains of
privateers.

During the war. Captain Haraden captured
over one thousand cannon and scores of rich
prizes. The Salem privateers crippled the
British Navy by intercepting the transport
and supply ships sent from England and

Of Salem 89

Nova Scotia to the troops in Boston and
New York. They cruised in the English
and Irish Channels, in the Bay of Biscay, and
hovered round every port of the enemy,
waiting for their prey. So disastrous was
their work that England finally had to
employ most of her navy in convoying her
merchant ships. During this time the rate
of insurance on British ships was raised
twenty-three per cent.

Captain Hezekiah Flint sailed in the
schooner Syntha from Salem harbor, and
proceeded for Hispaniola,. in sight of which
he was captured by a Bermudian privateer,
who put on board eight men and a prize-
master, taking from the schooner the mate
and three men, and ordered her to Bermuda.
After being on board the privateer eleven
days, one of the men, who had been ill-
treated, informed Captain Flint he wished
to retake the schooner, which being agreed
to, the next morning, about four o'clock,
they, with two others, took possession by
securely fastening the prize-master and men
in the cabin. They then shaped their course

go The Old Shipmasters

home, where they arrived in due time, bring-
ing nearly all the cargo with them. They
had to keep on deck after capturing the
schooner.

In the War of 1812, Salem was again at
the "front" with her privateers. She
equipped and sent to sea forty vessels with
letters-of-marque papers. Their tonnage
was 3405 ; armament, 189 guns, and the
aggregate number of men 2142. Boston
sent out only thirty-one vessels.

From the records it is found that the
schooner Fame of Salem was a fishing-boat
of but thirty tons, carrying two guns and
thirty men. She received her papers July
I, 1 8 12, at noon, and sailed in the afternoon.
She sent the first prize into Salem. Robert
Brookhouse was one of her commanders.
The Jefferson, a boat of fourteen tons, be-
longing to George Crowninshieldj sailed the
same day as the Fame, and sent the second
prize to Salem.

The America was considered the fastest
sailer afloat during the war. She made
several cruises under the respective com-

Of Salem 91

mands of Captain Joseph Ropes and Captain
James Cheever, Jr. She captured during
her first three cruises twenty-six prizes, and
sent property into port valued at $1, 100,000.
The following extracts are from the journal
of the America on her first voyage, when in
command of Captain Ropes.

JOURNAL OF THE "AMERICA"

"Monday, Sept. 7, 1812. — At half-past
1 1 o'clock weighed anchor and beat out of
the harbor.

"Friday, Sept. iith. — Carried away the
maintop-mast with five men aloft, but none
of them was injured.

"Wednesday, Sept. 23d. — At half-past 5
A.M., captured the British \>x\g James and,
Charlotte, Lavitt, master, from Liverpool
bound to St. John's. Cargo: coal, hats, dry-
goods, etc. Put Mr. Tibbetts, prize-master,
and six men on board, and ordered her for
the first port she could make.

" Friday, Nov. 6th, at 4 p.m., saw a sail to
the southward. Wore round after her and
made all necessary sail in chase. At 9 a.m.

92 The Old Shipmasters

brought her to and boarded her. She proved
to be the British brig Benjamin, James Col-
lins, master, from Newfoundland to England.

' ' Saturday, Nov. 7th, manned the brig with
Joseph Dixon, prize-master, and eight men,
and ordered her for the first port to north-
ward of Nantucket in North America. Took
the mate and seven men from the brig, and
left the captain, one man, and a boy on board.

" Wednesday, Nov. i8th, at 7. 30 a.m., saw
a sail bearing northwest by west. Let two
reefs from the topsail, and set the maintop-
gallant-sail in chase.

"Thursday, Nov. 19th, at i p.m., came up
with the chase and boarded her. She proved
to be the ship Ralph Nickerson, from Que-
bec, bound for and belonging to London,
with a cargo of lumber. Put on board John
Proctor as prize-master and eleven men,
and ordered her to America.

"Tuesday, Nov. 24th, at 7.30 a.m., saw a
sail bearing S.W. by S., and made all neces-
sary sail in chase. At 9 a.m. brought her
to and boarded her. She proved to be the
British ship Hope, from St. Thomas, bound

Of Salem 93

to Glasgow. Cargo: sugar, rum, and cot-
ton. The captain informed us he had left
a fleet three days previous, consisting of
forty-five sail of vessels, under convoy of
the King Dove and Scorpion, sloops of war.
Put on board Joseph Valpey as prize-mas-
ter and twelve men, and ordered her for
America.

"Wednesday, Nov. 25th, at 3.45 p.m.,
saw a sail bearing south, standing easterly.
Gave chase, and at 4.45 p.m. fired and
brought her to and boarded her. She proved
to be the British brig Dart, from St. Thomas
bound to Glasgow. Cargo principally rum
and cotton. The boat left the brig with Mr.
Sparhawk, Thomas Fuller, and five prison-
ers, but unfortunately the boat got under
the ship's counter and foundered. Mr.
Sparhawk, Thomas Fuller, and three of the
prisoners were saved; the other two prison-
ers were drowned. The captain put on
board Anthony D. Caulfield as prize-master.

"Sunday, Dec. 6th, begins with a hard
gale and squally, with rain. Several of the
officers and crew attacked with a very

94 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

troublesome inflammation of the eyes, which
disorder cannot be accounted for. Curtailed
the allowance of water to three and one
half pints per twenty-four hours.

"Wednesday, Dec. i6th, at 7. 30 a.m., saw
a sail to the southeast, and made all sail in
chase. At 8 perceived that she was a brig
steering to the eastward. At 1 1 brought her
to and boarded her. She proved to be the
British brig Euphemia of Glasgow, from La
Guayra bound to Gibraltar, John Gray mas-
ter, mounting ten guns, and navigated by
twenty-five men.

"Thursday, Dec. 17th, took eight guns
from the prize and put on board Archibald S.
Dennis as prize-master and eleven men, and
took from her the first and second officers
and twenty-one men. At 5 p.m. parted from
her and made sail.

"Thursday, Jan. 7, 181 3, at 3 p.m., saw
the land about Marblehead, and at 8 o'clock
came to anchor in Salem harbor."

The six prizes captured by the America
on this cruise were valued at one hundred
and fifty-eight thousand dollars.

CHAPTER X

Cruise of the Famous Privateer Grand Turk — How this Ship Escaped
from Two British Frigates — Fight of the Ship Montgomery with
an English Packet Brig — Bravery of Captain Benjamin Upton.

jVj EXT to the ship America, the brig Grand
Turk was, perhaps, the most noted
privateer in the War of 1812. Her cruises
and the daring of her officers and crew have
been the theme for many a winter's tale
around New England firesides when the
wild storms raged without. On occasions
like these the smallest school-boy has often
listened with rapt attention akin to awe as
some old adventurer on the " mighty deep "
has spun his yarns; and not infrequently
have lessons of duty and patriotism been
inculcated thereby. More impressively in-
structive to the young, and better adapted
to their comprehension than many of the
school-books which pretend to give an epit-

95

96 The Old Shipmasters

ome of our naval history, were the stories as
they came fresh from the lips of living parti-
cipants in the marvelous, even though there
were woven in occasional threads of fancy.
The Grand Turk, at one time a merchant-
man, as previously indicated, was a taut,
trim vessel of 310 tons burden, and a very
fast sailer. She carried eighteen guns and
a crew of one hundred and fifty men. Her
first commander was Holten J. Breed, who
was succeeded by Nathan Green, After a
cruise of one hundred and three days, she
arrived in Salem with only forty-four of
the original crew — ^the rest having been as-
signed to captured prizes — and fifty prison-
ers. She captured seven vessels, one with
an invoice of ^30,000 sterling, and had on
board goods to the amount of |20,ooo. Fol-
lowing are extracts from the journal of the
Grand Turk while on her last cruise.

JOURNAL OF THE "GRAND TURK"

"Sunday, Jan. i, 1813, at 12.30 p.m., got
under way, stowed the anchor, and cleared
the decks. At 2 p.m., passed Baker's Island.

Of Salem 97

"Friday, Feb. 17th, at 3.30 p.m., boarded
a catamaran for the purpose of gaining infor-
mation. She proved to be from Pernam-
buco, and informed us of there being eight
British vessels at said port. At 6 p.m., saw
Pernambuco.

"Sunday, Feb. 19th, at 5.30 p.m., saw a
sail in the north. At 9 a.m., boarded the
brig foven, Francisco, under Spanish colors,
from Pernambuco for London, with a cargo
of tea, coffee, sugar, and cinnamon, con-
signed to British merchants. By examina-
tion of one of the crew, who states the cargo
to be British property, and some letters and
invoices, I have every reason to believe the
property to be bona fide British. Accord-
ingly manned her with Nathaniel Archer as
prize-master, and ordered her to the United
States.

"Tuesday, Feb. 21st, at 5 p.m., saw a sail
in the south standing to the northward.
Lay by for her. At 6. 30, boarded her. She
proved to be the British ship Active, Jane,
of Liverpool, bound for Rio Janeiro to Ma-
ranham in ballast. Took from her seven

98 The Old Shipmasters

bags of specie, containing 14,000 millrees,
equal to 117,500, and manned her out to
keep company during the night. At day-
light boarded, dismantled, and scuttled her.
" Friday, March loth, at daylight the man
at the masthead described a sail in the east-
ern quarter. Called all hands immediately
and made sail in chase. Soon after saw
another sail on the weather-bow. Still in
pursuit of the chase and approaching her
fast. At 6.30, passed very near the second
sail, which was a Portuguese schooner
standing W.S.W. At 7, saw the third sail
three points on our lee-bow, the chase a
ship. At 8, discovered the third to be a
large ship by the wind to the north and
westward. At 10, being three-fourths of a
mile to windward, discovered the chase to
be a frigate, endeavoring to decoy us.
Tacked ship, and she immediately tacked
and made all sail in pursuit of us. Soon
perceived we had the superiority of sailing;
displayed the American flag and fired a shot
in defiance. At 11, the wind hauled sud-
denly to the westward. The frigate received

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Of Salem 99

a favorable breeze, which caused her to lay
across, and nearing us fast. At 11.30, the
frigate within gunshot; got out our sweeps
and made considerable progress, although
calm and a short head sea. Frigate com-
menced firing, got out her boats, and at-
tempted to tack four different times, but did
not succeed. Hoisted our colors and gave
her a number of shot. A ship to leeward, a
frigate also. At noon swept our brig round
with her head to the northward, and, having
the sea more favorable, left the chaser con-
siderably. The day ends with extreme
sultry weather; all hands to the sweeps,
and both ships in pursuit of us.

"Saturday, March nth, at dusk — Frigates
using every exertion to near us.

"Sunday, March 12th, 1.30 p.m. — Saw two
sail two points on our bow ; soon discov-
ered them to be the two frigates still in pur-
suit of us, and the enemy still holding the
breeze. At 5 p.m., light variable winds with
us and the enemy still holding the breeze.
Took to our sweeps. At dusk, the enemy's
ships bore S.S.W.

loo The Old Shipmasters

" Monday, March 13th, at 2 p.m., the ene-
my having been out of sight four and a half
hours, concluded to get down the fore-
topmast and replace it with a new one. All
hands busily employed. At 4, saw a sail
ahead standing for us. At 5.30, got the
new foretopmast and the topgallant- mast in
place, rigging secured, yards aloft, and made
sail in pursuit of the latter. At 7, came up
and boarded her ; she proved to be a Portu-
guese brig, bound from Bahia to Le Grande
with a cargo of salt. Finding ourselves dis-
covered by the British cruisers, and being
greatly encumbered with prisoners, con-
cluded to release them, and accordingly pa-
roled five British prisoners and discharged
ten Spaniards and put them on board the
brig, after giving a necessary supply of pro-
visions.

"Saturday, March i8th, at 2 p.m., came
up and spoke a Portuguese brig from Africa
bound to Rio Janeiro with a cargo of slaves.
Filled away in pursuit of a second sail in the
northwest. At 4.30, she hoisted English
colors, and commenced firing her stern

Of Salem loi

guns. At 5.20, took in the steering sails ;
at the same time she fired a broadside. We
opened a fire from our larboard battery, and
at 5.30 she struck her colors. Got out our
boats and boarded her. She proved to be
the British brig Acorn, from Liverpool for
Rio Janeiro, mounting 14 cannon and hav-
ing a cargo of dry goods. At 5.50, vs^e re-
ceived the first boatload of goods on board.
Employed all night in discharging her.

" Sunday, March 19th, at daylight, saw
two frigates and a brig on the lee beam, in
chase of us. Took a full boat load of goods
on board, manned out the prize with Joseph
Phippen and eleven men, and ordered her
for the United States. As the prize was in
a good plight for sailing, 1 have good reason
to think she escaped. One of the frigates
pursued us for three-quarters of an hour,
but finding that she had her old antagonist,
gave over the pursuit. Having on board one
hundred and sixty odd bales, boxes, cases,
and trunks of goods, which I conceive are
very valuable, and the brig's copper and rig-
ging being very much out of repair, and

I02 The Old Shipmasters

water scant, concluded to return home with
all possible despatch. As another induce-
ment, I have information of a treaty of peace
being signed at Ghent between the United
States and Great Britain, and only remains
to be ratified by the former.

"Wednesday, March 29th, at 4 a.m., saw
a sail to windward very near us, and tacked
in pursuit of her. At 8.30, came up with
and boarded her. She proved to be a Por-
tuguese ship from Africa bound to Maran-
ham, with four hundred and seventy-four
slaves on board. Paroled and put on board
said ship eleven British prisoners.

" Saturday, April 15th, boarded the Ameri-
can schooner Commit, of and from Alexan-
dria, for Barbadoes with a cargo of flour.
They gave us the joyful tidings of peace be-
tween America and England, which produced
the greatest rejoicing throughout the ship's
company.

"Saturday, April 29, 181 5, at 7.30 a.m.,
saw Thatcher's Island bearing northwest.
At 8, saw Baker's Island bearing west. At
9.30, came to anchor in Salem Harbor,

Of Salem 103

cleared decks, and saluted the town. Thus
ends the cruise of one hundred and eighteen
days."

The preceding extracts from the com-
mander's journal will serve to show, not
only the manner of life on board a privateer,
but the courage and daring of the officers
and crew. What was true in one case was
equally true of them all.

One of the fiercest naval engagements
during the War of 18 12 was fought by Cap-
tain Benjamin Upton, of Salem, in the pri-
vate armed brig Montgomery, of 165 tons,
armed with eighteen guns, against a large
English packet-brig with troops. This battle
was fought off Surinam, December 5, 1812.
The English brig, on sighting the American
vessel, hauled up her courses and bore down
toward her. After shots had been ex-
changed. Captain Upton ordered his antago-
nist to send a boat on board, which he
refused to do. Then commenced a terrible
conflict. The Montgomery delivered her
broadside, which was promptly returned by
the Englishman. The fight was commenced

I04 The Old Shipmasters

at 3 P.M. and continued until 8 p.m., when
the English brig laid the Montgomery aboard
on the starboard waist, the port anchor
catching in her after-gun port, the enemy's
spritsail-yard and jib-boom sweeping over
the waist guns. Under this condition of
things, the Montgomery kept up a fire of mus-
ketry and such guns as could be brought to
bear, which was returned with musketry by
regular platoons of soldiers. In this way the
fight continued for nearly an hour. The
Montgomery finally filled her foretopsail and
became disengaged from the enemy, break-
ing his anchor, making a hole in the Mont-
gomery's deck, breaking five stanchions,
and staving in ten feet of bulwark, with
standing rigging much cut up. She hauled
off for repairs, having several men killed and
a large number wounded ; among the latter
were Captain Upton and Lieutenant John
Edwards. It was thought prudent to go
north into cooler weather on account of the
wounded. The enemy was right glad to
escape. On the deck of the Montgomery
were found three boarding-pikes, one mus-

Of Salem 105

ket, and two pots of combustible material
belonging to the enemy. At one time the
Montgomery was on fire, but the flames were
extinguished.

The Montgomery was afterwards com-
manded by Captain Joseph Strout and was
captured by his Majesty's ship La Hoge
(seventy-four guns) and taken to Halifax.
The records make mention of the following
incident : "When Captain Strout, with his
son, who was with him, was going along-
side of the ship on the launch, another son,
a prisoner on board, hailed the father and
asked where mother was."

CHAPTER. XI

Fight between the Chesapeake and the Shannon — Bodies of Comman-
der Lawrence and Lieutenant Ludlow Brought to Salem from
Halifax in Brig Henry — Crew and Officers All Sea Captains — Im-
pressive Funeral Services and Imposing Procession — The Bodies
Entombed in Salem.

nPHE battle between the Chesapeake and
* Shannon, fought on the ist of June,
1813, was, perhaps, the bloodiest and most
desperate of any naval engagement during
the war. What made the whole affair more
solemn and impressive, not only to those
who were to be the active participants in
the fight, but to the anxious ones on shore,
was the formal and methodical way in which
the two frigates met by previous arrange-
ment. They closed in upon each other like
two wild beasts, although the officers and
men of the respective ships had had no
ill-will toward each other. It was nothing
more or less than an international duel — the

io6

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 107

prestige of national pride and courage being
the prize for which each side contended.

But the Chesapeake did not lose the great
stake for which she fought, certainly not in
the better and truer sense of that word, al-
though she was compelled to strike her
colors to the English frigate. Lawrence,
the brave commander, and his first officer,
Ludlow, showed to their admiring country-
men and to the world that they were made
of the kind of stuff of which heroes are
composed. It was a mere accident, after
all, that gave the victory to the Shannon —
a few lucky or unlucky shots. The battle
really took nothing from the prestige of the
American Navy. It was fought off Boston
harbor, and was plainly seen from Legge's
Hill, in Marblehead, by citizens of that town
and of Salem, and the heavy connonading
was also distinctly heard. No officer was left
on the deck of the Chesapeake undisabled
higher in rank than a midshipman. The ex-
pression of Lawrence, as he lay mortally
wounded, "Don't give up the ship!" has
passed down in, history, where it will remain

io8 The Old Shipmasters

as an incentive to patriotism for all coming
generations.

Several weeks elapsed before a detailed
account of the battle was received in Salem
and in Boston. The Shannon took the
Chesapeake to Halifax, where Lawrence died
from his wounds on the 5th of July. Lieu-
tenant Augustus C. Ludlow was also a
victim of the fight.

The members of the Salem Marine Society
and other citizens met together and made
arrangements for the recovery of the re-
mains of the officers named. Captain George
Crowninshield fitted and fully equipped the
brig Henry at his own expense, and sailed
for Halifax on the 9th day of August with,
perhaps, the most notable crew that has
ever left an American port, — every one,
with possibly one exception, having been
a shipmaster.

The officers and crew were as follows:
Captain George Crowninshield, command-
der; Holten J. Breed, first officer; Samuel
Briggs^ second officer ; crew : Benjamin
Upton, Jeduthun Upton, Jr., John Sinclair,

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Of Salem 109

Joseph L. Lee, Stephen Burchmore, Thomas
Bowditch, Thomdike Proctor; stewards :
Mark Messervey, Nathaniel Cummings. The
brig returned after an absence of eleven
days with the bodies of Lawrence and Lud-
low. Meanwhile great preparations had
been made for the funeral, and on Monday,
August 23, 181 3, it took place. Captains
Hull, Stttftrt* Bainbridge, Blakely, Creighton,
and Parker, of the United States Navy, were
the pallbearers for Captain Lawrence, and
the same number of naval officers acted in
like capacity for Lieutenant Ludlow. A cor-
respondent of a local paper of that day
writes as follows of the sad occasion :

"The day was unclouded, — as if no inci-
dent should be wanting to crown the mind
with melancholy and woe, — the wind blew
from the same direction and the sea pre-
sented the same unruffled surface as was
exhibited to our anxious view when, on the
memorable first day of June, we saw the im-
mortal Lawrence proudly conducting his
ship to action. . . . The brig Henry,
containing the precious relics, clad in sable,

no The Old Shipmasters

lay at anchor in the harbor. At half-past
12 o'clock they were placed in barges, and,
preceded by a long procession of boats filled
with seamen uniformed in blue jackets and
trousers, with a blue ribbon on their hats
bearing the motto of ' Free Trade and Sail-
ors' Rights,' were rowed by minute-strokes
to the end of India (now Phillip's) wharf,
where the hearses were ready to receive the
honored dead. From the time the boats left
the brig until the bodies were landed, the
United States brig Rattlesnake and the brig
Henry, alternately fired minute-guns.

"The immense concourse of citizens
which covered the wharves, stores, and
housetops to view the boats, the profound
silence which pervaded the atmosphere,
broken only by the sad reverberations of
the minute-guns, rendered this part of the
solemnities peculiarly grand and impressive.
On the bodies being placed upon the hearses,
they were covered with the colors which
they had so lately and so signally honored,
and conveyed at a suitable distance for the
procession to form.

Of Salem m

"The procession was under command of
Major John Saunders, and moved to slow
and solemn music, escorted by the Salem
Light Infantry, Captain James C. King,
through Derby, Essex, and other streets to
Rev. Mr. Spaulding's meeting-house on
Howard Street, where the funeral oration
was pronounced by Hon. Joseph Story, the
burial service being conducted by Rev. Mr.
Henshaw of Marblehead, Captain Peabody's
company of artillery firing minute-guns from
Washington Square.

"Conspicuous in the procession and in
the church were a large number of naval and
military officers, also the Salem Marine and
East India Marine societies, wearing badges,
with the Masonic and other organizations.
On arriving at the meeting-house, the coffins
containing the remains were taken from the
hearses and placed in the center of the
church by the seamen who rowed them
ashore, and who stood during the ceremony
leaning upon them in an attitude of mourn-
ing. The church was decorated with cypress
and evergreen, and the names of Lawrence

112 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

and Ludlow appeared in gilded letters in
front of the pulpit." A contemporary ac-
count also says: " The music was good and
appropriate, and the eulogy was such an
one as made veterans weep."

The bells in Boston were also tolled at the
same time, and minute-guns were fired from
the frigate Constitution and other war ves-
sels in Boston harbor. The bodies were
temporarily deposited in the tomb of Cap-
tain George Crowninshield in the Howard
Street burial-ground, and on the 3d of
September of the same year they were
conveyed to Charlestown, and thence to
New York by land, for interment in Trinity
Churchyard.

In 1849, the remains of Lawrence were
disinterred and removed to the site of the
present mausoleum in New York, erected to
his memory. The inscription it bears is
familiar throughout the country, — in which
is incorporated the immortal sentiment of
the dying hero: " Don't give up the ship! "

CHAPTER XII

Captain Thomas Fuller — His Capture by Pirates in 1832 — The Cap-
tain's Last IWeeting with One of the Pirates — His Narrow Escape
from Mutineers — Capture of Two Salem Ships by IVlalays.

T^HE story of the capture of the brig Mexi-
can, of Salem, by pirates in 1832, is a
matter of history, so but little need be said
about it. It may be well, however, to state
that after the pirates had secured their booty
(|2o,ooo) from the brig, they fastened the
officers and crew below, fired the vessel,
fled to their schooner, the Panda, and made
good their escape. The crew saw through
an opening in the ceiling that the brig was
on fire, and that a terrible fate was before
them unless something were done, and done
quickly, for their relief. Captain Butman
called to mind that there was a flue or ven-
tilator from the cabin up through the deck.
An opening was soon made through the

8

113

114 The Old Shipmasters

partition leading to the cabin, and he mount-
ed through the aperture, gained the deck,
and extinguished the flames, which had
been set in the steward's galley, and from
which great volumes of smoke were issuing.
He was just in season; a moment's delay
and the sails and rigging would have been
on fire, and the fate of all on board sealed.

Captain Thomas Fuller was, at the time
of the capture, a mere boy, and he was
roughly used by the pirates, one of them
knocking him down because he refused to
do his bidding. When the pirates were ar-
raigned for trial at Boston, Fuller was a wit-
ness, and was asked by the Court if he could
identify any of the prisoners. At that mo-
ment his eye fell on the desperado Ruiz,
who had maltreated him on the Mexican,
and quickly turning upon him he dealt him
a severe blow. This was the kind of "point-
ing out " he gave, not only to the Court but
to the pirate. Judge Story, in order to main-
tain the dignity of the Court, was compelledto
reprimand Fuller, but no further notice was
taken of the assault, if such it could be called.

Jacob Crowninshield, merchant and member of Congress
(1770-1808).

Mr. Crowninshield was appointed Secretary of the Navy by President

Jefferson, but declined the honor.

From an oil painting by Robert Hinkley.

Of Salem 115

Mr. Fuller was subsequently one of Salem's
foremost shipmasters, and sailed for many
years as captain of some of her famous ships.
To-day he is hale and hearty, though nearly
ninety-one years of age. He is courteous
and affable, but no one can fail to see that
he has a dignity and a bearing which at once
mark him as a man born to command. His
experiences on the ocean were many times
of a thrilling nature. On the loth of May,
1855, he sailed as master of the bark Lu-
oilla, of Salem, for the East Indies. The
cargo consisted of gunpowder, cotton cloth,
and specie to the amount of twenty-three
thousand dollars. He proceeded on his
voyage until the 19th day of June, when,
from information received from his officers
and from one or two of the crew, he became
satisfied that nearly all of the first officer's
watch, and perhaps others, were maturing
a scheme to murder him and capture the
vessel and the treasure on board. This in-
formation was cautiously and secretly given
to him, as the informants were trembling for
their own safety.

ii6 The Old Shipmasters

Captain Fuller was not long in planning
his line of action. He knew that he could
rely on his officers and on the steward, so
he gave orders to them to arm themselves
with knives and pistols, and stand ready for
duty at a moment's call. He had two blun-
derbusses in the cabin, which he loaded
nearly to the muzzle. The opportune mo-
ment came at last, and sallying forth with
those named above, the leaders in the plot
were " covered " by the firearms and ordered
to surrender. They were so taken by sur-
prise that they offered no resistance, and
were handcuffed without trouble. The
names of those placed in irons were Robert
Sands, Jean L. Harvey, and Abner Emerson.
Presumably these were assumed names, as
the men were "foreigners."

Captain Fuller immediately ordered the
remainder of his men aft so as to have bet-
ter control of them, his purpose being to
work the vessel into the nearest port. Being
then in latitude 7° 59' north, he steered for
Pernambuco. After the three men had been
put in irons, they declared that the other

Of Salem 117

watch was equally mutinous. The captain,
having no means by which he could con-
vince himself that this statement was not
true, and feeling that the vessel and prop-
erty were in danger, as well as the lives of
the officers, took every precaution possible
for safety and protection. The Lucilla ar-
med in Pernambuco in due time, and the
condition of things was at once reported to
Mr. Lilley, the American Consul, on the
loth of July. By order of that official, the
prisoners were removed from the vessel, and
also another seaman named Grant Carroll,
who had been one of the conspirators, but
who, on being guaranteed immunity from
punishment, signified his willingness to di-
vulge the whole plot.

At the hearing the next day, three of the
crew were examined as witnesses. Henry
Ewen testified that there was a plot in the
mate's watch to kill the captain and throw
him overboard, and that the mate had agreed
to take the vessel into any port the muti-
neers chose. This information was given
to him by James Rogers, after he was re-

ii8 The Old Shipmasters

lieved from the helm and had gone forward.
They wanted him to join them, and he re-
fused, saying that if they wanted to do any
murder they would have to do it themselves.
The same night Robert Sands told him to
say nothing about what had been told him,
and that they were going to accomplish
what they set out to do. The next day
he told witness that he was going to cut
the lower studding-sail halyards, for it was
their intention, when the mate came for-
ward, that one of their number should cut
him down with an axe while the other
came aft with pistols to put an end to the
captain, second mate, cook, and steward.

Question by Consul Lilley : "Do you
know to whom these two pistols, one dirk
knife, bag of bullets, four boxes percussion-
caps, one powder flask, two canisters of
powder and hatchet, belong ? "

"Yes, they were in the possession ot
Jean Louis Harvey and Abner Emerson."

James Rogers testified that Sands asked
him if it was agreeable to him to have the
' ' old man " thrown overboard. He, Rogers,

Of Salem 119

told him that he wanted two or three days
to consider the matter. He asked who was
going to take charge of the vessel, and was
told that Magoun, the chief mate, would
take her into any port they wished. Wit-
ness asked why they wanted to kill the
captain, and Sands said they wanted better
provisions.

Grant Carroll testified that he was urged
to join in the meeting, that he asked what
good they were going to get by it, and was
informed that they would get four or five
thousand dollars apiece. He was further
informed that all who did not join in the
plot would be killed as well as the officers.
The mate was to be called forward that
night and asked to join them. If he refused,
they would kill him. Then they would
wait until the other watch was called at
four o'clock in the morning, and when the
second mate came on deck they would kill
him, after which they were going down into
the cabin to kill the captain or wait until he
came on deck. Nothing, however, was
done that night. The next day another

I20 The Old Shipmasters

plan was formed. Witness testified that
when he went to the wheel to relieve Har-
vey, he (Harvey) gave him a pistol loaded
with two balls with which to shoot the cap-
tain when he came on deck to take the sun.
Robert Sands stood ready with a double-
barrelled pistol to shoot the second mate
when he came on deck. Harvey was at
work on a sail on the lee side, and motioned
to witness to shoot as the captain came up,
but as there was a misunderstanding be-
tween them, the one forward waiting for the
one aft to fire, the plan failed. Harvey asked
him why he did not shoot the captain, and
he said he could not.

The mutineers finally agreed to wait until
they got to Sumatra before they made an
attack, as they could get Malays enough to
help them. Witness further testified that if
the mate did join them they intended to kill
him after they had got the ship as far as they
wished, as he lived down in Salem, where
the captain also lived, and knew the owners,
and they were afraid he would tell. After
further testimony had been given, corrob-

Of Salem 121

orative of that which had already been
offered, the accused were adjudged guilty.
They were subsequently sent to the United
States by the consul, where they were tried,
convicted, and sentenced to a long term of
imprisonment. The chief officer, Mr. Ma-
goun, was found blameless, having had no
hand in the plot. Captain Fuller, after re-
cruiting his crew up to the maximum num-
ber, proceeded on his voyage, with the
inward satisfaction that, by his own cool-
ness and courage, he had saved not only
his life but much valuable property.

The shipmasters were constantly in the
path of danger and disaster while sailing on
their long voyages. The whale-ship Friend-
ship, Charles M. Endicott, master, while at
Quallah-Battoo was attacked by piratical
JVlalays. The first mate, Charles Knight,
was killed, and some of the crew seriously
wounded. The captain was on shore at the
time. Noticing some unusual movements
on board his ship, he resolved to return to
her in a boat with such of the crew as he
could find on shore; but while on the way

122 The Old Shipmasters

he observed three Malay boats, containing
in all some sixty men, pulling for the ship.
He saw that it would be useless for him to
contend against such odds, so he headed
his boat for Muckis, twenty-five miles dis-
tant, for assistance.

There he found three vessels, among them
the brig Governor Endicott, of Salem, H. H.
Jenks, master, and the ship James Monroe,
of New York, J. Porter, master. These ves-
sels at once sailed to Quallah-Battoo, to
rescue Captain Endicott's ship from its cap-
tors. Meanwhile the ship had been plun-
dered of its specie and other valuables. At
the time of the attack, four of the crew
jumped overboard arid swam a distance of
two miles before finding a safe place to land.
On the arrival of the vessels named, an attack
was made on the town, and the Friendship
was boarded and recaptured. Her voyage
having been broken up, the captain set sail
for Salem, where he arrived July i6, 1831.

The Eclipse, Captain Charles P. Wllkins,
of Salem, master, had a similar experience
on the coast of Sumatra in 1838. While the

Of Salem 123

mate and four seamen were ashore, a large
number of Malays boarded the vessel and
killed the captain. The crew escaped, some
by ascending the rigging, and others by
swimming ashore. The Malays plundered
the ship of everything movable and then
left. The men aloft descended, took a boat
and rowed to a French bark lying at an ad-
jacent port. The next morning, with assist-
ance rendered by the French vessel, the crew
returned to the Eclipse and found her desert-
ed. The mate took charge, and during the
following night set sail and left the island.

CHAPTER XIII

The Essential Qualities in a Shipmaster — Journal of Captain Stuart —
Ship Hard and Fast on Shore — Four of the Crew Sick — The
Situation Truly Deplorable — Supposed Pirates Prove to be
Friendly Dutchmen — One of the Siclt Sailors Dies — Again at Sea
— Strenuous Experiences in Gales of Wind — Visit from Captain
Derby of the Ship Margaret — Captain Carnes Discovers Pepper
Growing Wild on the Coast of Sumatra — Salem IMonopolizes the
Pepper Trade.

A SHIPMASTER might be a skillful navi-

gator and a strict disciplinarian and

still fail of success, if he lacked one great

essential— a practical knowledge of business

and the laws governing trade in different

countries, together with a ready faculty to

dispose of his cargo and purchase another

to the best advantage for home shipment.

Occasionally, however, the owners sent a

"supercargo" on a voyage to transact the

necessary business, and to attend to the

clerical work.

The journal of Captain James Stuart, which
124

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 125

he kept on a voyage to the coast of Java,
is of surpassing interest. He sailed from
Salem, September 25, 1801, in the ketch
Three Friends, for Mauritius, Batavia, and a
market. Extracts from

CAPTAIN STUART'S JOURNAL

"Judging myself up with the east of Ma-
dura, hove to. At midnight made sail and
stood off and on till 7 a.m. To my great
surprise found we were driven quite to the
eastward on the coast of two small islands.
Ends light breezes.

"Jan. 13. — At 2 P.M., the wind having
died away and finding we still lose ground,
brought to in 25 fathoms water in fine sand,
the current running by log 2^ miles E. by S.
At 7 A.M., having a small breeze from the
south'd made sail with the intention of pass-
ing to north'd and west'd of the northern-
most isle, but the wind falling off, brought
to again. I went on shore ; could find no
fresh water ; shot several small birds. This
island is surrounded with sand shoals,
stretching on the N.W. part \\- miles intg

126 The Old Shipmasters

the sea on the eastern, northern and south-
ern parts half a mile. Saw several fishing
prows. Went on board. Ends wind N. W.

"Jan. 14. — Begins with fresh breezes from
northwest. Came alongside two prows
with turtle. These people appear not so
ferocious as the people of Java. Finding it
impossible to round the island, hoisted out
the pinnace and sent her to seaward to see
if we could pass to leeward.

"Jan. 15. — At 2 P.M., by signal from the
boat, found that a safe landing-place had
been found, weighed anchor and stood
down ; passed between the islands, having
from 12 to 14 fathoms water; hereabouts all
sandy. Hauled upon the wind with inten-
tions to pass to the westward of Gilbonn (?),
but the wind heading, obliged us to bear
off and pass between that and Hog Island.
At 6 A.M. cleared both, being in a fair way for
the Straits of Bally. At night heavy thun-
der and lightning with very black clouds.
At 7 A.M. the wind very light and inclining
to southward ; the straits in sight, bearing
south-southwest, distance twelve leagues.

William Gray (1760-1825).

Mr. Gray owned, in 1807, fifteen ships, seven barks, thirteen brigs, and one

schooner, or one-fourth of the tonnage of the port of Salem. His stately

mansion was subsequently occupied as a hotel (the Essex Coffee

House). Mr. Gray was elected Lieut. -Governor of Massachusetts

in 1810-11.

From the original portrait by Stuart.

Of Salem 127

"Jan, 16. — Begins with fresh, contrary
wind ; beating into the straits ; having got
half way in, the wind falling off and current
against us, came to anchor in 23 fathoms,
sandy ; the Java shore distant one half mile.
At half past 6 p.m., the current having
shifted, weighed anchor and drove down
with the stream ; light airs from the Java
coast ; at dark lost sight of the Margaret,
which ship we had previously seen. The
wind being from the western quarter, car-
ried us quite on the Bally side of the current,
carrying us round a point, and shortly after
within a cable's length of the shore. We
drove along the shore a few minutes when
we found 30 fathoms water. Let go
the stream anchor and brought her up at
about 150 feet distance from the rockS;
Here we rode a short time. At 9 p.m. came
a light air off the land, the boat being ahead,
cut the cable, not having time or opportu-
nity to heave it up ; in a moment the wind
died away, and came right on shore. All
sail being set, she took aback and in an
instant she struck.

128 The Old Shipmasters

"We immediately hove over our after
guns, started all the water casks and wood
off deck, and, in short, everything that could
tend to lighten her, but it was all to no pur-
pose. She remained hard and fast. It
was supposed little could be done on our
part, the current running five to six miles an
hour, the wind, what there was, right on
shore; four men sick. Fired minute-guns as
signals of distress ; was answered by the
Margaret, who, owing to her superiority in
sailing, had anchored in Palambang, also by
the Dutch battery. Our situation at this
time was truly deplorable, driven on shore
on this savage and inhuman coast of Bally,
our vessel on her beam-end, and four of our
men sick and not able to work one of our
great guns ; the idea of losing our ship and
cargo, ourselves massacred by the savages,
when we were in some measure relieved
by the appearance of Captain Derby from
the Margaret, with six men, who, on learn-
ing our situation, left us and went back to
the Dutch settlement to procure prows in
order to lighten us.

Of Salem 129

" At 3 A.M. saw three prows approaching
us fast, full of men ; concluded they were the
savages. Finding it impossible in our weak
state to defend ourselves, ordered all the
powder and arms down the forecastle, which
was closed, and which I knew we could
defend to the last, being accessible only
in one place, naturally we supposed they
would not set fire to the after part of the
ship, for sake of plunder, and if they did it
would be as well to remain where we were.
Everything being in this train, and they
within hail, 1 ordered one of the boats
alongside. It was manned by Dutch sol-
diers and they were sent by the Governor of
Palambang to defend us from the savages.
The officers came on board and ordered all
the black soldiers to make fires on the beach
abreast the vessel. In the morning came
Captain Derby with boats, prows, etc.
Landed all our spare spars and carried them
to slack water; carried our short anchor out
and took out two prows of coffee. Ends
fine weather.

"Jan. 18.— Begins fine and pleasant. At

13° The Old Shipmasters

8 P.M., the tide having risen to its usual
height, hove her off ; not having any wind,
lay at anchor all night. In the morning
brought on board all our spars, and at lo
A.M., coming up a breeze, weighed anchor
and stood toward Palambang. At 5 p.m.
came to anchor in six fathoms.

"Jan. 19. — Went on shore with Captain
Derby to wait on the governor and thank
him for his assistance to us. When we
landed we found his coach waiting, which
carried us to his house, a sort of castle, situ-
ated in the fort, having a drawbridge, over
which we passed. Being introduced to the
governor, we were not only pleased with
his manner, but surprised with his generous
and open behavior. The pleasure with
which he beheld us safe in his truly hospita-
ble house is not easily described, suffice it
to say that during the whole of our stay
here we had the happiness of seeing his
friendship towards us daily increase. Nor
did he even stop here, but loaded us with
presents on our departure, when, after we
had procured wood and water and fresh

Of Salem 131

stock and satisfied all around us, we set sail
on the afternoon of Jan. 22.

"Jan. 23. — Begins squally, with rain at
3 P.M., the current setting south ; weighed
and stood out ; light wind, made small way.
At midnight died John Kenny of relapsed
fever and dysentery. Buried him in the
deep.

"Jan. 24. — Begins and continues with
light winds. At 7 p.m. the S. E. part of the
island of Java bore N. W., distance seven
leagues. Three men sick ; the ship Mar-
garet in company.

"Jan. 25. — Begins pleasant; at i p.m.
felt an uncommon motion ; sounded and
found no bottom ; concluded it to be the
effects of an earthquake ; at 2 felt two small
shocks more, all of which was felt by the
Margaret. Heavy swell and fresh gales ;
obliged to take in sail at sundry times. Re-
duced all sail except the close-reefed topsail;
at 3 a.m. experienced a very heavy gust of
wind ; began to take in the topsails as fast
as possible ; at 4 a.m. sounded the pumps
and found she had eighteen inches water ;

132 The Old Shipmasters

took in mainsail and foretop-mast staysail;
remaining under the foresail; all hands to
the pumps, without distinction; she still
keeps gaining; took in the foresail and set
main-staysail.

"The water having increased to thirty
inches in the weather pump, the wind blow-
ing a severe hurricane, one man dead and
three others sick, our situation was again
deplorable. At 9 a.m. fired signals of dis-
tress to the ship Margaret, and wore ship
to the northward to see if she made as
much water on the starboard side. In
wearing, a sea broke on us and carried
away our stern boat, some beef, a live bul-
lock, etc. We soon found she did not leak
so bad on this side. At meridian freed her;
could receive no assistance from the Mar-
garet. Ends hard gales.

"Jan. 26. — Begins with heavy gales and
high sea; wore ship to southward; all hands
to the pumps. At 3 a.m., thirty inches of
water; wore ship to northward; at 10 a.m.
freed her again; the water thick with sugar;
wore ship to southward; started the re-

Of Salem 133

mainder of our water off deck; plenty of
coffee coming up the pumps; shipping much
water. Ends with high seas and heavy
gales.

"Jan. 27. — Begins with violent gales and
high sea; everything washed off deck. At
3 P.M., the water having risen to thirty-
two inches, obliged us to wear ship to north-
ward, in order, if possible, to free her. At 7
P.M., both pumps choked with coffee. Hav-
ing reduced the well to fifteen inches, at 9
P.M. got the starboard pump to work; kept
pumping all night until 4 a.m. we freed
her. All hands took some raw smoked-beef,
bread, and cherry rum, and dropped asleep,
being quite exhausted, not having slept or
been off deck for sixty hours. At 7 a.m., the
wind having died away, Captain Derby with
some difficulty came on board; found a leak
at the end of the transom; cut away the
quarter badges and found several more ;
carpenters employed stopping them, sev-
eral hands from the Margaret lending as-
sistance. Ends moderate with light seas.
Island of Lombok bearing N., distant nine

134 The Old Shipmasters

or ten leagues, and some land to eastward
also in sight.

"Jan. 28.— Begins moderate; employed
clearing the pump-well and putting the ves-
sel in order; all night moderate. . . .
At 8 A.M. the west end of Lombok bore
N.N.E., distance twelve leagues, from which
I take my departure, the ship Margaret still
in company. There is a coral bank on the
Bally side which runs off three-quarters of a
mile; my mate found it only two feet (depth
of water); here the tide flows about twelve
feet. This shoal I have not found in any
charts which I have seen. The currents
run here five to six miles an hour. . . .

" As I find myself perplexed about cross-
ing the equator — not having any directions
on homeward-bound journals on board-
after surveying the chart and coast of
America, the northwest direction of which
changes the southeast trades, especially in
summer, into a more south wind, the set of
the trade rushing towards the coast. The
increased rapidity and westerly character of
the current formed by these winds all tend-

Of Salem 135

ing to facilitate a passage, made me deter-
mine to cross the equator in 38° longitude.
I was not disappointed. . . . At 4 p.m.,
July 15, 1802, 'made Nantucket off the
wind-mill and hauled to Gay Head, it being
hazy.' July 16, arrived home."

CAPTAIN CARNES'S MYSTERIOUS VOYAGE

The first vessel that ever sailed direct from
this country to Sumatra was from Salem,
and a Salem captain commanded the last
American vessel that brought pepper from
that island.

Captain Jonathan Carnes touched at the
port of Bencoolen in 1793, and while there
learned that pepper grew wild on the north-
western coast of Sumatra. On his voyage
home it is quite probable that he built many
air-castles touching the immense wealth
which would accrue to himself and his native
city by trading with the Malays and monopo-
lizing the traffic in their great staple. Nor
were his wildest dreams unrealized, as the
subsequent commercial relations with that
port bore ample proof

136 The Old Shipmasters

He returned to Salem full of plans, schemes,
and hopes. He was not long in imparting
his important discovery to Jonathan Peele,
one of Salem's wealthy merchants, who
quickly saw the advantages to be derived
from carrying out the plans formulated by
the sagacious Carnes. Mr. Peele soon had
a schooner built suited to the trade contem-
plated, and she was placed in command of
Carnes. This vessel was named the Rajah,
and was only 130 tons burden, and carried
four guns, with a crew of ten men. She
left port in 1795, the destination of the ves-
sel being kept a profound secret, even to
neighboring merchants. The clearance pa-
pers of the vessel showed that her objective
point was India. The cargo consisted of
two pipes of brandy, fifty-eight cases of gin,
twelve tons of iron, tobacco, salmon, etc.

Eighteen months passed by and no tidings
of the Rajah came to the anxious Mr. Peele,
until one day, when it was more than prob-
able he had been peering seaward with his
trusty spyglass, she was discovered coming
up the harbor. The anchor was soon let

Of Salem 137

go and a boat conveyed Captain Carnes to
the wharf, where he received hearty greet-
ings from the Owner and his many friends.
The curious were not long in finding out
the character of the cargo, which proved to
be pepper in bulk, and was sold at a profit
of seven hundred per cent. It was the first
cargo of pepper imported into this country.
The merchants of Salem were anxious
to find out where the cargo came from,
but the matter still remained a secret. As
the Rajah was being prepared for another
voyage, the Salem merchants became more
curious and manifested a determination to
find out Captain Carnes's destination; so
they fitted out and despatched several ves-
sels for Bencoolen, at which port it was
known the captain had received his first in-
formation about his new port of trade. But
they were not successful, and their ventures
had to be turned in other directions. The
secret, however, was not of long duration.
At the opening of the last century the mys-
tery was swept away, and traffic with Sum-
atra was no longer a monopoly.

138 The Old Shipmasters

The brig Rajah and several other vessels
subsequently made successful voyages to
the island; among the most notable were
those of the ship America, v/hich made
two voyages under the respective com-
mands of Captain John Crowninshield and
Captain Jeremiah Briggs. On the first voy-
age in 1 801, she brought to Salem 815,792
pounds of pepper, and on the second, in 1802,
760,000 pounds of the same article. The
aggregate duty paid on the cargoes of these
two voyages amounted to 1103,874.03.

The trade with Sumatra soon assumed
such importance that a large part of the pep-
per consumed in this country was distributed
from the port of Salem, and, in fact, many
other countries had to depend largely on
Salem merchants for their supply of pepper.
As has been well said: " Salem was not only
the first at Sumatra, but the first to make it
safe for others to follow her lead, and as
long as American vessels visited that coast
their commanders were provided with copies
of the charts prepared by these Salem ship-
masters." In vessels of but 150 tons those

Of Salem 139

early captains boldly set sail for ports never
before visited by Americans, and without
chart or guide of any kind made their way
amid coral reefs and along foreign shores.

As late as 1831, when a United States
Government vessel sailed for the East Indies,
it was stated, in the journal kept, that it was
the original intention of the commander to
prepare charts and sailing directions for the
guidance of other mariners, but that he
found this duty had been much more ably
performed than it could have been by him
with his limited materials. For this im-
portant service the whole world is indebted
to Captain Charles M. Endicott and James
D. Gillis of Salem.

CHAPTER XIV

Voyage of Captain Nichols in the Ship Active — His Journal Replete
with Instructive Information — Description of the City of Funchal
— Catching Fish — St. Paul's Island — Pen-Pictures of Colombo —
Ceylon and its Coast — Meeting with Difficulty in Finding Market
for Cargo — Arrives at Madras — George Cleveland's Notes on
Nagasaki,

'T'HE ship y^^^/t)^^ of Salem, George Nichols,
* master, was in London in 1801, with a
cargo of Surat cotton, which was not al-
lowed to be landed and sold until Captain
Nichols had — under protest it is safe to say
— acquiesced in the arbitrary domination of
the rich East India Company. After dis-
posing of his cargo and taking on board
various kinds of goods, he proceeded to sea,
bound for Madeira.

THE captain's STORY

"We sailed with a pleasant breeze from

the south'd, which continued to carry us

clear of the English Channel, bound for Ma-

140

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 141

deira with spice and sundry kinds of English
goods adapted to the India market, with
bills of exchange to purchase wine at Ma-
deira. No vessel is permitted to carry goods
from England direct to the East Indies, as
this is the entire privilege of the company
(East India), but, to avoid the risk, most
vessels will clear out from England for Ma-
deira or Teneriffe, and thence clear for any
port they may wish.

"January 7, 1801. — Anchored safely in
Funchal roads. This is the only port which
is visited by foreigners. It is situated on
the S.E. part of the island. In the summer
season this port is considered as being safe
for shipping, but dangerous in the winter,
on account of the frequent gales of wind
from the south, at which time it is necessary
for all ships to leave the roads and put to
sea. The town of Funchal is the metropolis
of this island, and it is situated in a delight-
ful valley, in the form of a crescent. Its
streets are very narrow and paved. The
houses are principally of brick and painted
white, One of the greatest inconveniences

142 The Old Shipmasters

is in landing, which is upon a beach of sand
and small stones, where there is always a
surf, and, provided there is much wind in
the roads, the surf is so great as to prevent
any communication between the shipping
and the shore. Loading or discharging a
vessel is done by boats constructed for that
purpose, which will carry from five to eight
tons of goods each. The town of Funchal
contains about 15,000 inhabitants, principally
Portuguese, who are lazy and indolent to
the extreme. The merchants are, in general,
English and Scotch. Those with whom I
transacted my business were of the firm of
Newton, Guardon, & Murdock, one of the
first houses in the island.

"The produce of the island is principally
wine, of which article there are 16,000 pipes
annually exported. Provided it was inhab-
ited by any other people than Portuguese,
it would produce, exclusive of wine, every
necessary of life; instead of which, they are
dependent upon other nations for almost
everything they want. 1 think this might
be remedied by banishing the greater part

Of Salem 143

of the many priests and friars, who serve
only to oppress the inhabitants and encour-
age indolence.

"The best season for visiting this island is
in the summer, when the weather is always
warm and pleasant, and the island under
a state of cultivation. 1 was never more
pleased with any place, although it was in
the winter season at the time of my being
there. From the roads you have one of the
finest prospects imaginable — the great num-
ber of handsome seats rising one above
another almost to the summit of the highest
mountains, which are frequently lost in the
clouds, together with the beautiful verdure,
which appeared upon every part.

" Having completed my business I sailed
from this place for Colombo on the nth of
January. . . . Saw Palma and Ferro, the
two most westward of the Canary Islands.
On account of steady breezes, shaped my
course to go about fifty or sixty leagues to
the westward of them, and had strong gales
and tolerably pleasant weather to the lati-
tude of 5° North, where I left the N.E. trades;

144 The Old Shipmasters

thence to the equator had a great deal of
calm, flattering weather, and most part of
the time heavy rain, which enabled me to
fill up my empty casks with fresh water.

"On the eighteenth day from Madeira,
crossed the equator in longitude 21" 31' west
of Greenwich; at same time met the S.E.
trades. . . . Brisk gales and pleasant
weather to latitude of about 30°, when 1 left
the trade winds; thence to latitude 38° had
light breezes and variable; after that had
most part of the time strong breezes from
the westward until I arrived at the island of
St. Paul, keeping between the latitude 38°
and 39° 30', which island 1 saw on the
24th of March, having been from Madeira
seventy-two days. It is a small but very
high island, and may easily be seen at the
distance of fifteen leagues in clear weather.
It abounds in seals and its coast with fish.
The weather being moderate, 1 took four
hands with me in the boat and went inshore
to get some fish; being abreast of the south-
west part of the island, was obliged to go
close in with the surf, as the sounding is

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Of Salem 145

but a very little distance off, excepting from
the north part of the island, upon which
part is the only landing-place. There being
at this time a large swell, 1 did not attempt
to go ashore, but caught in about thirty
minutes, with three lines, ninety fish, averag-
ing about six pounds each, which I may
with safety say were equal to any fish 1
ever saw. They are in form very much like
a haddock, but in other respects different
from any fish I have ever seen. They are
extremely fat and of a delicious flavor.

" Crossed the equator in longitude 79° 30'
east of Greenwich, and from leaving Ma-
deira 89|- days; thence to Point de Galle had
light breezes. Friday, 17th April, saw the
island of Ceylon, Point de Galle bearing
east, distance four or five leagues. The
wind being from eastward, 1 coasted along
shore, from three to four miles distant, and
the same day anchored off Colombo, in nine
fathoms of water. This harbor is very easy
of access and safe during the northeast mon-
soons; but the southwest winds blow di-
rectly in, which makes it very unsafe for

146 The Old Shipmasters

shipping in the southwest monsoons, viz.,
from the ist of May to the ist of December.

" Colombo, which is the metropolis of the
island of Ceylon, is situated in lat. 7° N.
and long. 80° 6' E. of London. The com-
merce of this place is very trifling. The
imports are very little, but its exports are
more considerable. The staple commodi-
ties are cinnamon, pepper, arrack, cocoa-
nut-oil, and cordage. The cinnamon has
formerly been monopolized by the Dutch,
and is at present by the English East India
Company, who are in possession of all the
plantations which produce it. This place is
very seldom visited by foreigners. There
are but few merchants here, and even these
are not able to purchase goods to a great
amount. Specie is so very scarce that 1 be-
lieve it would have been impossible to have
obtained 20,000 rupees on any terms; and
the produce which is to be obtained is un-
suitable for return cargoes to Europe or
America.

" The streets are tolerably clean, and regu-
larly laid out. The houses are in general

Of Salem H7

but one story high, built of dirt and chenam.
Still there are some which are occupied by
the governor and principal people which are
handsome. There are not any public edi-
fices which deserve notice. It is said to be
strongly fortified toward the sea, and is gar-
risoned by a considerable number of troops.
Its harbor is well calculated for business.
Beef, pork, and poultry are tolerably cheap
and plenty. The market is extremely well
supplied with most kinds of tropical fruits
and vegetables.

" Having nothing further to remark, ex-
cepting that after lying here three days with-
out being able to sell any part of my cargo,
I departed for the Coromandel coast, intend-
ing to stop at Pondicherry, and from thence
proceed for Madras.

" I shall endeavor to describe the coast of
Ceylon as far as it comes within my view.
Between Point de Galle and Colombo the
back land is very high, particularly Adona
Peak, which may be seen in clear weather
fifteen or sixteen leagues, but the land near
the sea is so low as to be scarcely seen at

148 The Old Shipmasters

three leagues. ... In sailing this coast
the land had a beautiful appearance, being
very level and quite covered with cocoanut-
trees; from which produce great quantities
of arrack is made. After leaving Colombo I
was prevented from approaching the coast
of Ceylon near enough to describe it, it
being the season for the shifting of the mon-
soon, and the weather began to assume an
unfavorable aspect, for which reason 1 did
not come any nearer than just to see the
high sand.

"1 experienced a northerly current of
about half a mile per hour until 1 reached
the extreme of the island. . . . Being
wrongly informed respecting Pondicherry, I
stopped there expecting to find a market for
a part of my cargo, but could not dispose
of anything. There is not a person in the
place doing business, and excepting the gar-
rison of about one hundred Europeans there
were not one hundred white persons in the
place. The few foreign articles required
came from Madras. 1 arrived here on the
20th of April, and as I sailed again the

Of Salem 149

same day it is not in my power to say much
respecting the place. It is well known to
have been one of the greatest places for
business in India when in possession of the
French, but since it was taken by the Eng-
lish it has been entirely neglected, as evi-
dently appears to a person on first entering
it. The houses are in general handsome,
and some of them very elegant, but every-
thing appears to be in a decayed state. Es-
tates that were at the commencement of the
present revolution very valuable may be
purchased for a trifling sum.

"The streets are handsomely laid out,
and near the centre of the town is a large
square, which I imagine was formerly used
for a parade. . . . The anchorage is
abreast of the town in from six to eight
fathoms of water. From one and a half to
two and a half miles off ^shore, like all other
places on the coast, it always has a large
surf, in which no ship's boats can land.
They have large boats constructed for the
purpose, which, instead of being nailed, are
sewed together. I sailed from this place on

I50 The Old Shipmasters

the 26th of April, and arrived at Madras in
about twelve hours. The ' Presidency ' is
considered as being one of the greatest com-
mercial places in India.

"There were about 160 vessels lying in
the roads, of different nations. There is no
harbor and it is one of the worst roadsteads
on the Coromandel coast. There are most
of the time fresh breezes and a strong cur-
rent, which occasion rough sea and make
the shipping to labor very much, and it is as
disagreeable a place as ever I was at. Madras
is strongly fortified, both towards the roads
and the town by the Fort St. George. The
greatest part of the business is transacted
within the fort and at the residences of most
of the white merchants. The houses in the
fort are, in general, very handsome, and
built from a composition of stone and dirt
and cemented and plastered with chenam,
and painted or whitewashed.

" The houses in the suburbs are built from
the same materials, but are much smaller
and are in general destitute of neatness and
elegance. . . . The imports of the place

Of Salem 151

are great, consisting of almost every article of
the manufacture of Europe — wines, brandy,
Geneva porter, cheese, hams, etc., which
articles are principally supplied by the India
Company's ships, and they always have the
preference in the sales of a foreign vessel.
. . . The exports consist principally of
cotton, manufactured goods of different de-
scriptions, and of a superior quality to the
Bengal goods, and the prices are much
greater. There is a duty of 2^ per cent, on
all goods exported.

"Foreigners who bring cargoes to this
place find it difficult to get specie for their
goods, it being very scarce. For certain
reasons they take their payment in the
goods manufactured upon the coast. . . .
The inhabitants of Madras are composed of
almost all nations. The native population
are indolent and inoffensive. Their prince
or sovereign— the King of Arcot,— who re-
sides in the vicinity of Madras, may with
propriety be considered a prisoner, as he is
continually guarded by the English, and al-
lowed no communication with foreigners

152 The Old Shipmasters

without a special permit from the Governor.
He is said to be allowed a handsome salary
from the India Company and also the title
of king, but not the least power.

" Living at Madras is extremely dear, par-
ticularly to put up at a public house, for
which reason it is the general custom, with
those who tarry as long as three or four
weeks, to hire a house and keep "bachelor's
hall," which is much less expensive. The
market is well supplied, but every necessary
of life is very dear. Every person who has
any business keeps a palanquin, with six
servants to carry him about. Respecting
the customs of the natives, 1 am sorry that
it is not in my power to describe them. I
can only observe that they profess a great
deal of superstition with regard to their re-
ligion, etc.

" Having completed my business, 1 em-
barked on Tuesday, June 2d, and sailed from
the placie, bound for Salem. As the S.W.
monsoon was at this time blowing in its
full force, it was unfavorable to my course.
Had pleasant gales and a smooth sea to the

Of Salem 153

westward of Cape Aquilla, but the weather
being hazy prevented me from seeing it as I
passed its meridian, latitude 35° 20'. . . .
During the time of my being on the banks,
and also to the eastward, had from 20 to
35 miles currents every day, which, I judge,
set to the south and westward, trending
with the coast. We had soundings on the
bank of Nantucket, and on the 25th arrived
at my desired port, Salem."

Journals from the sea are never devoid
of interest. Following are extracts from a
diary kept by George Cleveland, clerk to
Captain Samuel Derby, master of the ship
Margaret.

NOTES ABOUT NAGASAKI

"We sailed from Salem on the 19th of
November, 1800, bound for Sumatra, having
$50,000 in specie on board, and a small as-
sorted cargo. Bencoolen roads, Sumatra,
was reached on the loth of April, 136 days
from Salem. Without stopping to trade at
Sumatra, the vessel proceeded to Batavia,
arriving there on the 25th of April. While

154 The Old Shipmasters

at the last-named port, Captain Derby made
a bargain with the Dutch East India Com-
pany to take the annual freights to and from
Japan, and left for that place with his cargo,
June 20, 1801."

The Margaret arrived at the port of Naga-
saki July 19th, being obliged to fire salutes
and dress the vessel with flags before enter-
ing port. The Margaret was the first Salem
vessel, and the second American vessel, to
visit Japan. The ship Franklin, of Boston^
commanded by James Devereux, of Salem,
was the first American vessel which traded
with Japan. Commercial intercourse was
not opened with that country until half a
century later; the American treaty, the re-
sult of the expedition under Commodore
Perry, which opened the Japanese ports to
the world, being dated March 31,1 854. Pre-
vious to this time all the trade with Japan
was in the hands of the Dutch, who were
obliged to submit to the grossest indignities.

" In the first place, we went to Facquia's,
an eminent ' stuff' merchant. Here we were
entertained in such a manner as we little

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Of Salem 155

expected. We had set before us as a repast,
pork, fowls, meso, eggs, boiled fish, sweet-
meats, cake, various fruits, and sacky tea.
The lady of the house was introduced, who
drank tea with each of us, as is the custom
of Japan. She appeared to be a modest
woman. The place we next visited was a
temple, to which we ascended from the
street by at least 200 stone steps. Adjoin-
ing this was the burying-ground. We went
next to the glass-house — which was on a
small scale, — thence to a hardware mer-
chant's, where we were entertained with
great hospitality. Thence we went to a
tea-house, or hotel, where we dined. After
dinner we were entertained with various
feats of dancing and tumbling. Towards
dark returned to the island, and so great
was the crowd in the streets to see us pass
that it was with difficulty we could get
along. The number of children we saw
was truly astonishing. The streets are nar-
row, and at the end of every street is a gate,
which is locked at night. The houses are
of two stories, built of wood.

156 The Old Shipmasters

"The Japanese observed one feast when
we were there. It was in remembrance of
the dead. The ceremonies were principally
in the night. The first was devoted to feast-
ing, at which they fancy their dead friends
to be present. The second and third nights
the graves are lighted with paper lamps,
and, situated as they are on the side of a
hill, make a most brilliant appearance. On
the fourth night, at 3 o'clock, the lamps are
all brought down to the water and put into
small straw barks, with paper sails, made
for the occasion, and, after putting in rice,
fruit, etc., they are set afloat. This exhibi-
tion was very fine.

"As the time was approaching for our
departure we began to receive our returns
from the interior — brought many hundred
miles. These consisted of the most beauti-
ful lacquered ware, such as waiters, writing-
desks, tea-caddies, knife-boxes, and tables.
We also received a great variety of silks,
fans in large quantities, and a great variety
of porcelain. The East India Company's
cargo had already been put on board. The

Of Salem i57

principal article was copper, in small bars.
The company's ships have been obliged to
take their departure from the anchorage
opposite Nagasaki on a certain day, to the
lower roads, no matter whether it blew high
or low, foul or fair, even if one thousand
boats should be required to tow them down.
We, of course, had to do as our predeces-
sors had done. Early in November we went
to this anchorage and remained a few days,
when we sailed for Batavia, where we ar-
rived safely after a passage of a month."

CHAPTER XV

stories of Shipwreck and Disaster — Tile Wreck of tile Ship Formosa —
An Island Reached by Crew — Submerged at High Tides — Sail-
ors Build a Platform on Cocoanut-Trees — Loss of Ship Humboldt
— Captain Powars Tells a Thrilling Story — The Margaret Never
Returned.

"\ A7H0 can describe the horrors of ship-
wreck ? It is a terrible thing to be
stranded on a desolate shore amid the seeth-
ing breakers, where thunder the mad waves
as they lash the rocks; but infinitely more
terrible it must be when wrecked on some
distant sea, away from the usual track of
vessels, with the expectation that the ship
will go down at any moment, leaving noth-
ing but a frail boat for the officers and crew,
in which to cast about for succor and help.
The mariner, driven upon a lee shore, may
have strong hopes of being rescued, espe-
cially if he be on a civilized coast; but to be
on the broad ocean in an open boat, without

158

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 159

water or provisions, with the possibility of
starvation and a lingering death, is enough
to appall the stoutest heart. Salem has had
her share of marine disasters. Many are her

" Ships that sailed for sunny isles

But never came to shore."

In most cases the loss of vessels was not
the fault of shipmasters. For instance, in
thick and stormy weather, when there is no
chance to take the sun for several days,
when there may be strong and variable
currents, also sunken rocks and hidden reefs
to avoid, is it a wonder that, under such
circumstances, when a vessel is driven from
her true course, with no means of ascertain-
ing either latitude or longitude, she is over-
taken by disaster ?

The Formosa, one of the finest American
clipper ships then afloat, of some 1300 tons,
owned by Silsbee, Pickman, & Allen of Sa-
lem, sailed from Boston April 25, 1879, for
Madras, Manila, and Zebu, and went ashore
on Tweeling Island at the entrance to Allass
Straits, January 3, 1880. This shipwreck

i6o The Old Shipmasters

will serve to show how powerless the offi-
cers and crew of a ship are, under certain
conditions, to avert disaster. The following
extracts are from the ship's log-book:

" Friday, Jan. 2, 1880. Trying hard all
day to work out Lombok, but there being
such a strong tide the ship would .not mind
her helm. At 5 p.m. squared away for Al-
lass Straits. At 6 p.m. the center of Pandeto
Isle bore S.W. I S. Peak of Lombok, E.
by S. i S. At midnight the center of Twee-
ling Island bore south. . . . Through-
out, baffling winds with strong gales, then
dying out calm. Shortened sail to topsail.

" Saturday. — Northerly breeze. Ship not
making anything on account of strong tide.
At 6 P.M. a terrific squall. Wore ship; split
foresail, lower foretopsail, and blew foretop-
gallant-sail all away while hanging in the
buntlines; all hands unbending and rebend-
ing sails. At 9 p.m. set the topsail and main-
topgallant-sails. At 10 P.M. set the mainsail.
At 11.35 P-M. was called by the second
mate; he believed that we were pretty
near to the land. Went on deck and found

Of Salem i6i

the ship heading N.W. with a light breeze,
and considered her all right. At 11.55 P-m.
the mate again called me; found the wind
had died out and the ship would not steer;
sounded, no bottom at 58 fathoms; tried
to get her around as she seemed to be drift-
ing inshore; sounded again and got 15
fathoms; cleared away the anchor, it being
in the shoe. Next sounded, got 1 1 fathoms;
let go the anchor; next sounded and got
five fathoms, and ship touching forward in
the northern point of the western Tweeling;
time about 2.15, midnight; stern swung
around to the eastward and she grounded
hard amidships. Laid the kedge off on the
starboard quarter in 16 fathoms of water
and tried to heave her off, but could not.
As the port anchor would not hold, got
the stream anchor out with 90 fathoms
of 7|^-inch line in twenty fathoms of water;
took it to the windlass and hove, but could
not start her, as the tide had begun to fall.
Hove up the port bower and tried to lay it
out, but the rollers were so heavy that the
lashing parted and damaged both boats

1 62 The Old Shipmasters

by spreading them, so let it lay where it
dropped.

"As the tide fell, the rollers came in
heavier and she began to pound. The tide
continuing to fall, she came down with a
thunderous crash and the mainmast began
to settle. Kept pumps a-going at intervals
as the men could be spared from other
work. Sounded as soon as ship struck and
found 17 inches of water in the well. She
did not make much water until she began
to pound again. At 6.30 a.m. 35 inches in
well, and at 6.50 45 inches."

When the water in the well had risen to
ninety-five inches. Captain Reynolds, find-
ing it impossible to gain on the leak, com-
menced to land what he could from the
ship. The sight must have been disheart-
ening — ^that ship lying stranded and helpless
upon the rocks of a desolate shore, even
though it was but one of many similar
scenes in the experience of mariners. But
to return to the entries in the log-book.

"Jan. 4. At 12.50 P.M. the captain took
a boat and five men to procure assistance ;

Of Salem 163

the remainder employed in removing pro-
visions and water from ship, having found
a small coral patch which apparently will
be covered at high tide, but the only place
along the coast where we can so land at all.

"At 4 P.M. the captain returned. "No
assistance — no white man to be found. At
7 P.M. the water was up to the main hatch ;
ship lying over on the starboard side.
Thinking it dangerous to stop on board, we
all camped on shore. At daylight when
we boarded the ship, found the cabin half
full of water with all the masts a- settling.
Finding that the boats were liable to be
stove, rigged a raft and continued to save
all we could. At 8 a.m. a prow from Lom-
bok side with four natives came to us.
Having a man who could understand Malay,
captain made arrangements for them to take
him to Ampanam where he could get to
Souribaga."

Here the mate again gives an account of
the condition of the ship, which was fast
breaking up. Another calamity now stared
them in the face, and this was that when

1 64 The Old Shipmasters

the tide was high it would submerge the
island, so a platform had to be erected in
some cocoanut-trees for their safety and
protection,

"Jan. 10, there was another high tide
and the island was completely covered and
surf rolling in, endangering our stores.

"On the 13th of January, ten days after
the ship went ashore, all hands were taken
off the island by the steamer IVm. McKin-
non. Nothing was then seen of the Formosa
but the top of her masts."

Note. — The Formosa was on her homeward passage laden with
hemp from Manila, when lost. The underwriters paid $250,000 for
the loss of the ship and cargo.

Ill luck seems to have followed Captain
Reynolds, whose experience in the ship
Formosa has just been related. On his next
voyage he was in command of the ship
Humboldt, which sailed from Boston, Octo-
ber 18, 1882. Captain Powars — who was
first mate of the ship — tells the story of
her loss in a letter written to a friend in
Salem, which is of an unusually interesting
character.

Of Salem 165

WRECK OF THE " HUMBOLDT "

"The Humboldt sailed from Woo Sung,
at the mouth of the Shanghae River, the
following Autumn, and soon after leaving
port, the weather shut in thick and the
wind gradually increased. We ran through
Formosa Channel that day, and at 1 1 p.m.
were clear of all danger.

" Friday, noon, weather thick and blow-
ing heavily, with very high sea, ship making
a run of from 1 1 to 1 3 miles per hour. . . .
Saturday, noon, the weather worse; the ship
under lower fore and main-topsails; at 4 p.m.
the barometer very low; the ship was hove
to; in coming to the wind lost lower fore-
topsail, the men getting frightened and leav-
ing the braces. ... 1 went on deck at
8 o'clock, and Captain Reynolds went below
to try and get some sleep. ... I went
about hauling braces taut, and other ropes
that were slatting about. Had just finished
and was going forward along the main deck
to have a look at the lookout man, when I
heard a noise like distant thunder. I turned
to run to the cabin to tell the captain the

1 66 The Old Shipmasters

wind was coming from S.W., and at the
same time sang out to the man at the wheel
to put the wheel hard-a-starboard. Before
I got to the cabin door, the man on the
lookout shouted ' Breakers ahead ! ' and at
the same time a heavy sea broke on the
stern. 1 jumped on the booby hatch, from
there to the top of the after house, and sang
out: 'All hands on deck !' When the ship
went down on the next sea, the rudder was
unhung and the mainstay carried away at
masthead.

" We were gathered in the mizzen rigging,
up out of the water, and when the vessel
struck the bottom it was as much as we
could do to keep from being shaken off. It
could not have been more than five minutes
before we were over the reef and in deep
water again. As good fortune had it, the
ship kept bow on to the sea, for had she
laid broadside to it she would have been
turned end over end. Some of the men
were placed at the pumps, and others or-
dered to put bread and water into the two
quarter-boats. As soon as we were clear

Of Salem 167

of the breakers, the wind died out altogether.
We then went to work and got a hawser
up to use as a drag astern. Braced yards
around on starboard tack.

' ' At midnight the wind was blowing with
typhoon force, and the men were hard at
work at the pumps. About half past one
the weather looked brighter to leeward, and
we knew that meant breakers. I found the
captain standing by the mizzenmast, on top
of the house. I asked him to come up in
the rigging and take a look. He followed
me, but had not got far before he was satis-
fied that there were breakers under our lee.
He told me to run forward and let go both
anchors, and I should judge that by the
sound there were about ten fathoms of wa-
ter under us when the anchors touched bot-
tom. About 4") fathoms of chain ran out
before the ship came to the wind, and before
she did so we felt her touch the rocks. We
tried to stop her taking chain, but it was
impossible, as it would 'jump the wild cat'
with that strain on it, and so of course we
went into the breakers,"

1 68 The Old Shipmasters

After giving a description of cutting the
masts and other exciting scenes on board,
Captain Powars continued : " We went into
the cabin to try and keep ourselves as com-
fortable as possible, but had not been there
long before the ship broke in two in the
middle, for above the roar of the wind and
sea 1 heard a crash, and the partitions began
to fall down. All made a rush up the after-
way and got on the starboard quarter. As
fast as we could we put a turn of rope around
our bodies and held on. The beams that
propped us up gradually broke away. At
last we were so low that almost every sea
washed some of us down over the bottom
of the ship. The Chinese cook and steward
stopped in the cabin and were drowned.
At last a sea broke and washed some of us
off, myself among the number. As soon as
I rose to the surface and caught my breath,
I started to swim with the sea, and had not
taken more than a couple of strokes when
my foot struck something like a rock, and I
soon found I was where 1 could touch bot-
tom. I stood up and found the water only

Captain Joseph Peabody (i 757-1844).

Eminent as a merchant.
From the original portrait by Charles Osgood, a Salem painter of note.

Of Salem 169

to my waist, but, before I had time to look
around me, another sea struck me and 1
went end over end with it.

"When 1 reached the surface again, see-
ing a piece of the wreck, I went and got
on it. Shortly two men came along cling-
ing to a spar, and 1 called to them to come
to me, and they did so. We sat there a few
moments, when one of the men said he did
not believe we were drifting, and he jumped
overboard and found we were tightly jammed
in the rocks. All then took to the water and
started for the land. The men having no
shoes on, the coral cut them terribly at every
step. We were soon on the beach, where
we found others of the crew. Thirteen had
found their way to land. The men soon
began to complain of the cold, and tried to
keep warm by running about, but soon gave
that up, as they were so badly cut about the
feet with the copper of the ship's bottom.

" I sat down on a bale of goods, thinking
that the captain, second mate, cook, steward,
and three sailors were drowned, as there
were 20 of us, all told, on board the ship.

lyo The Old Shipmasters

. . . Daylight at last came, and one of
the men called out, ' There are others coming
ashore.'

" I looked in the direction he pointed and
saw four heads moving in the water, and 1
at first thought they were seals. Those of
us who could go ran down to the beach to
assist the men. . . . Three got on shore,
and as I turned back after the other, who was
at some distance, but coming to the shore
slowly, 1 found it was the captain. 1 should
never have taken him for Captain Reynolds.
He was as white as a ghost, and his face
was terribly cut up. . . . When we had
made the captain as comfortable as possible,
I started with one man to see what there
was on the island in the shape of water."

Here Captain Powars gives a description
of their "prospecting" trip, and the discov-
ery of water dripping through the rocks, and
other occurrences of intense interest. Some
of the provisions, canned goods, etc., drifted
from the wreck. There, on that desolate
island, the men remained for eight days,
until hope had nearly given way to despair.

Of Salem 171

" We knew if we got a fire we should be
all right for a long time, as there were plenty
of birds and shell-fish. . . . When I
awoke some one spoke to me, and I looked
up and saw it was one of the men. He told
me that a number of men were coming up
the beach towards us. I looked and saw
there were eight of them, and then lay down
again. He soon told me he believed one
was smoking a pipe, and that brought me
on my feet in an instant. Upon seeing me
they all shouted: ' We 've got a fire in camp ! '
They had accomplished this by using the
bull's-eye of the binnacle as a burning glass,
with the aid of a slow match, which had
been found."

The sufferers were at last rescued by the
British steamer Gordon Castle, Captain Wa-
ring, bound to Hong-Kong, which had been
driven from her course by wind and currents
during thick weather. The above narrative
is as full of fascination as the fictitious ad-
ventures of Robinson Crusoe, and marked by
as wonderful Providences as any detailed in
Cotton Mather's Magnalia.

172 The Old Shipmasters

THE "MARGARET" NEVER RETURNED

The ship Margaret, of Salem, to which
reference has been made, was wrecked at
sea, May 20, 18 10. She sailed from Naples,
homeward bound, on the loth of April, un-
der command of Captain Fairfield, with a
crew, including officers, of fifteen in num-
ber, together with thirty-one passengers.
She passed through the Straits of Gibraltar
the 22d of April. The following account is
from the captain's story:

" Nothing out of the usual course occurred
until the 20th of May, when, in latitude
40° N. , long. 39° 30' W. , having strong breezes
and rainy weather, took in royals, topgallant-
studding-sails, fore and mizzen topgallant-
sails, jibs, staysails, and mainsail. At me-
ridian, the weather continuing rough, the
foretop-mast studding-sail halyards parted,
the studding-sail fell overboard, filled with
water, and carried away the studding-sail
boom. The lower studding-sail spanker and
mizzen-topsail were taken in, just as a squall
struck the ship, and in an instant the fore
and main-topsails were clewed, and the or-

Of Salem i73

der given to let fly the sheets. The wind
suddenly shifted from E.S.E. to S.W., and,
although the helm was hard to weather, the
ship could not be got before the wind, but
was instantly hove on her beam ends.

"Every person on board being on deck
reached either the bottom or side of the ship
and held on. An axe was secured with
which the weather lanyards of the shrouds
and masts were cut away, which being done
the ship righted, being full of water, her
hatches off, chests, water-casks, etc., drift-
ing about. The guns, anchors, caboose,
and everything on deck were thrown over-
board to lighten the ship, but all efforts were
in vain, the starboard lanyards of the shrouds
being deep under water and fast to the ship,
and the sea making continual breach over
her. During this time the longboat was
being carried to and fro among the wreck
of spars, bottom up, the pinnace smashed
to pieces, and the stern boat lying at a short
distance from the ship full of water and
badly damaged. With great difficulty this
boat was bailed out. The longboat was

174 The Old Shipmasters

finally secured and hauled alongside the
ship, but it was found that its gunwales and
stern were broken entirely off, the wood
ends and garboard streak open, and large
holes in the bottom, so that it was found
impossible to bail the boat out, and it be-
came necessary to upset it again with the
hope of being able to stop some of the holes
in the bottom, which was in part effected by
driving the butts together and by putting
canvas into the larger holes.

"The boat was again turned over, and by
continued bailing with buckets it was kept
from sinking. It was now evening, and the
boat being hauled near to the ship for the
purpose of getting canvas and oakum to
stop the leak, as many men as could reach
the boat jumped into it, and finding it would
be again sunk if it remained so near the
ship, it was found necessary to veer it to
leeward of the ship at the distance of fifteen
or twenty fathoms.

"There were then twelve in the boat, and
soon another man jumped from the ship into
the sea and made for the boat. He was

Of Salem i75

taken in, but finding that all on board were
planning to pursue the same course, the oc-
cupants were obliged to keep farther off.
The situation of those in the boat was stated
to those on board the ship, and it also must
have been evident to them that every exer-
tion was made to keep it from sinking.

"During the night a rope from the boat
was made fast to the ship, but it was with
great difficulty that those on board were pre-
vented from getting into the boat and sinking
it. At this time there were thirteen in the
boat, and two men were kept constantly
bailing to keep it above water. The follow-
ing morning the weather was pleasant and
the sea was tolerably smooth. The people
on the wreck were in a deplorable condi-
tion, and the same could be said of those in
the boat. They kept entreating to be taken
into the boat, but were answered that if
any of them made an attempt to come
into it, its occupants, notwithstanding their
wretched condition, having no compass or
any instrument by which they could direct
their course, and not a single drop of fresh

i;^ The Old Shipmasters

water, would be compelled to cut adrift
from the ship.

"About this time two casks of brandy
and sundry other articles of the cargo drifted
past the boat, among which were picked up
the mizzen topgallant-sail, two spars, five
oars, one cask of oil, one drowned pig, a
goat, and a bag of bread. A keg of brandy
was thrown from the ship, which was
secured.

" It being now about 1 1 a.m., those on
the wreck were again determined to get into
the boat, and began by jumping into the
sea. The boat was veered round and farther
off from the ship, causing them to return.

"As it became evident that preparations
were being made to gain the boat by those
on the wreck, it was at last decided to cut
the rope and leave them. A sail had been
improvised from the mizzen-topsail, which
had previously been secured, and those in
the boat sailed away on their perilous voy-
age in the hope of falling in with some
vessel. The nearest land was some four
hundred miles distant. It was now about

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noon, with a moderate breeze from the
southward and westward. The course
steered was as nearly east as possible, and
in the direction, as near as could be judged,
of the island of Corvo or Flores. When
the ship was last seen she was lying in the
same situation as when the boat left her.

"The course was continued to the east-
ward, the winds being variable from south-
southeast to northwest. It required two to
be kept constantly bailing, and the only
guide the stars at night; and in dark, cloudy
weather, by the heaving of the sea; and in
the daytime, by judging from the bearing of
the sun, when to be seen, and when not, by
judgment alone. For four days the boat
continued in this situation without seeing
any vessel, but on Saturday, May 26th, at i
P.M., a sail came in sight, which proved to
be the brig Poacher, of Boston, Captain
James Dunn, from Alicant, who took on
board those in the boat. Nothing was after-
wards heard of the Margaret, and it is
supposed that those on the wreck found a
watery grave."

CHAPTER XVI

Short of Fresh Water Causes Alarm — Captain Williams's Invention to
Make Salt Water Fresh — His " Still " Described by him — Notes
on his Voyage — In Shoal Water.

'T'HE Master Mariners were indued with
* that element of strength which comes
from intuitive knowledge, as it were; hence
their natural resources were always ready
to be "drawn on at sight."

Captain Israel Williams sailed from Salem
harbor in 1798, in the ship Friendship, for
Batavia, to find a market. His cargo con-
sisted of the staples suited to the East India
trade. When in latitude 22° 50' south, and
longitude 21° 46' west, the ship's supply of
water gave out. Captain Williams was
thinking however. It was said that he was
uncommunicative, even to his first officer,
who often walked the quarter-deck with him.

Yes, he was meditating. A great responsi-

178

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 179

bility rested upon him. Not only were the
lives of his officers and crew in his hands,
but a valuable ship and cargo as well.

The captain went to his cabin in a
thoughtful frame of mind, not even notic-
ing that the careless helmsman had luffed
the ship up into the wind so that every
sail was flapping. When the captain again
made his appearance on- deck, he paced
back and forth for a while, and then accosted
his first officer as follows : " Get up one of
the empty beef barrels from the hold, also
one of the muskets and take the barrel out.
I 'm going to try an experiment."

It was water, pure fresh water, they
wanted.

"They were as rich in having such a jewel,
As twenty seas, if all their sands were pearls ! "

The rest of the story the captain tells in
his journal as follows :

"The following experiment for making
fresh water from salt water, after some little
reflection on the value of a due supply of
fresh water at sea, I have found very much

i8o The Old Shipmasters

to my satisfaction. That with little trouble
salt water will yield good fresh water there
is no question. Only with my ship's small
boiler to supply the ship's company, 19 in
number, in our necessitous circumstances, I
ordered my carpenter to fix a wooden cover
to the boiler as tight as possible, to which I
had a perpendicular wooden pipe or neck
bored with an inch auger, in length about
12 inches, in the top of which 1 had a box
fitted very closely, secured with two iron
hoops ; from the side of this box 1 had a
short oblique wooden pipe that entered an
old musket-barrel which had been taken out
of its stock for this purpose ; this 1 called
my ' worm,' and 1 passed it through a beef
barrel filled with water, set on head ;
through a hole bored near the upper chime
on one side, and through the bilge in the
opposite side thereof, it passed obliquely
from the box, or still-head, through the beef
barrel, and answered my purpose for a
cooler. The end of the barrel of the gun
came through the cooler about a foot, which
made it convenient to keep a bucket under

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to receive the water as it ran off. The
water we received from the above process
was remarkably clear, transparent, and fresh.
I put about a gill into each copper of water
of common wood ashes, the alkali of which
I presume made the water soft. It may not
be improper to observe that the box, which
I call the 'still-house,' was only 7 or 8
inches square, which, if extended, would
be more beneficial, as it would contain more
vapor and of course produce a greater quan-
tity of fresh water."

Further extracts from Captain Williams's
journal give a description of his approach
to St. Paul's Island, etc. :

" Dec. 15, at 5 P.M., we made the island
of St. Paul E. by S., 10 miles distant. St.
Paul's is famous for the resort of different
species of seals and vast numbers of birds.
It is very high land, rising to a majestic
peak in the middle, having a somewhat low
point making out from it to the southward ;
also one still - lower to the northeast or
thereabouts. Its peak is rarely seen, ow-
ing to the clouds which hover over it and

1 82 The Old Shipmasters

obscure the summit. We had the pecuHarly
good fortune to observe it when perfectly
clear and free from clouds, which lasted for
but a few minutes before the clouds began
to gather about it a few degrees below its
summit. The only indications I was enabled
to make of our approach to it were as fol-
lows : For two or three days before we
made the island, a monstroushigh and hol-
low sea from S.S.W. to S.W. attended us,
and no birds, as usual, before. The day
before we made the land there was an
amazing number of silver birds about the
ship, and when in sight of the island there
was no end to their numbers.

"We found the situation of the island
by our own observations to be in latitude
37° 52' south, and longitude from a good
lunar observation the morning we made the
land, to be 78° 9' east. Its longitude hap-
pens to be well determined as laid down
in the common books and charts, but its
latitude is grossly erroneous, which is laid
down generally 22 miles too far to the
northward.

Of Salem 183

" March 11, 1798, arrived at the point of
Ontonz, Java. Soon after passed Middle-
burgh Island, leaving it on the starboard
hand, and the Mud Bank from the aforesaid
point on the larboard hand. This channel
is narrow but esteemed safe by the Dutch,
they using it with their largest India ships.

"After passing by Middleburgh Isle it is
best, coming in, to edge away to the south-
ward a little to avoid two small coral spots
bearing from said isle W.S.W., having only
10 feet of water upon them, and g^ fathoms
right alongside ; from 9^ fathoms your ship
will ground before your leadsman can haul
up his lead. . . . The man in the chains
called 9^, and while hauling in the lead
briskly the ship stopped a few seconds, or
perhaps a minute, at which time we had
about 12 feet of water, the bottom coral. I
therefore pronounced this spot to be as up-
right as the side of a wharf, and of course
not a little dangerous, as when it blows
fresh with a swell. The charts have
near this spot two small spots laid down,
but without soundings or other description.

1 84 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

. . , Abreast of Middleburgh is gener-
ally a beacon upon the extreme part of the
bank of mud. At this time it was cut down
— as were all the buoys and beacons — for
fear of the English, from whom the Dutch
expected a visit"

CHAPTER XVII

Captain George Nichols Sails on Another Voyage in the Ship Active —
Inadequacy of Charts as a Guide for Mariners — Slaughtering
Seals — Strange Findings in Huts on Desolate St. Paul's Island —
Hogs and Fowls Roaming at Will — Shooting Black Fish — Arrives
at the Port of Muscat — The Natives and the Government — On
the Lookout for Pirates.

'T'HE incidents attending another voyage
* to the Far East by Captain George
Nichols in the ship Active are interestingly
described by him. The dangers he encoun-
tered in navigating his ship make evident
the inadequacy of the charts at that time
for giving the desired information to mari-
ners. The following are quotations from
the captain's log-book:

" I continued to have the wind from the
south'd and east'd to the latitude 34° S.,
being then in longitude 32° W. After that
had most of the time brisk breezes and pleas-
ant weather to the island of Tristan de Cunha
which I saw the 14th of February. . . .

185

1 86 The Old Shipmasters

March 8, 1802, I arrived in Table Bay from
a tedious passage of eighty-five days from
Salem. This place being so universally
known, it is unnecessary to describe it.
Having obtained my supplies, I sailed again
on the 12th for the Cape of Good Hope,
. . . On the twenty-first day after leav-
ing Table Island I saw the island of St. Paul.
As I have described this island in my voy-
age last year, shall not repeat it. I caught
as many fish as I wanted from the western
side of the island about one-half mile from
the shore, which were the same kind I
caught last year. Afterwards, in sailing by
the island, I discovered several tents or
houses on the northeast part. Being then
abreast the landing place, I took my second
mate and three seamen in the boat and went
on shore. I went in abreast of the tents
and found as safe a landing as at any wharf
in Salem, in a small bay, sheltered by the
rocks without from the sea. I immediately
set my people to kill and skin the seals,
which we did not find so plenty as they
were at the time I was here with Captain

Of Salem 187

Swett in 1796. Still 1 imagine several hun-
dred might be killed in a day. They would
weigh from one hundred to two hundred
pounds and were fierce when attacked. At
first my people were afraid to go near them,
but as the animals are very inactive when
on the land, there is not the least risk of
them, a small blow on the head being suffi-
cient to stun them.

" I sent my mate to the tents, ^ which were
about one hundred yards from the shore,
and he informed me that there were four of
them thirty to fifty feet in length, framed
with small timbers, and thatched with coarse
grass, with which the island is covered. In
one of these houses was a quantity of stores,
viz., tierce of rice, a cask of molasses, and
sundry other articles, together with many
cooking and carpenter's utensils, ten or
twelve hogs, and a great number of fowls,
all in good condition.

' Captain Nichols further observes that in one of the tents was a let-
ter mentioning that the buildings were erected by persons employed by
Mr. Perkins of Boston in a sealing voyage, and that the articles before
mentioned were left by the ship Thomas Russell of Boston, having
had bad weather at the time they left the island, and were unable to
take them off.

1 88 The Old Shipmasters

"Should the hogs and fowls remain un-
molested two or three years," continues the
captain, "there is but little doubt of their
stocking the island sufficient to supply the
wants of future navigators. Having an
ample supply of every necessary, 1 did not
suffer the least article to be taken away.
After remaining on shore about half an
hour, we skinned twelve seals and took
them into the boat with seven unskinned,
and went on board, and immediately made
sail and steered to the northward. After
leaving the island, had a very unusual spell
of calm, flattering weather, together with
head winds, until 1 met the south trade
winds, which was in latitude 30° south, being
then in longitude 87" 30' east of London.
Previous to meeting the trade winds on the
1 3th of April, had a great number of black-
fish round the ship. With a musket I shot
five of them, with five balls at the same
number of fires, one of which died in a few
minutes. Lowered the boat and towed the
fish alongside, but was obliged to cut it in
two in order to hoist it on board, which

Of Salem 189

I judged would weigh about thirteen or
fourteen hundred pounds, its length being
nearly thirteen feet, and, excepting its head,
which was not peaked, it very much resem-
bled a porpoise.

"For some time I had the usual trade
wind, and passed the equator on 95" east;
had most of the time calm, flattering weath-
er, and a strong, southerly current, setting
sometimes to the S.S.W. and south, and at
other times to the S.S.E. and S.E., from 12
to 30 miles in 24 hours. By lunar observa-
tion it set us about two degrees to the east-
ward in 10 days. From the equator I steered
for Hog Island, which I saw on the 4th of
May. This island is between 15 and 16
leagues in length, of moderate height, and
it is very broken, sandy, and covered with
trees. In coasting along the western side
there appeared to be a great number of
breakers, some of which lay a considerable
distance, particularly from the western ex-
treme, where, by my chart, there is a shoal
lying eight or nine miles off, but they did
not appear to me to lay more than four or

1 9° The Old Shipmasters

five miles from the shore. 1 had a very
clear view of the coast, and kept off shore
H to 3^ leagues. I passed between Hog
Island and another island which were very
erroneously laid down in my charts, which
places them N.E. distance six or seven
leagues from the north extreme of Hog Isl-
and, instead of which they lay nearly west
from the said extreme; the distance 1 judged
to be about six leagues.

" My port of destination, Muscat, not be-
ing described in any of my books, and its
latitude, given by several persons, not corre-
sponding nearer than 12 miles, embarrassed
me very much, and I was obliged to proceed
with great caution. The charts which I
have are English, and the latest extant, still
the coast about Muscat is very badly laid
down, and the winds and weather are not
better described in the East India Directory,
After several days of anxiety and fatigue,
came to anchor at Muscat. During the time
of my being- here, which was from May 14
to June 6, I had regular land and sea breezes,
and most of the time pleasant weather.

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" Respecting the natives here, I always
found them to be very friendly, but it is
dangerous to irritate them and to permit
many of them to be on board your vessel
at a time. They always have their knives
with them, and there have been instances
of their taking vessels, and 1 imagine they
are always willing to take advantage of a
good opportunity to do a like act. They
are naturally a very lazy, indolent people,
dirty in their persons, and have scarcely any
uniformity in dress. On their heads they
wear a handkerchief done up a little like a
turban, and about their loins are several
yards of cloth, which .reaches a little below
their knees, which is their only dress.

"Respecting their government or laws I
know but little. There are two ' datos ' or
chiefs, who appear to be the only ruling
men among them, and, apparently, all busi-
ness is regulated by them. From these per-
sons you purchase your cargo. I sailed from
this place, bound for Manila. . . . The
channel from Malacca and the Straits of
Singapore is narrow, and a little wind, with

192 The Old Shipmasters

a southerly current, will set a ship over
towards the Sumatra coast, which is full of
shoals; besides, it appears to be badly ex-
plored. Through these straits 1 consider it
to be the most expeditious route a ship can
go to the China Sea from any port in India
to the northward of the equator, provided
it is not earlier than the month of May; but
in April I would prefer going through the
Straits of Sunda. Working down the coast
of Sumatra the navigation is doubtless much
clearer, and small vessels are not so much
exposed to the attacks of the natives. In
these latter straits they have large prows
and many of them are well armed. There
are frequent instances of vessels having been
taken.

"I saw several of these pirates in the
Straits of Singapore, and 1 should not have
been safe from their attacks had 1 not been
in company with a large ship. I saw in
steering N.N. E. Poolo Sapata bearing N.E.,
distance six or seven leagues. Had a light
breeze from the south'd and a strong current
setting to the N.E., which, notwithstanding

Of Salem 193

every exertion, drew me down very fast
toward the island. Being within one mile
of it, and seeing no alternative, hove to and
let the ship down with the current, keeping
a good lookout, and standing ready to let
go anchor. Sounded often, but had no
ground at the distance of half a mile off the
island.

' ' Fortunately the current was setting di-
rectly through between the island and the
dangerous shoals lying to the south'd and
east'd of it. My anxiety was much greater
on account of its being dark. At sunset 1
was within two or three miles of the island;
at the same time saw the shoals above men-
tioned; distance from me about one mile. I
am convinced that I saw the rocks above
water. There appeared to be a clear chan-
nel of near two miles between the shoal and
the island, and, should I ever fall in with
this island again, in a like situation, I would
proceed directly through this channel, keep-
ing within one mile of the island. The
night being very dark 1 lay by several hours,
although I was some distance from land by

194 The Old Shipmasters

my chart and directions. At daylight the
weather was still thick, and it was raining
and blowing.

" At 9 A.M., saw the land. At first 1 sup-
posed it to be Goat Island. Shortly saw the
land bearing from E.N. E. to N.N. E. , distance
four or five leagues, which convinced me
that the first which 1 saw was Mindoro—
the north part — and the latter Luban. At
9 o'clock the next morning 1 passed between
the Haycock and the Conrigadora. July 12,
1802, came to anchor in Cavity harbor, in
three fathoms of water. As the situation
of Manila, and likewise every useful infor-
mation respecting it, must be better known
by several persons in the Salem Marine So-
ciety than would be in my power to com-
municate, I shall make but few remarks on
the place. Its commerce during the late
war in Europe has been extensive with for-
eigners, but the peace has much changed it.
The passage to this place is well described
in the India Directory, excepting in the
distance from Poolo Sapata to Goat Island;
the difference of longitude is described as

Of Salem 195

being 11° 30'. Between these islands it is
mentioned that there is not any current after
the monsoons set in, which advice 1 intend-
ed to adhere to in my passage to this place,
by the means of which I was near losing
my ship, as before observed. It is surprising
to me that the Directory should be so erro-
neous in observing that throughout the
China Sea there is but little or no current.
1 am certain that 1 never had less than from
20 to 30 miles current in 24 hours, during
the time of being in that sea.

" Having completed my business, I sailed
from the place the 12th of November.
March 20, 1803, arrived at Falmouth, Eng-
land."

CHAPTER XVIII

Dr. Nathaniel Bowditch — His Early Life in Salem — Difficulties in
Acquiring Knowledge — Test of Young Bowditch's iVlathematical
Ability — His Voyages as Supercargo — Correcting Errors in
Standard Nautical Works — Voyage to Lisbon in r 796.

A MONO the many eminent men Salem
■^ has produced, the name of Nathaniel
Bowditch stands out in bold relief. He was
born March 26, 1773, and died in Boston,
March 16, 1838. In his will is the following
"item":

"Whereas some of my relatives have
heretofore been members of that excellent
institution, the Marine Society at Salem,
some of whom have received the benefit of
its charity fund, under circumstances en-
titling it to my grateful remembrance, I do
now give to that institution the sum of one
thousand dollars, the income thereof to be
forever applied in aid of its charitable ob-
jects and purposes."

196

The Old. Shipmasters of Salem 197

A letter from his executors (two of his
sons), enclosing a copy of Dr. Bowditch's
will, in alluding to the bequest of their
father, has the following pleasant reference:

"He told us and all our children, at the
time of executing it [the will] that his
father, Habakkuk Bowditch, for nearly 20
years received from your charity fund the
annual sum of $15 or thereabouts, so that
his own food and clothing when a boy were
in part derived from this source. Under
these circumstances we felt, with him., that
he had incurred a debt of gratitude toward
your society which justified and indeed
required from him an affectionate acknowl-
edgment in return. And the legacy in
question was given with the full consent
and approbation of all his family."

Dr. Bowditch bequeathed a like amount
to the Salem East India Marine Society, of
which he had been president, and in which
he always felt the deepest interest, and
also to the Salem Athenaeum, whose advan-
tages in youth he considered of inestimable
value. "The above-named legacies," he

1 98 The Old Shipmasters

adds, " will, 1 trust, prove the regard which
1 have always felt towards my native town,
in which 1 passed so pleasantly the first 50
years of my life."

The following, from the resolutions of the
Marine Society on the death of Dr. Bow-
ditch, shows the respect in which he was
held by the members of that society :

" Resolved, That in the death of Nathan-
iel Bowditch a public, a national, a humane
benefactor has departed ; that not this com-
munity, nor one nation only, but the whole
world, has reason to do honor to his mem-
ory ; that when the voice of eulogy shall be
still, when the tear of sorrow shall cease to
flow, no monument will be needed to keep
alive his memory among men, but as long
as ships shall sail, the needle point to the
north, and the stars go through their wonted
course in the heavens, the name of Dr. Bow-
ditch will be revered as one who helped his
fellow men in time of need, who was and is
to them a guide over the pathless ocean,
and of one who forwarded the great interest
of mankind."

Of Salem 199

The writer has had access to the records
and log-books of the Salem Marine Society,
now deposited in the Essex Institute, and
from them he has gleaned much valuable
material. Recently, while engaged in his
research, he came upon one of the veritable
sea journals kept by Dr. Bowditch, which
is written in a delicate, even hand, and
contains much which is of value to the
public.

Dr. Bowditch sailed as supercargo on sev-
eral voyages from Salem ; in 1796 in the
ship Astrea, Captain Prince, to Lisbon, Ma-
deira, Manila, and other places. As he was
a member of the Marine Society, he was
compelled to comply with an article of its
by-laws, which was that every member
should furnish, for the society, a journal of
his respective voyages. Extracts from this
journal, kept by this famous navigator, will
be read with interest.

That Nathaniel Bowditch was eminently a
self-made man, no one can truthfully deny.
He was led to take an interest in the higher
branches of mathematical science, in 1787,

200 The Old Shipmasters

when he was but fourteen years of age.
This desire to gain knowledge was brought
about through the agency of an older
brother who had been to sea on a voyage
or two, and who, feeling the need of a bet-
ter education and of a knowledge of navi-
gation, as he intended to follow the sea,
attended an evening school while at home
from one of his voyages. On returning
home one evening, he informed Nathaniel
that the master had got a new way of doing
sums and working questions, for instead of
the figures commonly used in arithmetic, he
employed letters of the alphabet.

This novelty excited the lad's curiosity,
and as mathematical books of all kinds
were then scarce in the country, he man-
aged to borrow the book of the master.
That night he did not close his eyes, the
book being all in all to him. He copied its
contents from beginning to end, and soon
mastered every problem it contained. Sub-
sequently he got hold of a volume of the
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal So-
ciety of London, the greater part of which

Dr. Nathaniel Bowditch (1773-1838).

World-renowned navigator and author of scientific works. From copy by
iVliss A. W. Woodbury. After Charles Osgood. Essex Institute.

Of Salem 201

he also copied. He was too poor at the
time to purchase books, and copying was
the only mode of getting at their results.

When young Bowditch was at Madeira
in 1796, as supercargo of a ship, he and the
captain were invited to the house of Mr.
Pintard, the American Consul. Mrs. Pintard
had heard from an American shipmaster
that the young supercargo was a great cal-
culator, and she felt a curiosity to test
his capabilities. Accordingly, she said to
him at the dinner-table : " Mr. Bowditch, I
have a question which 1 should like to have
you answer."

He replied by saying that he would do his
best to comply with the wishes of his
hostess. Continuing, she said : " Some
years ago," naming the time, " I received a
legacy in Ireland. The money was there
invested, and remained some time on in-
terest. The amount was subsequently re-
mitted to England, where, also, the interest
was allowed to accumulate, and lately the
whole amount has been remitted to me
here. What sum ought 1 to receive ? " She,

202 The Old Shipmasters

of course, named the precise dates of the
several remittances, the original sums, etc.

Mr. Bowditch laid down his knife and
fork, and said that the problem was a little
difficult on account of the difference of cur-
rency and the number of the remittances,
but moving his hands as though counting
his fingers or some imaginary objects, he
replied, after a pause of about two minutes :

"The sum you should receive is ^843
155. 6^d."

"Well, Mr. Clerk," said Mrs. Pintard to
the clerk of the house, who was an elderly
man, and was esteemed a very skillful ac-
countant, "you have been figuring it out for
me on paper ; has he got it right ? "

"Yes," was the reply of the clerk, "he
has got it exactly right ! "

Mr. Bowditch, just before leaving Salem,
on his fourth voyage in 1799, was called on
by Edward M. Blunt, then a noted pub-
lisher of charts and nautical books at New-
buryport, and was asked by him to continue
the corrections which he had commenced
on J. Hamilton Moore's book on navigation,

Of Salem 203

then extensively used. This he agreed to
do, and while in performance of his promise
he detected such a multitude of errors that
it led to the construction and publication
of The New American Practical Navigator,
the first edition of which was issued in the
year 1807.

His extraordinary mathematical attain-
ments attracted the attention of navigators
and men of science in every civilized coun-
try in the world. Dr. Bowditch's fame as a
scientist rests on his translation and com-
mentary of the great work of the French
astronomer, La Place, entitled La Mecanique
Celeste. When he had completed his cor-
rections and additions to this book, half of
it could well have been claimed as his own
original matter. His long India voyages
afforded him time to gratify his desire for
nautical study, as well as for indulging his
taste for general literature. His heart was
big and generous, and he was ever ready
to impart knowledge to others; and he fre-
quently was seen instructing the common
sailor in mathematical science.

204 The Old Shipmasters

The following extracts are from the origi-
nal journal kept by Mr. Bowditch on a voy-
age to Lisbon in 1 796.

"We sailed through the northern channel
and came to anchor off Belen Castle. After
coming to anchor, Captain Prince went to
the castle to report the ship, but was not
suffered to land before the health officers
had visited. The same evening we had
permission from them to land the next
morning, when we were entered at the
custom-house by the vice-consul. . . .
All your powder (if you have any on board)
is taken out at an expense of $6 or $8, so
that it is better to throw it overboard than
report it, if you have only a small quantity,
not only on account of the expense, but the
detention, as you are not permitted to make
an entry at Lisbon before a certificate is re-
turned of your powder being in the custody
of the keeper of the Castle Belen. . . .
The number of excise officers, etc., make
the port charges considerable. The 'light
money ' is 25 cents per ton on vessels not
taking powder, and 6i cents on those that

Of Salem 205

load with wines and other Portuguese
products.

"The streets of Lisbon are very dirty, all
their filth being emptied into them, and the
passenger must take care not to have a tub
of suds, or something worse, thrown upon
him. About 120 davs- .ar&-set-aoailJiQ£^th€
worship of their-saiftt-s: — Brrth'e se-d ays-and
on Sundaysthe custom-ho,us£isjaQjLQEfiiJ£d
and CTcourse not much business is done.
The streets are always infested with beggars
of various denominations; sortie lazy, dronish
friars, others real objects of charity. Their
importunate manner of demanding alms is
really a very great nuisance.

"The tide runs very strongly in the river
Tagus. On May 5, 1796, I observed the
time of low water, jh. 15m. a.m., the moon
being in the meridian at loh. 27m. a.m.;
daily difference of coming to the meridian,
42m. ; whence, by allowing the time of high
water to be 6h. 12m. later than the time of
low water, the time of high water was ih.
27m. P.M., which is 3h. im. past the time
of the moon's southing. But, as the river

2o6 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

Tagus runs with considerable rapidity, it is
possible that the ebb continues longer than
the flood, and of consequence this time
ought to be decreased a little; perhaps it
would not err much from the truth to say
that on the full and change days it is high
water at 2h. 30m. p.m."

CHAPTER XIX

More about the Life of Dr. Bowditch — He Continues his Journal —
Interesting Incidents in Connection with Obtaining a Cargo —
Notes on Manila — Thieves Rob Captain Prince of $1000 — Pur-
sued, they Lose the Money Overboard from their Boat — Cargo
Worth a Million Dollars.

pvR. BO WDITCH'S journal contains much
'-^ that is interesting, but we can give
only a few further extracts from his notes
relating to Manila and impressions he jots
down from time to time.

DR. BOWDITCH 'S NOTES

"Monday, Oct. 3, 1797. Being in Manila
Bay, a boat came on board from John Stuart
Kerr, who calls himself an American, say-
ing he was born at Philadelphia. At 2 p.m.
the government boat came aboard with two
revenue officers. At 6 p.m. came to anchor
at Cavite. . . . Next day went in the

ship's boat to Manila. On our landing at

207

2o8 The Old Shipmasters

the custom-house we met Mr, Kerr, who
accompanied us as interpreter to the house
of the Governor. This visit must be made
immediately after you come ashore. Mr.
Kerr brought himself into a difficulty a year
or two after by carrying an American to his
own house before he had made a call on the
governor.

" After waiting on the governor we went
to Mr. Kerr's house (who at present is the
American Consul) and hired one end of it,
which was very convenient for shipping
goods, as the river ran at the back of it,
where the boats could come and load with
merchandise.

" Contracts were made with some China-
men for sugars to be delivered in five or six
weeks, as they could not take it from the
ports, dry it, and put it in bales in less time.
That which happened to be ready packed
was purchased and sent aboard immedi-
ately. . . . Most of the bags must be
examined by the sound, or else they will be
apt to turn you off with dark and wet sugar.
. . . They make but very little use of

Of Salem 209

molasses, as the government does not allow
of any distilleries, nor will it suffer any
spirit to be distilled from the cane, or any
to be imported. Of course we were forced
to call some New England rum, belonging
to the mate, by the name of brandy, or
aqua vitce, and the natives were so ignor-
ant of the quality that they absolutely took
it in preference to the best Cognac brandy,
which was offered at the same price.

" Manila is the only free port in the
colony ; the duties, or imports and exports,
are small. All goods imported are carried
into the custom-house, and appraised, and
a duty of 6 per cent, charged on them.
Dollars are imported free of duty, but pay
3 per cent, on exporting. . . . The price
of indigo when we arrived at Manila in 1796
was from 80 to 85 dollars per quintal, but as
the English ships, etc., had nearly com-
pleted their loading, and being non-purchas-
ing, we were able to procure it at a less
price, or at about 75 or 76 dollars per quin-
tal. Nearly all the indigo was purchased of
the natives in parcels from three or four

2IO The Old Shipmasters

pounds to several quintals. It was brought
to the house in bags like those in which
sugar is packed, then it was emptied in a
large tub and inspected. Mr. Kerr assisted
in inspecting most of the time, but in a
short time we learned to inspect it our-
selves. That which is light when broken,
free from flaws, etc., of uniform clear color,
is the best. If a few pieces were found of
an inferior quality, we made them deduct
several dollars from the price, but mixed it
in with the rest. If a large quantity of it
was found inferior, it was turned aside as
second or third quality. They are very apt
to wet their indigo just before offering it for
sale, which will increase the weight as
much as lo or 12 per cent To discover
whether it is wet, it must be broken and
the piece struck with the end of your nail.
If it leaves a clear copper color without
rising up at the side of the mark, as if soft,
it is probably dry. If a wet piece be
squeezed hard, it will appear cold and damp,
even when the outside appears dry ; for
when they wet it they take care that the

Of Salem 211

outside of the indigo shall appear quite dry.
. . . Fresh provisions are very cheap at
Manila. Fresh beef two cents per pound,
and white flour bread about the same as in
America.

" The city of Manila is about three or four
miles in circumference, is walled all around,
and cannon are placed at proper intervals,
but we were unable to get much informa-
tion with respect to the state of the place,
as they were shy of giving any information
to foreigners. The buildings within the
walls are all of stone, and none except the
churches is more than two stories high, on
account of the violent earthquakes which
they have generally at the breaking up of
the monsoons. The month of March is
when they most expect them, but on the
5th of November, 1797, we experienced
several violent shocks at about 2 p.m.,
which came from the northward and pro-
ceeded in a southerly direction, continuing
with violence nearly two minutes. It threw
down a large house half a league from the
city, untiled several buildings, and did much

212 The Old Shipmasters

other damage. It was not observed on
board the ship lying off the bar. The
motion of the earthquake was quicker than
those usual in America, as the latter are
generally preceded by a rumbling noise ;
the former was not.

"The suburbs of Manila are very exten-
sive ; most of the business is done- there.
The houses of the wealthier class are of two
stories, built of stone ; the poorer sort live
in bamboo houses with thatched roofs. No
house can be built in the suburbs without
the particular permission of the governor,
fearing if they were too high an enemy
might make use of them for attacking the
city, as was the case when the English took
the place formerly, for one of the churches
near the \yalls was very serviceable to them.

"All the women have a little of the
Indian blood in their veins, except the lady
of the governor and two or three others,
though by a succession of intermarriages
with Europeans they have obtained a fair
complexion. The natives (like all other
Malays) are excessively fond of gaming and

o

■a

o

ca

a
a;

pq

Of Salem 213

cock-fighting. A theatre is established for
the latter business, from which the govern-
ment draws an immense revenue. The
diversion being prohibited at any other
place, sometimes there are 5000 or 6000
spectators, each of whom pays half a real.
A large sum arises from the duties on to-
bacco and cocoa wine. Tobacco is pro-
hibited, but if you smuggle any on shore it
cannot be sold for more than the ruling cost
in America, notwithstanding the price is
very high here. Particular people, licensed
by the king, are the only persons allowed
to deal in it.

"All the natives chew 'dreca' and
'betel,' though not mixed with opium, as
in Batavia. This, with chewing and smok-
ing tobacco, makes their teeth very black.
The segars used by the women, and which
they smoke all day, are made as large as
they can possibly get into their mouths.
The natives are about as honest as their
neighbors, the Chinese ; they stole several
things from us, but by the goodness of the
police we recovered most of them.

214 The Old Shipmasters

"On the 2d of December, 1797, thieves
broke into the house where we lived, en-
tered the chamber where Captain Prince
and myself were asleep, and carried off a
bag containing $1000, without awakening
either of us, or any of the crew of the long-
boat, sleeping in an adjoining chamber. The
guard boat discovered them as they were
escaping, and pursued them. They, in en-
deavoring to escape, ran afoul of a large
boat, which, upsetting them, the money
went to the bottom, and, what was worse,
the bag burst and the money was all scat-
tered in the mud, where the water was
eight feet deep. However, by the honesty
of the captain of the guard, most of it was
recovered. The thieves were caught, and,
when we were there in 1800, Mr. Kerr in-
formed us that they had been whipped, and
were to be kept in servitude several years.

"The same day another robbery was
committed, equally as daring. The day
the indigo was shipped, the second mate
came ashore with several of the people to
see it safe aboard. The boats we had pro-

Of Salem 215

vided, not taking all of it, we sent the re-
mainder aboard with a black fellow as a
guard, who was esteemed by Mr. Kerr as an
honest man, but he had been contriving, it
seems, to steal a couple of boxes. When
the cases containing the indigo had passed
the bar, a small boat came aboard with two
boxes filled with chips, stones, etc., appear-
ing in every respect like those full of indigo,
and, pretending that we had put on board
two wrong boxes, they exchanged their
boxes for two real boxes of indigo, but, in
bringing them ashore, they were detected
and the indigo returned.

"There are great numbers of Chinese at
Manila. It is from them most of the indigo
is purchased. They trade considerably with
China; their junks arrive at Manila in Janu-
ary, and all their goods are deposited in the
custom-house. Some of these cargoes are
valued at a million of dollars, the duties on
which amounted to nearly $100,000. The
Chinese at Manila retain all the customs of
their country, excepting those respecting
religion and a few other things of small

2i6 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

moment. They make use of the Chinese
characters in writing, beginning at the right
hand of the paper and writing downwards.
Their manner of marking down any number
is somewhat similar to the common method
used by Americans."

CHAPTER XX

Voyage of Captain John White to the China Sea — Fight with Pirates
near the Straits of Banka — At Canjeo — Native Chiefs Visit the
Captain.

T^HE trials and dangers encountered by the
Master Mariners in pioneering the way
to new ports of trade, and their power to
adapt themselves readily to the varying con-
dition of things, have been related by many
a. story-teller. No experience, however,
better illustrates this fact than the voyage
made to the China Sea by Captain John
White, in the brig Franklin, in 1819-20,
for the purpose of finding a market for his
cargo, and of purchasing another for home
shipment. This was at a time when no
American vessel, at least no one of which
we have any record, had ever been at Can-
jeo, or had attempted to ascend the Donnai

River.

317

2i8 The Old Shipmasters

Not alone were the ladrones, with whom
the China Sea was infested, to be dreaded,
but the duly constituted authorities on shore
were often not a whit behind these freeboot-
ers in their determination to rob, plunder,
and pillage, when it could be done through
deception or a misinterpretation of local
maritime law. They had little conception
of the rights and privileges due to other
nations; but not all their inhuman acts were
chargeable to ignorance, for they had such
an inherent propensity for robbery and crime
that this could be said of the best of them:

"Their imperial fancy laid all nature under tribute."

The voyage of Captain White was an
eventful one in Salem's commercial history.
It opened the way for trade with ports whose
products were unknown, to any considerable
extent, even in Europe, and gave courage to
the shipowners in their efforts to extend
their business operations in foreign coun-
tries. Captain White's journal of his voyage
is replete with thrilling incidents from begin-
ning to end,

Of Salem 219

CAPTAIN white's NARRATIVE

"On Saturday, the 2d of January, 1819,
we sailed from Salem, and the next day had
a severe gale, w^ith snow, from the north-
east. On the 4th of February crossed the
equator. On the 9th, in the afternoon, be-
ing in latitude 5° 50' south, and longitude
29° 20' west, two sail of vessels were des-
cried ahead, standing in the same direction
with ourselves. We took little further no-
tice of this incident (as at this time of general
peace the whole navigation of the world was
in motion) than to observe that we were
approaching them rapidly, which excited a
consequent emotion of exultation at the su-
periority of our sailing. At sunset we had
approached so near as to see their hulls,
which indicated a prospect of soon passing
them. At 1 1 o'clock the two vessels, which
had been obscured from our view by the
darkness of the evening, were now perceived
to be quite near. We saw that they were
large ships, and that our course would lead
us between them, and quite near the wind-
ward one, on our approach to which, and

220 The Old Shipmasters

just as we were about to hail her, her crew
poured, or intended to pour, into us the
contents of their two stern-chase guns. We
were much surprised at this, and hailed
them, dema'nding the reason for firing at us,
but so great was the confusion of voices on
the stranger we could not be heard.

" We were rapidly passing them, and, as
we ranged along, were successively saluted
with five more guns, charged with grape, as
we found by the shot which came on board,
without, however, doing the least damage.
We found by their language that they were
Portuguese, and concluded that they mis-
took us for a Patriot privateer, and, by the
small report of their guns and imbecility of
the fire, it was apparent that they must have
been a long time charged, or their powder
bad, — perhaps both. As we had not devi-
ated from our course during the rencounter,
had reduced no sail, and sailed much faster
than our uncivil neighbor, we were soon out
of his reach, and little further notice was
taken of the affair by us than occasionally
regretting that our own guns had not been

Of Salem 221

mounted at the time, which we conceived
would have effectually prevented him from
having all the exercise on his side. As we
were at peace with all the world, it had not
been considered necessary to take the guns
on deck till we approached the Straits of
Sunda, and they were at this moment re-
clining on the ballast below.

"On the 12th of March we saw and
passed the island of Tristan d'Acunha. This
island was taken formal possession of in
1814, by Jonathan Lambert, of Salem. He
issued a proclamation setting forth his rights
to the soil, and invited navigators of all na-
tions, whose route might lie near the island,
to touch at his settlement for supplies needed
on a long passage, and which he anticipated
his industry would draw from the earth and
the adjacent sea, and he signified his readi-
ness to receive in payment for his products,
which consisted of vegetables, fruits, and
fish, whatever might be most convenient
for his visitors to part with, that could in
any way be useful to him and his associates
in their solitary abode.

222 The Old Shipmasters

" For the purpose of being able to fully
carry out his plans, Mr. Lambert took with
hirh to the island various implements of
husbandry, seeds of the most useful culinary
plants which grew in the United States,
tropical trees for transplanting, scions, etc.
After Lambert had been on the island about
two years, it was apparent that his efforts
would be crowned with success, but, unfor-
tunately, he was drowned soon after, while
on a visit to one of the adjacent islands.
Disheartened by this unfortunate occurrence,
Lambert's associates, shortly after his death,
left the islands in a ship which touched there.

"We had the usual winds and weather
experienced in passing the Cape of Good
Hope, and in running up our 'easting,'
which we did in latitude of about 40 degrees
south. April 14th, we passed the islands of
St. Paul and Amsterdam, without seeing
them, however, the weather being hazy,
and on May 4th, in the morning, we saw
Java Head, at noon entered the Straits of
Sunda, and on the 9th anchored in Batavia
roads.

Captaia Thos. Fuller, ninety-one years of age.
Captured by pirates in the brig Mexican, 1832.

Of Salem 223

"At II A.M. on the 24th, we discovered
three large prows standing for us full of
men, and each had two banks of oars, with
a barricade built across their forecastles, in
the center of which was a perforation, or
embrasure, through which projected the
muzzle of a large cannon. One of these
vessels was larger than the others, and
acted as commodore. We counted on one
side of the boat 37 oars, and, presuming
both sides equal, she was propelled by 74
oars. Their formidable and hostile appear-
ance designated them to us as a squadron
of those piratical prows which infest all
these straits between the Indian and Pacific
oceans and the China Sea, who are always
on the watch for small or defenseless ves-
sels, and who, emboldened by some late
successes, have ventured to attack even
men-of-war, and so serious have been their
depredations upon the commerce of the East
of late years, and so shocking to humanity
their savage cruelty to their prisoners, that
merchant vessels seldom navigate singly
those seas.

224 The Old Shipmasters

"As the evident intention of these prows
was to attack us, preparations were being
made to repel them. They approached with
a great appearance of resolution till nearly
within range of our guns, when they began
to slacken and keep aloof, probably for the
purpose of reconnoitering. With a view of
ascertaining their distance from us, we gave
them a shot from a six-pounder, which fell
somewhat short.

" Immediately, as if electrified by the sa-
lute, every oar was set briskly to work, and
they made directly for us, with every appear-
ance of determined courage, tossing up the
water with their oars, which moved without
the least regularity, and assumed the appear-
ance of the legs of a centipede in rapid mo-
tion. They were permitted to approach
within fair reach of our guns, when abroad-
side was given them of three six-pounders.
The shot of one passed over them, that of
another dropped just under the quarter of
the largest prow, and the third, striking the
water a few yards short of her, bounded
over her barricade and was lost to our view.

Of Salem 225

Great confusion was caused on board the
squadron by this specimen of our gunnery,
and the two smaller vessels pulled alongside
the commodore, where they lay for some
time.

"Our course, to avoid a shoal, led us
three miles to the southward of the enemy.
On our approach nearer to the pirates we
prepared to give them another broadside
with grape and double round, but they
thought proper to retire as we passed. Be-
ing unwilling to have charged our guns to
no purpose, we could not resist the impulse,
which their piratical conduct had produced,
and with a view to put our security beyond
all question, to give them one more broad-
side, the shot striking around them like hail.

"The trucks of our gun carriages had
been made of a species of wood which
grows in the island of Sumatra, and was
chosen for that purpose on account of its
great hardness, but another essential qual-
ity, that of being tough and not liable to
split, was overlooked, for which omission
we were on this occasion considerable suf-

2 26 The Old Shipmasters

ferers; one of our guns had already become
useless, in consequence of the brittle quali-
ties of the trucks, and two of the others
were much injured, and our pleasure was
by no means enhanced on perceiving our
enemies make all sail in pursuit, who kept
up a constant fire upon us, which was re-
turned until our guns were all dismounted
and lay upon deck. Their shot, however,
did us no kind of injury, being spent short
of us. Being now deprived of our artillery,
and, in case of a calm, having no means of
defense but our small-arms, we determined
to steer for Mintow, a Dutch settlement in
the island of Banka, then in sight, where we
arrived in the evening, still followed by our
troublesome pursuers to within a short dis-
tance of the anchorage. On the following
morning we went on shore, and related to
the authorities the action which we had the
preceding day. The Resident said he recog-
nized in the prows we described pirates from
the island of Fingin, a few leagues to the
northward, who had, a few days previous,
cut out a vessel on the roads one night di-

Of Salem 227

rectly under the guns of the fort, from which
they had taken a considerable quantity of
opium, with which they constantly kept
themselves in a state of inebriety.

"He assured us that the guns we had
seen on board the prows were brass 18-
pounders, that their crews were all armed
with pikes or spears, and javelins and mus-
kets. He pointed out on the beach a small
trading brig, which had been captured off
the Nauka Islands, in Banka Straits, by these
very boats, and had been retaken a few days
before by two Dutch gunboats, which had
also captured one of their prows (now lying
on the beach near the Chinese brig), the
crew of which had fought with great des-
peration, nor did they yield till every man
of them had been desperately wounded, and
even then, while lying on deck and incapa-
ble of standing, thrusting with their spears
and darting their javelins at their victors, by
which some of the Dutch sailors were killed
and many others badly wounded, some of
whom had died from the malignity of the
poison with which the weapons of the

228 The Old Shipmasters

pirates had been imbued. Only eight men
of the crew of the prow, which numbered
100, survived the battle.

"Added to the natural ferocity of the
temper of the pirates was a free use of
opium, combined with the juice of a root
called 'bang.' These stimulants, when as-
sociated with their Mahometan persuasion
of the doctrine of predestination, render
them totally exempt from fear, produce the
most ungovernable rage and desperation,
and stimulate them to deeds of the most
savage and diabolical barbarity. . . .
After making needful repairs and remount-
ing the guns with new trucks, the Franklin
proceeded to sea in company with an Eng-
lish brig bound for Singapore.

" On the 7th of June we descried Cape
St. James, and, on the following morning,
having come to anchor opposite the village
of Vung Han, our boat was despatched to
the village. On the boat's landing, a trum-
pet was sounded in the grove, and we could
see a considerable bustle among the inhabi-
tants. On the officer's landing he was im-

Of Salem 229

mediately surrounded and escorted to the
house of the chief, who was a military
mandarin commanding in that station. The
officer tried to make himself understood that
we were in want of a pilot to conduct us up
to the city of Saigon, but was unsuccessful
at first. Soon after the boat's return we
were informed by the officer on deck that a
large boat full of men was approaching round
the west point of the bay. We at once re-
paired on deck and saw that the stranger
had his masts and yards decorated with
pendants and a formidable display of spears
ornamented with tufts of hair attached to
the staves. It was consequently thought
proper, for the double purpose of safety and
ceremony, to have the crew drawn up on
the quarter and main decks with muskets,
pikes, etc. , ready for their reception. When
scarcely within hail they began to vociferate
very loudly, repeating the word solan, and
approaching with much caution ; encouraged,
however, by our amiable deportment and
conciliatory gestures, they ventured to come
alongside. The chiefs, of whom there were

230 The Old Shipmasters

three, at our solicitations came on deck.
We were obliged to have recourse to our
telegraphic dictionary of signs in order to
communicate with the chiefs. We learned
that the oldest chief was commander of
the military district which embraced all the
country, including the several outlets of the
Donnai-noir; that he resided at Canjeo, a
village about seven miles to the westward,
and situated on the island of Dong Theang,
which is the first land on the south side of
the entrance, and that we must there wait
for permission of the viceroy or governor to
approach the city. Having ascertained that
the subordinate chiefs were acquainted with
the navigation of the river, we weighed
anchor and proceeded up to Canjeo, where
we arrived and moored at 2 p.m. on the
same day.

"On this first interview with the natives
of the country we were much surprised to
find their manners so different from what
we had been led to expect from the accounts
we had had of them. We were now con-
vinced that the Cochin Chinese were in

Of Salem 231

many respects but little removed from a
state of deplorable barbarism. The military
chief was a withered, gray-headed old man,
possessing, however, a great deal of viva-
city. ... He had several attendants,who
were perfectly subservient, and promptly
obedient to all his orders. One of the at-
tendants carried a huge umbrella, with
which he followed the old man to all parts
of the ship, and, when invited into the cabin,
he would not descend without the umbrella,
so tenacious was he of every circumstance
of state and appearance.

" Another attendant was a handsome boy
of about 1 5 years of age, who carried, in
two blue silk bags, the areka nut, betel leaf,
chunan, and tobacco, of which they chew
immense quantities. Another servant car-
ried a fan. Our risibility was not a little
excited on seeing the old fellow strutting
about the deck, prying into the cook's cop-
pers, embracing the sailors on the forecastle,
dancing, grinning, and playing many other
antic tricks, followed by the whole train of
fanners, umbrella-bearers, and chunan boys.

232 The Old Shipmasters

The dress of the chiefs consisted of a very
short and coarse cotton shirt, which had
been originally white ; trousers of black
crape, very wide, without waistband, and
secured round the waist by a sash of crim-
son silk; a tunic of black or blue silk, a tur-
ban of black crape, and coarse wooden
sandals.

"After visiting every part of the ship, the
old mandarin began to court my favor with
the most unyielding pertinacity, hugging
me round the neck, attempting to thrust his
betel-nut into my mouth from his own, and
leaping upon me like a dog, from which 1
was nearly suffocated. I finally succeeded
in extricating myself from the ardor of his
caresses, and getting to the windward side
of him, which 1 maintained, notwithstanding
his reiterated efforts to dislodge me. At first
we could not account for his sudden and
violent fit of unsolicited friendship, but in a
short time the mystery was completely un-
ravelled.

"One of the inferior chiefs intimated a
wish to descend to the cabin, which was

Of Salem 233

granted. No sooner had we entered it than,
pointing to the looking-glass, he gave us to
understand that he must have that for the
old chief. Being somewhat surprised at the
demand, we smiled, and, endeavoring to di-
vert his attention, presented him a bottle of
brandy and a glass to help himself, which
he did not hesitate to do most abundantly,
and then, giving us to understand that he
considered the vessels as a present, passed
them to his attendants, who, after swallow-
ing the liquor, deposited them under their
robes. The mandarin then renewed his
•solicitations, nor was there a single article
in sight that he did not demand, and in a
manner to impress us with the idea that a
refusal would give great umbrage to the
chief on deck."

CHAPTER XXI

Captain of the Franklin in a Sea of Trouble — Chiefs Demand Presents
— Captain Attends Reception by the Officials — He is Tendered a
Banquet — Difficulty in Getting Permission to Ascend the Donnai
River.

r^APTAIN WHITE'S Journal continues :
^^ "We were forced to purchase peace
and good-will at the expense of a pair of
pistols to the old chief, 25 cartridges, 12
flints, one six-pound canister of powder,
two pair of shoes, a shirt, six bottles of
wine, three of rum, and three of French
cordial, a cut-glass tumbler, and a Dutch
cheese. Nor were the attendants neglected
in the general amnesty, and each of them
received some trifling article of clothing as a
propitiatory offering.

"Old Heo, the mandarin, was now in
high spirits again, and, in the wantonness

of his benevolence, took off his old blue silk

234

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 235

robe, with which he very graciously invested
me, at the same time shrugging and inti-
mating that he was cold. I took the hint,
and sent for a white jacket, which 1 assisted
him in putting on. At this attention he
appeared highly gratified. A demand was
now made for some refreshments, and we
spread before them some biscuit, cold beef,
ham, brandy, fruit, and cheese. Of the
biscuit and cheese they ate voraciously,
seasoning their repast with bumpers of raw
spirits.

" It was now proposed by the chiefs that
our guns should be drawn, and that the
commander should accompany them on
shore. We refused to comply with their
first proposition. 1, however, prepared to
accompany them to the village, taking with
me Mr. Bessel, a young gentleman who
acted in the capacity of clerk. On our ap-
proach to the shore, our olfactory nerves
were saluted with the rankest compound
of villainous smells that ever offended nos-
tril ; and the natives of the place, consisting
principally of men, women, children, swine,

236 The Old Shipmasters

and mangy dogs, lined the muddy banks of
the Stygian stream to welcome our landing.
We passed immediately to the house of the
chief.

"This house stood at a little distance
from the compact part of the village, and
was somewhat larger and in better style
than the huts we had passed in approaching
it. Here 1 feel myself incompetent to do
justice in portraying the scene which en-
sued; my descriptive powers are totally
inadequate; nothing but the pencil of a
Hogarth or a Teniers could convey an ade-
quate idea of the original. So irresistibly
ludicrous was the scene that it was with
the utmost difficulty we could keep our
risible muscles in subjection. The apart-
ment into which we were ushered was
about 25 feet square, and this we found
was the usual hall of audience. The floor
was composed of a mixture of sand and
clay, which by constant attrition had be-
come very compact and solid. The walls
were decorated with rusty swords, shields,
match-locks, gongs, and spears.

Of Salem 237

"On each side of the entrance was an
enormous brass drum, mounted on a clumsy
wooden frame, and struck at stated periods
with bamboo by a soldier on guard. On a
raised platform were seated two miserable-
looking objects undergoing the punishment
of the caungue, or yoke. This punishment
is inflicted by placing over the culprit's
neck, and resting upon his shoulders, two
pieces of bamboo about ten feet in length
each, and secured parallel to each other by
two strong wooden bars which pass on
each side of the neck, embracing it very
closely, and give the criminal the appear-
ance of carrying a ladder on his shoulders.
Directly back of this platform was an en-
trance into another apartment devoted to
domestic purposes, before which hung a
coarse screen of split bamboo, closely
woven, which concealed from our view the
women, children, and pigs behind it, who
were amicably and jointly partaking of the
contents of a huge wooden tray which was
placed in the middle of the floor.

"On each side of a recess, in gaudy

238 The Old Shipmasters

colors, were displayed several paintings of
prodigious monsters, 'chimeras dire,' and
many other heterogeneous productions, and
in the center stood a table on which were
placed a censer of brass, a basin of the
same material filled nearly to the top with
ashes, in which were stuck a great number
of matches, the ends of which had been
burnt, and a little bronze joss or god.
Seated upon a platform was a venerable-
looking object, his arms akimbo and his
legs crossed like a tailor's. We were led
up directly in front of the throne and re-
ceived by this august personage. He asked
us to be seated, or rather motioned to two
vacant chairs, and then addressed us in
their language, but not a word of it could
we understand, yet the voice sounded fa-
miliar to us, and on a nearer scrutiny we
recognized our recent guest, but now most
dignified host, old Heo. The grim and
sable visages of the attendants, the grave
and solemn deportment of the mandarin,
the grotesque assemblage of monsters in
the recess, and the discordant noises of the

o

o

J3

a

-^ K ^

o

Of Salem 239

human and brute concert with which we
were still regaled, transported us in idea
to other regions. Such a scene must have
been in the mind's eye of Milton when he
wrote his animated and minute description
of the Court of Pandemonium.

"A table was set before us, on which
were placed a China tea equipage, a large
dish of boiled rice, together with a piece of
boiled fresh pork, very fat and oily. The
old chief then began tearing the food in
piecemeal with his long claws and thrust-
ing it into our mouths, between every
thrust holding a large bowl of tea to our
lips with the most cruel perseverance, to the
utter hazard of suffocating us, till finally,
losing all patience at his tormenting hospi-
tality, and finding prayers and utterances
of no avail, 1 stepped back and clapped my
hand on my dirk, darting at him at the
same time a frown of displeasure. He de-
sisted from any further importunity, and we
were permitted to help ourselves in our
own way.

" A bottle of rum and another of cordial.

240 The Old Shipmasters

a part of the pillage from our ship, were now
produced, and a glass of the latter we were
glad to take as an antidote to the effects of
our meal. The old man now applied him-
self most vigorously to the liquors, and in a
few moments had despatched the cordial,
and then opened the bottle of rum. On our
refusal to partake with him he applied it to
his own lips, and we were struck with ad-
miration to see

"How long, how deep, how zealously.
The precious juice he quaffed "

not, however, untinctured with a degree of
apprehension on our part of fatal effects from
his debauch.

" Perceiving that the mandarin would
shortly be unfit to transact business, I has-
tened to communicate my wishes of being
supplied with a pilot, and immediately as-
cending the river, which he seemed to un-
derstand, and, shaking his head, drew his
hand across his throat and then across mine,
as if to intimate that we should both lose
our heads if that request was complied with.

Of Salem 241

I said I would go up in my boat ; at this the
signs were repeated. He, however, gave
me to understand that he would transmit to
Saigon an account of a strange vessel being
in the river and demand permission for her
to come up to the city, and that an answer
would be returned in two days. Some
orders were given to an officer, who at
once retired, as 1 understood, for the pur-
pose of despatching a messenger to Saigon.
We left our host who was in a state of
inebriety.

"We afterwards saw the chief civil mag-
istrate and demanded permission to proceed
up the river, but with the same ill success
as before. Subsequently we saw the man-
darin again, and he informed us that he
would prepare the despatch to be sent to
Saigon immediately, and minuted down the
number of men on board the brig, arma-
ment, etc., with an assurance that in two
days the messenger would return. We now
expressed a wish to take leave, when we were
informed by the mandarin that he intended
to go on board with us, and had sent orders

242 The Old Shipmasters

to prepare a boat for that purpose. We
immediately embarked, and in a short time
arrived on board.

"We were now somewhat better pre-
pared for the visit of the mandarin than at
first, and had our movables placed out of
sight ; but the steward, happened to open
the door of a stateroom, where part of our
arms were deposited, they quickly caught
the eye of our visitor, who entered the room,
and taking a musket from the stand, passed
it to an attendant. In this design he was
prevented and an inferior one offered him.
He then became very surly and we were
obliged to conciliate him at the expense of
the best musket, a yard of red cloth, several
bottles of sweet wine, shoes, ammunition,
etc. And here it may be well to observe
that on this and every other occasion of
visits from these people, while we were in
the country, their demands were made in a
most systematic manner ; the inferior chiefs
play the jackal for their superior, who recip-
rocate the favor in the same manner. We
found them a set of sturdy beggars, never

Of Salem 243

expressing any gratitude for the presents
which they received, or omitting any op-
portunity of taking every advantage of us,
or stealing M'hatever lay in their v/ay.

" Old Heo visited us on the follovs^ing day,
and invited us to go on shore to a feast, but
as we w^ere quite satisfied with our regale
on the preceding day, it was thought best
to decline. The next morning, June 11, a
message came from the civil magistrate that
we should shortly be favored with a visit,
and accordingly, at about 1 1 o'clock, we
saw him leave the creek, and in a few mo-
ments he was longside of us. A repetition
of their shameless and insolent conduct was
again displayed, and nothing but fear of act-
ing contrary to our own interests prevented
us from turning them out of the ship. We
therefore concealed the resentment and con-
tempt with which they had inspired us, and
permitted them to drink deep of the Lethean
draught which was to drown all their cares,
and was the object of their fondest desires.
We considered, also, that the sooner they
were intoxicated the sooner we should be

244 The Old Shipmasters

rid of their importunity; nor were our hopes
in this respect defeated, for in about half an
hour they took to their boat and pulled off,
leaving a small pig and some fruit, assuring
us on their departure that we should receive
our pass in two days !

"The following day Heo visited us again.
He had a large number of his chiefs and
people in the boat with him. As we did
not feel altogether safe with so many coming
on deck, we had all hands called to quarter,
and preparations were made to act on the
defensive. Heo looked around, and, seeing
our warlike attitude, appeared to be some-
what embarrassed. He slipped his arm un-
der mine and took several turns with me,
measuring his steps with great exactness, to
keep time with me. I again demanded the
pass to proceed to Saigon, and informed him
that we suspected that they were merely
amusing us, that we would inform the great
mandarin at Saigon how we had been
treated, and that he would know how to
punish them as they deserved. He appeared
considerably surprised at this declaration,

Of Salem 245

but, as if the subject were a disagreeable
one, he soon waived it in favor of a new
demand upon us to go on shore to a great
buffalo hunt, which was exemplified at the
chief's Instance, by one of the attendants,
who, first pointing the forefinger of each
hand up on each side of his head, and then,
getting down on all fours, galloped round
the deck, pursued by the whole train in full
cry, to our no small amusement. Heo was
now assailed by us with a new proposition.
I demanded to embark immediately with
him and his boat, and go up to the city, to
which he replied, that if we would throw
out the long-boat, and go on shore with
the whole ship's company to the hunt, on
the morrow he would grant us permission
to go up the river. Struck with astonish-
ment at this declaration, we demanded of
him to inform us if our arrival had been
made known at the city, on which he tacitly
acknowledged that it had not, and assured
us that the option of granting or refusing
our demands was his, but he refused to
assign any cause for keeping us so long in

246 The Old Shipmasters

ignorance of his power in this respect. They
now left us, with the promise of an early
visit on the following day.

"At about 10 o'clock our visitors made
their appearance. Dissatisfaction and mu-
tual dislike of each other were now evidently
making rapid progress in our minds, and our
excitement became shortly so great as to
restore us in some measure to the use of our
signs again. And they motioned that we
should draw the charges from our guns.
Our refusal to do it was given in a way to
impress them with the belief that we ex-
pected soon to have use of them. Appar-
ently undismayed at this intimation, they
pointed down the hatchway, repeating the
word 'baak' (meaning money or silver).
Pretending not to notice them, we made
one more effort to draw the attention of the
chief to the subject of our pass, but we could
get no answer but a shake of the head, and
a motion alternately across our throats.

"Towards the close of the day we ob-
served an unusual number of boats enter
the creek, and a great bustle was noticed

Of Salem 247

on shore. In the evening, the confused
noise of gongs, tom-toms, and voices had
increased to a considerable degree. We
could not imagine the cause of the din, un-
less it were to demonstrate their joy at the
capture of a smuggler on the previous day.
We weighed anchor and stood out towards
the cape, and at daylight on the 13th we
were clear of the land, and shaped our
course to the northward. . . .

"An instance of the summary devastation
of locusts occurred while I was at Manila.
A Frenchman who, from various causes, had
lost a large property, returned to the island,
where he formed an extensive sugar planta-
tion. The season was fine, the young plants
had come forward, assumed every appear-
ance of health and vigor, and clothed his
grounds with the most lively verdure. These
auspicious appearances excited in the bosom
of the owner the most pleasing emotions,
and gave birth to happy presages and the
hope of being enabled to retrieve his fallen
fortunes. In this felicitous frame of mind he
was seated at the door of his cottage, with

248 The Old Shipmasters

his family around him, enjoying the beauties
of a fine tropical evening, which was spent
in mutual congratulations on the prospects
of future independence. On the following
morning the astonishment and agony of the
unfortunate planter may be conceived on
finding that not one vestige of vegetation
was to be discovered upon his extensive
grounds ! Nothing was presented to his
view but a bare and melancholy expanse of
brown earth. The locusts had poured down
in legions upon his defenseless lands, and
robbed them of their valuable burthen.

" It was a subject of no little astonishment
to me, on inquiring, to find how little was
known in Manila respecting the neighboring
kingdom of Cochin China, and 1 could ac-
count for it in no other way than from the
anti-commercial character of both those
countries when compared with most nations
of India. ... It will be recollected that
we lay five days at Canjeo, in the Donnai
River, in the early part of June, waiting un-
successfully for permission to proceed to
Saigon. It is somewhat remarkable that,

Of Salem 249

as ours was the first American vessel that
had ever been at Canjeo, or attempted to
ascend the Donnai River, another should
have arrived there a fev/ days after our sail-
ing from thence, with the same views we
had entertained. This was the ship Mar-
mion, of Boston, commanded by Oliver
Blanchard.

" It seems Captain Blanchard was equally
unsuccessful with myself in his attempts to
ascend the river and trade at Saigon. The
authorities would not take doubloons in ex-
change for commercial commodities without
great discount. These impediments to trade
which the gold presented, determined Cap-
tain Blanchard to proceed to Manila for a
cargo, but he was taken sick before he left
the city, and died after the ship left Canjeo,
but before she was out of the river. By this
event the command devolved upon the chief
officer, Mr. John Brown, who, in conjunction
with the former clerk, Mr. Putnam, proceeded
to put in execution the intentions of their
late commander, and on the 22d of June the
Marmion arrived at Cavity. In the course

250 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

of a conversation I had with these gentlemen
a plan was suggested, canvassed, and finally
determined on, to return in company to
Donnai, after the Marmion should receive
some necessary repairs, and time had been
given to exchange the gold then on board
for Spanish dollars. Our reasons in keeping
company on this expedition were for mutual
protection while penetrating into the heart
of a country so little known, up a river with
the navigation of which we, in common
with nearly all the world, were unacquainted,
and, consequently, when there in the power
of a people who, though they might be suf-
ficiently powerful to detain a single vessel,
would probably, should any intentions of
the kind exist, be overawed by the presence
of two."

CHAPTER XXII

Narrow Escape from Tigers — Startling Phienomenon — Pagoda Dedi-
cated to Evil Spirits — Natives Worship the Devil through Fear —
The Bewitched Dog — Arrival of the Marmion — Diplomacy of Mr.
Putnam.

/^APTAIN WHITE'S Journal grows in in-
^^ terest the further we peruse it. In the
last chapter his narrative closed at the point
where it was agreed between the com-
mander of the Franklin and the new com-
mander of the ship Marmion to return in
company to the Donnai. It was a venture
fraught with much hardship and many perils.
The Journal goes on to say:

"The last days of August and the first
days of September were marked with strong
gales from the southwest, with vast quanti-
ties of rain, during which arrived the Beverly,
an American ship from Boston, belonging
to the owner of the Marmion. She had

251

252 The Old Shipmasters

attempted to beat up against the monsoon
from Turon to Cape St. James, but after
being a long while on the coast of Cochin
China, contending with constant southwest
gales, she was obliged to give up the strug-
gle and proceed to Manila.

"The Marmion being now ready for sea, on
the 6th day of September we took leave of
Cavity and proceeded out of the bay. For
the purpose of being well to windward, our
course had been shaped so as to range
within a few leagues of the northern limits
of the various banks, shoals, and reefs scat-
tered in great profusion over that part of the
China Sea situated to the westward of the
island of Palawan. This precaution was
the means of shortening the passage consid-
erably, for when we reached the 1 12th de-
gree of east longitude the wind veered round
to the south and westward, in which quar-
ter it prevailed during the residue of the pas-
sage. On arriving at Canjeo we learnt that
the Aurora of Salem, commanded by Cap-
tain Robert Gould, had been on the river
since the departure of the Marmion. After

Of Salem 253

his departure from the Donnai, we learned
that he visited the island of Cham Callao,
whence the captain proceeded to Turon, but
being unsuccessful in his attempts to trade
there, he afterwards proceeded to Manila.
We were also informed that another ship
had stretched into the bay of Vung Han, and
lay near the land one day without anchor-
ing, after which she bore up and stood to
the northward. This ship was the Beverly,
Captain John Gardner, which had arrived at
Manila a few days previous to our sailing
from there, as has been mentioned. . . .
"Invitations were sent to us to visit the
mandarins frequently, but we determined
to avail ourselves of their civilities no fur-
ther than our business demanded, as we
had been made sensible of the actual
cost of this kind of intercourse on our
first visit to their country. In the after-
noon, after having visited the bazaar and
purchased a few articles of refreshments
for the ships' companies, we returned
on board for the benefit of fresh air. On
the following morning our curiosity led

254 The Old Shipmasters

us to visit a small pagoda erected on the
Daijang point, dedicated to the evil spirit ;
for these people, like some of our Indian
tribes, worship the devil from fear.

" We took our fov/ling-pieces with us, in
expectation of meeting game, and our car-
penters being in want of some knees to re-
pair boats, axes were taken with us with
the view of penetrating into the woods to
cut some. After we had gained terra firma,
no little difficulty was experienced in getting
through the close jungles of mangrove and
other trees whose roots and branches spread
themselves into the most fantastic shapes,
and were interwoven with each other in
every direction, while various procumbent
plants crossed our path, and the earth under
them — which was a perfect morass — gave
way to the weight of our bodies, so that we
sunk nearly to our knees at every step.

"We now proceeded to examine the pa-
goda, near which we had landed. The
frame was composed of rough trunks of
trees, and the walls were constructed of
small poles, closely interwoven with osiers,

Of Salem 255

and the roof was thatched with palm-leaves.
At the further end of the room, which was
about 15 feet square, was seated a small
wooden idol with an elephant's proboscis,
not unlike some of the objects of Hindoo
worship, but of the most rude and dispro-
portionate manufacture. On the other side
of the table was placed a brazen censer and
an earthen vessel half filled with ashes. The
whole establishment was in a ruinous state
and appeared to be seldom visited.

"On relating the incidents of our excur-
sion on shore to the linguist in the after-
noon, he appeared to be astonished at our
escape from the tigers, of which vast num-
bers infest the woods, and told us that the
spot of ground around the pagoda had been
cleared beyond the leap of these animals on
account of the depredations that had been
committed by them previous to the adop-
tion of the precautionary measure of de-
stroying their coverts, and that any attempt
to penetrate into the jungle was considered
eminently hazardous.

"After some further discussion with the

256 The Old Shipmasters

mandarin, we offered to pay the expense of
a boat to take two persons to Saigon imme-
diately, and to advance thirty dollars to the
mandarin and linguist, for which amount
they were to give an order on the govern-
ment at the city, to be deducted from our
charges in the event of our proceeding up
to it in the ships ; and they, after a due
proportion of doubling and shifting, ac-
cepted the proposition. Mr. Putnam of the
Marmion, and a sailor who spoke Portu-
guese, were selected for the mission, as they
had before been there with Captain Blanch-
ard. At six o'clock they started on their trip.
"Being on shore the following day, a
favorite spaniel strayed from me, and my
efforts to find him were fruitless, so I was
reluctantly obliged to return on board with-
out poor Pinto. I directed the linguist to
offer the natives a reward for him, but so
great was their dread of the tigers that none
of them would undertake the search ; nor
were we surprised at their reluctance when
the interpreter informed us that all the
woods around the village were filled with

Of Salem 257

wild animals, and that it was not infre-
quently the case for the inhabitants to be
carried off by them, and that we might at-
tribute our escape from their fangs to the
report of our guns, which had intimidated
them.

"It was not Pinto's fate, however, to
furnish food for the tigers, for, on the third
day after losing him, he was discovered on
the beach by an officer in one of the boats,
who was going on shore to the bazaar, but
no effort he made could induce the dog to
come near him ; and it was not till the boat
had been sent the third time, with a sailor
who was a particular favorite of his, that
we gained possession of him. But the most
complete metamorphosis had been effected
in his character and appearance by his tem-
porary separation from us, for from being a
lively, playful, and bold dog, he had now
become dull, morose, and timid, scarcely
deigning to notice our caresses ; and, from
being round and fat, he had become in that
short time a mere skeleton. This anecdote,
trifling in itself, I should not have men-

258 The Old Shipmasters

tioned, but for the consequent light it threw
on the proneness of these people to super-
stitious ideas, for they gravely assured us
that the tigers had bewitched the dog, and
that he was now endued With supernatural
powers, and should no longer be treated as a
dog, but as a being of superior intelligence.

"On the first day of October, being the
fifth since our arrival, the interpreter came
on board and informed us that we might
proceed up the river as far as Naga Bay till
we received permission to go up to the city.
"^We weighed anchor and sailed, but the fre-
quent calms obliged us to anchor often. At
10 in the evening we had only gained about
three miles from Canjeo, when we anchored
for the night. Besides the linguist, who was
occasionally on board each vessel, we had
two soldiers who were to direct us how to
steer.

"Our sails were scarcely furled when
two boats were perceived coming down the
river. Our linguist began to manifest strong
symptoms of trepidation, and informed us
that he .feared that they were ladrones or

Of Salem 259

pirates, with which he said the river
abounded. He had scarcely made this dec-
laration before we were hailed in English,
when we immediately recognized the voice
of Mr. Putnam, who proclaimed that he had
been successful in his commission. His
joyful tidings were received with three
hearty cheers from both ships, and answered
by the reverberations of a thousand echoes
from the interminable forests which were
spread on each side of us. He was accom-
panied by an old Portuguese called Joachim,
who was born in Lisbon, but who had not
been in Europe within 40 years. He was
married in Siam, and claimed that as his
country, having abnegated his own. He
had resided some months in Saigon, which
he visited on his way from Turin, where he
left a Portuguese brig in consequence of a
quarrel with the captain, as he stated. As
he had made considerable proficiency in the
Anamese language and could talk French
and Portuguese fluently, he was considered
a valuable acquisition.
"Mr. Putnam was cordially received by

26o The Old Shipmasters

the authorities. He was assured that there
would be no difficulty in procuring cargoes
immediately. According to arrangements,
Joachim was sent on board the ship, and the
linguist, who was a Christian Cochin Chi-
nese, named Mariano, was appropriated to
the brig, which was to lead, as pilot and
interpreter.

"The flood tide coming in at about lo
o'clock we again weighed anchor, and a
few moments opened to us a view of a
large sheet of water having the appearance
of a capacious estuary, with the foam of
numerous conflicting currents rippling upon
its surface. This, our linguist informed us,
was Naga Bay, or sete-bocas, into which we
were rapidly borne by a strong tide. A
pleasant breeze from the north filling our
loftiest sails, which overtopped the sur-
rounding forest, we were not long in pass-
ing it.

"The prospect from this noble basin,
though possessing few features of the sub-
lime, was beautiful and romantic. Lofty
and venerable trees crowned the points

Of Salem 261

formed by the affluence of the several
streams, which, branching in various direc-
tions, like so many radii from a center, pre-
sented to view long vistas, fringed on each
side with foliage of different shades of ver-
dure, while their polished surfaces reflected,
with chastened beauty, the varied tints of
the impending forests.

" From the contemplation of this fascina-
ting scene our attention was diverted to a
new and curious phenomenon. Our ears
were saluted by a variety of sounds re-
sembling the deep bass of an organ, accom-
panied by the hollow guttural chant of the
bullfrog, the heavy chimes of a bell, and the
tones which imagination would give to an
immense jewsharp. This combination pro-
duced a thrilling sensation on the nerves,
and, as we fancied, a tremendous motion in
the vessel. The excitement of curiosity
was visible on every white face on board,
and many were the sage speculations of the
sailors on this occasion. Anxious to dis-
cover the cause of this gratuitous concert, I
went into the cabin where I found the

262 The Old Shipmasters

noise, which I soon ascertained proceeded
from the bottom of the vessel, increased to
a full and uninterrupted chorus. The per-
ceptions which occurred to me on this occa-
sion were similar to those produced by the
torpedo, or electric eel, which I had before
felt. But whether these feelings were
caused by the concussion of sound, or by
actual vibrations in the body of the vessel, I
could neither then nor have I since deter-
mined. In a few minutes the sounds,
which had commenced near the stern of
the vessel, became general throughout the
whole length of the bottom. Our linguist
informed us that the strange sounds were
caused by a shoal of fish, of a flat, oval
form, like a flounder, which, by a certain
conformation of the mouth, possesses the
power of adhesion to other objects in a
wonderful degree, and that they were pe-
culiar to the 'Seven Mouths.' But whether
the noises we heard were produced by any
particular construction of the sonorific or-
gans, or by spasmodic vibrations of the
body, he was ignorant. After proceeding a

Of Salem 263

mile, our musical fellow-voyagers were no
more heard.

"No variation had taken place in the feat-
ures of the country since leaving Canjeo,
and nothing was visible from the deck be-
yond the banks of the river. Thousands
of monkeys were chattering and gamboling
in the trees, and with the glass we could
perceive several of them perched among the
foliage, surveying with great apparent inter-
est the novel spectacle presented to their
view. Mariano, the interpreter, who had
ever since our leaving Canjeo expressed
great fears of the ladrones, who he told us
infested the river, was now unusually appre-
hensive of an attack by them. He related
several stories of vessels which had been
cut off by them, and that a Siamese junk,
the preceding year, which was then at Sai-
gon, had beat off a band of them who had
boarded her, with the loss of many lives on
both sides. He therefore stated the abso-
lute necessity of a strict watch during the
night, and desired us not to permit any boat
to come alongside after dark, as no honest

264 The Old Shipmasters

people, he observed, could want to visit us
at that time. I told him that we should
be always ready to repel attacks from any
quarter. This assurance appeared to give
him great satisfaction. ... As the
Marmion had been left at some distance
astern in the course of the last tide, we did
not weigh anchor on the sixth till more
than an hour after the commencement of
the flood tide, when, her topgallant-sails and
royals appearing over the trees in the reach
below us, we again lifted our anchor and
spread all our canvas to a gentle gale from
the southwest. Passing along, a woman
was seen guiding a plough drawn by a buf-
falo. Our linguist told us that she was pre-
paring the land to sow rice,

" For some hours a mass of heavy black
clouds had been accumulating in the north-
ern quarter, and had now assumed a very
formidable aspect. One of the soldiers we
had on board assured us that no apprehen-
sion need be entertained on account of these
ominous appearances. In a few moments,
however, the tempest approached us with

0^

pq

s

Of Salem 265

a most threatening aspect. The pregnant
clouds, rolling forward with great impetu-
osity, darkness almost impenetrable, succeed-
ing the clear and tranquil twilight, enveloping
in its dim shades the surrounding objects,
the most tremendous thunder, bursting
with deafening peals over our heads, and
the gleaming lightning in flashes of rapid
succession, temporarily depriving us of the
power of vision, were the immediate pre-
cursors of the gale. A vivid flash of light
at this moment disclosed the entrance of
the river.

"The heaviest anchor was immediately
dropped, and the vessel swung with impetu-
ous force to the gale, and rendered all our
efforts to secure the sails unsuccessful. The
leadsman who had been ordered to sound
from the stern found himself embowered in
a thick forest which overhung that part of
the ship. The storm continued for about
half an hour with unabated fury, when the
thunder began to roll away in the distance,
and the flashes of lightning which had filled
the air with liquid fire were now ' beautifully

266 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

less.' At 2 o'clock on the morning of the
7th we were again pursuing our course
towards our destination. As the Marmion
had not been in sight since the preceding
day, we were under serious apprehensions
that some accident had befallen her,"

CHAPTER XXIII

Arrival of the Franklin at Saigon — Captain Wliite's Graphic Descrip-
tion of the Natives — His Visit to an Ofificial's House — Reception
by the Governor — Description of Saigon.

/^^APTAIN WHITE and crew were appre-
^^ hensive as to the fate of the ship
Marmion. It is not to be wondered at that
the captain was sorely troubled, when it is
remembered that that ship and her master
were closely identified with his own venture
of ascending a river upon which they would
be beset with manifold dangers. That he
weighed anchor with much reluctance and
many misgivings can also be well imagined.
He was being separated from friends speak-
ing his own language, and was about to
face unknown trials. Captain White was
well fitted, however, for the hazardous du-
ties he was called upon to assume. It can
truly be said of him:

"He screwed his courage to the sticking place,
And did not fail."

267

268 The Old Shipmasters

Captain White's Journal continues :
"In the afternoon of the 7th of October
we arrived and moored before the city of
Saigon. The distance we had sailed from
Cap,e St. James to the city was 59^ miles,
with the meanderings of the river. A few
moments after we had moored, a covered
boat came alongside, and several people,
who from their garb and number of attend-
ants, appeared to be of superior rank, came
on board, one of whom, addressing us in
good Spanish, congratulated us on our ar-
rival and gave me an invitation to his house.
I accepted the invitation to visit him at his
abode, a part of which was visible between
the trunks of the areka-nut trees and shrub-
bery by which it was shaded.

" Pasqual's daughter, a coarse girl of 19,
was seated in a corner weaving a sort of
rough silk stuff of a yellowish color, about
18 inches wide. The loom, though of rude
construction, did not differ materially in
principle from ours. Among the members
of the family, whose curiosity was excited
by the novelty of the spectacle which we

Of Salem 269

presented, was a blear-eyed old woman,
furrowed and smoke-dried, whose black-
ened and lank jaws and gums, sans teeth,
grinned horribly a ghastly smile. A few
hoary elf-locks undulated on her palsied
pate, whose vibrations, which at first view
might have been mistaken for courtesy,
were by no means in unison with the hag-
like expression of her visage. This super-
structure was placed on a pedestal, which
resembled one of those curiously carved
balusters which decorate the staircases of
some old-fashioned mansions, according to
that laudable style of architecture which
has now, unhappily, become obsolete. The
shape of the base, for she was sitting, if
shape it may be called, resembled a mass
of matter which had undergone the process
of fusion.

"After having gratified our curiosity in
examining the various objects which were
presented to view, we were reconducted to
the veranda, ■ where tea and confectionery
were presented us. A female figure, of am-
ple proportions and a smiling countenance,

270 The Old Shipmasters

was our Hebe. She was about 16 and a ward
of our host. Her father, who was absent,
was a native of Macao, and her mother
(who was dead) a Cochin-Chinese. She
was the most interesting object we had
seen among these people, but our feelings
of complacency were not a little deranged
when, approaching us with her offering of
tea and betel, we 'nosed her atmosphere.'
She was dressed in black silk trousers and
a tunic, or robe, which descended nearly
to her ankles. Her hair, glossy with cocoa-
nut oil, was tastefully gathered into a knot
on top of her head, which was encircled
with a turban of black crape. Her face and
neck, guiltless of meretricious ornaments,
were, however, decorated with variegated
streaks, the accidental accumulation of ex-
traneous matter which had come in contact
with them. Her feet were naked and indu-
rated, and the forefinger of each hand was
armed with an opaque claw two inches in
length.

' ' Two or three other females, among whom
was our hostess, whose dress and appear-

Of Salem 271

ance did not materially differ from what I
have just described, hovered around us with
marks of eager curiosity and open mouths,
which disclosed their straggling fangs, black-
ened with areka and betel. Mangy and
disgusting curs were lying about in every
direction, which, on our approach, set up
the most dismal yells and fled from us with
great precipitation, entrenching themselves
behind various objects from whence they
regaled us with a continual yelping during
our visit. Pigs, fowls, and ducks were per-
ambulating the premises, and had free access
to every part of the mansion.

" Observing the elder females in deep dis-
cussion, and perceiving by their manner that
we were the object of their conversation, we
were informed by Pasqual, our host, that
they were merchants and had assembled at
his house for the purpose of making arrange-
ments for the despatch of our business ; and
that they desired to know what merchandise
we were in pursuit of, what price we in-
tended to give for sugar and other articles,
etc. But we being unwilling to evince any

2 72 The Old Shipmasters

anxiety to commence business, and deter-
mined not to communicate our views to
them until we had learned of the fate of the
Marmion, and had had an interview with the
government, pleaded fatigue as an excuse
and returned on board.

"The boats belonging to the larger country
vessels amused us by their singular form and
construction, the former being the longitu-
dinal section of an oblate spheroid, and the
latter of wicker-work, covered with gul-gul,
a mixture of oil, pitch, and lime. A single
species of amusement, and a proof of filthy
abandonment, was exhibited in the fruit
boats and others navigated by more than
one woman. This was no other than hunt-
ing vermin on each other's heads, in which
they were very successful, and the game
appeared to be highly relished. We after-
wards found that this recreation was not a
monopoly of the lower orders, but partici-
pated in by ladies of high rank. Ah uno
disce omnes.

" A message was sent to the acting viceroy
or governor announcing the arrival at Saigon

Of Salem 273

of the Franklin, and our intention of making
him a visit when the Marmion should join
us, which was answered with congratula-
tions, assurances of protection, offers of ser-
vices, and an invitation for the commanders
and officers of both vessels to an audience
as soon as it should suit our convenience.

' 'A pressing invitation from Pasqual induced
us to take our lodging at his house, where
we, Mr. Bessel and myself, sent our own
mattresses, but the noisome stench and
vermin, combined with our anxiety for the
arrival of the Marmion, effectually prevented
our sleeping. The morning tide relieved us
from the latter object of disquietude, as it
brought the ship up, and she moored just
above us. She had experienced the bad
weather before related, but escaped without
injury, though in great danger, having drifted
some distance, with two anchors ahead in
the great river, and from the violence of the
wind not being able to furl her sails till the
gale was ended.

" Our first object was to establish the mode
of presentation, as we had been told that the

i3

2 74 The Old Shipmasters

most degrading obeisances would be exacted
from us. The interpreters were despatched
to the governor, acquainting him with our
readiness to wait on him and to use the same
external marks of respect and ceremony
which we should practice in our own country
on a similar occasion. An answer was soon
returned that, although their usages required
from all ambassadors and others who visited
the country prostrations and genuflections
the most profound and abject, yet, in con-
sideration of our being strangers and not
disciplined in their forms of etiquette, the
governor would dispense with this ceremony
in our case, and only require on our intro-
duction three bows, the manner of perform-
ing which was illustrated by the interpreters,
they remarking, at the same time, that their
punctilio had never been objected to by the
Portuguese, Chinese, Siamese, and other
strangers who had visited their country, con-
sequently we should view it as a mark of
great condescension. As no reasonable ob-
jection could be made to this proposal, we
readily acceded to it. In the selection of

Of Salem 275

presents we were much annoyed by the
presence of the linguists and the ' she-mer-
chants ' who had followed us on board. We
finally were obliged to turn them on deck
and place a guard at the cabin door to get
rid of their importunities.
, " Four globe lamps, four elegant cut-glass
decanters, a pair of pistols, some wine glass-
es, tumblers, perfumery, cordials, wine, a
few bottles of rum, and a handsome orna-
mented box to contain his betel, areka, and
chunam, were the articles which we chose
to present to the acting viceroy. Our party
consisted of the commanders of both ves-
sels, with two young men, Messrs. Putnam
and Bessel, a sailor of the Marmion who
spoke the Portuguese language well, old
Joachim the Portuguese pilot, a commissary
of marine and four mandarins, the whole
preceded by three of the government lin-
guists bearing the presents.

" We shortly arrived before the palace of
the governor, and were shown into a guard-
house opposite. We had not been long
waiting when we were informed that the

276 The Old Shipmasters

great personage within was ready to receive
us. On an elevation was seated, in the
Asiatic style, the acting governor, a meager,
wrinkled, cautious-looking old man, whose
countenance, though relenting into a dubi-
ous smile, indicated anything but fair-dealing
and sincerity. Seated on either side of him
were officials of different degrees of rank.
Files of soldiers, with their two-handed
swords, and shields covered with indurated
buffalo hides, were drawn up in various parts
of the hall.

"A motion of the governor's hand indic-
ated that we should be seated. The presents
were then passed to him by the linguists.
He expressed much satisfaction, and wel-
comed us in a very gracious manner, and
made many inquiries of our health, the length
of our voyage, the distance of our country
from An am, the object of our visit, etc.
After satisfying him in these particulars he
promised us every facility in the prosecution
of our views. Tea, sweetmeats, areka, and
betel were passed to us, and we vainly
endeavored to introduce the subjects of

Of Salem 277

sagouetes (presents), and port charges for
anchorage, tonnage, etc., but all recurrence
to these subjects was artfully waived by
him, he promising to satisfy us at the next
interview.

" On our way back we passed several of
the royal elephants, attended by their drivers,
who were sitting on their necks. Some of
these beasts were of enormous size, indeed
much larger than any 1 had ever seen in any
part of India. They were passing to and
from the river side, where they resorted to
drink. On passing us they would slacken
their pace and view with great apparent in-
terest objects so unusual as our white faces
and European garb presented ; nor were we
totally divested of some degree of apprehen-
sion at first, from the intense gaze and
marked attention of these enormous beasts.
Indeed, the Anamese appeared to fear some
accident might accrue to us from our novel
appearance, and advised us to assume the
costume of the country to prevent any acci-
dent, which advice we generally thereafter
complied with, at which they were always

278 The Old Shipmasters

highly gratified, viewing it as a compliment.
Nor was this unattended with other advan-
tages, for our dresses were those of civil
mandarins of the second order, which gained
us greater respect from the populace. The
dress worn by me is now in the Museum of
the East India Marine Society of Salem.

" Our attention was excited by the vocifer-
ations of an old woman who filled the bazaar
with her complaints. A soldier was standing
near her loaded down with fruits, vegetables,
and poultry, listening to her with great non-
chalance. She finally ceased, from exhaust-
ion, when the soldier, laughing heartily,
left the stall and proceeded to another,
where he began to select what best suited
him. We observed that, in the direction he
was moving, the proprietors of the stalls
were engaged in secreting the best com-
modities. On inquiry, we found that the
depredator was authorized, without fear of
appeal, to cater for his master, a mandarin
of high rank, and his exactions were levied
at his own discretion, and without any re-
muneration being given.

o

00

a,

Of Salem 279

" As a proof of the abundance which reigns
in the bazaars, and the extreme cheapness of
living in Saigon, 1 shall quote the prices of
several articles, viz.: Pork, 3 cents per
pound; beef, 4 cents per pound; fowls, 50
cents per dozen; ducks, 10 cents each; eggs,
50 cents per hundred; pigeons, 30 cents per
dozen ; varieties of shell and scale fish suffi-
cient for the ship's company, 50 cents; a fine
deer, $1.25; 100 large yams, 30 cents; rice,
$ I per picul of 1 50 pounds ; sweet potatoes, 45
cents per picul; oranges, from 30 cents to $1
per hundred; cocoanuts, |i per hundred; lem-
ons, 50 cents per hundred. As 1 am now on
the subject of fruit, I will say that it excelled
what we had seen in other parts of the East
Indies. The jack-fruit grows from the trunk
of a pretty large tree, to which it is attached
by a slender stem, apparently disproportion-
ate to the weight of the fruit, which weighs
frequently 10 or 15 pounds. It is, when
ripe, of a yellowish green. It is highly
esteemed by the natives in its raw state,
and is an ingredient in some of their made
dishes.

28o The Old Shipmasters

" The mango is of a delicious and refresh-
ing flavor, and when ripe is of a rich yellow
color. The papaw or paw-paw, is in shape
like a European pear with yellow pulp, and
is highly esteemed. The pomegranate, cele-
brated in Scripture, must, in my opinion,
have greatly degenerated. It contains a
large number of seeds, each surrounded by
a sub-acid fluid. From its astringent quali-
ties it is considered a specific in dysentery
by the East Indians. The custard apple is a
most delicious fruit. The pulp is of the con-
sistence and nearly the color of a custard.
When ripe it bursts with a slight pressure
of the hand, and is eaten with a spoon.
The guava, the anana, or pineapple, the
several species of the plantain, the banana,
the alligator pear, lemons, limes, oranges,
tamarinds, cocoanuts, watermelons, and
many other fruits were in great abundance.

" During our walk we were constantly
annoyedby hundreds of yelping curs, whose
din was intolerable. In the bazaars we were
beset with beggars, many of whom were
the most miserable, disgusting objects,

Of Salem 281

some of whom were disfigured with lep-
rosy, and others with their toes, feet, and
even legs eaten off by vermin or disease.
Nor were these the only subjects of annoy-
ance, for notwithstanding the efforts and
the expostulations of the officers who ac-
companied us, and our frequently chastising
them with our canes, the populace would
crowd around us, almost suffocating us
with the fetor of their bodies, and feel every
article of our dress with their dirty paws,
chattering like so many baboons. They
even proceeded to take off our hats and
thrust their hands into our bosoms, so that
we were glad to escape to our boats and re-
turn on board, looking like chimney-sweeps
from the rough handling we had received.

"The city of Saigon contains 180,000 in-
habitants, of which about 10,000 are Chi-
nese, according to authentic and official
statements which 1 received from Father
Joseph— of whom I shall have occasion to
speak hereafter — and from the military gov-
ernor, who returned from a visit to the royal
city of Hue a short time subsequent to our

282 The Old Shipmasters

arrival. Equi-distant from the extremities
of the city is a large range of buildings
of handsome construction. These are the
magazines of rice, which is a regular mon-
opoly, and the exportation of it is prohibited
on pain of decapitation. Each vessel de-
parting from the country is allowed a cer-
tain quantity for provisions in proportion to
the number of her crew. A large Siamese
junk was lying in the creek, on the Banga
side of the river, the captain and officers of
which had been executed a short time pre-
vious to our arrival, and the crew were then
in prison, for a violation of this edict. . . .
The ship timber and planks here excelled
anything 1 had ever seen. 1 measured one
plank whose dimensions were loo feet long,
more than four inches thick, and perfectly
squared to the top. It was sawed out of the
trunk of a teak tree. The Anamese are cer-
tainly most skillful naval architects, and
finish their work with great neatness. I
was so much pleased with this portion of
their political economy that I made frequent
visits to the naval arsenal.

Of Salem 283

" On our return on board, we found some
officers who had been despatched by the
governor to acquaint us that the following
day was proposed for the ceremony of meas-
uring the ships, for a ceremony, we were
told, it invariably had been, and could not
be dispensed with, and it was expected a
feast would be prepared for the throng of
officers who would visit us on this occasion.
Preparations were accordingly made to re-
ceive them under the superintendence of
Pasqual's wife, who, on this occasion, pro-
duced an abundance of dishes of various
kinds, principally of oriental origin, such as
pilaw, curry, mullagatawny, kedgeree, etc.,
and great varieties of confectionery and fruits.
Our fears were not a little excited that these
hot and pungent dishes would require no
small quantities of diluents to assist their
powers of deglutition.

" To eke out our own stock, we purchased
some of the whiskey of the country, made
of rice, to administer to them, mixed with
European liquors, and this, we found on trial,
took so well that on subsequent occasions

284 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

we constantly practised it, but were obliged
to be cautious not to administer it till they
began to be pretty tipsy, for fear of de-
tection. In fact, toward the catastrophe,
rice whiskey answered every purpose,

" In pursuance of arrangements, at about
9 o'clock on the morning of Sunday, the
loth of October, our boats were sent to
escort the gang of spongers on board. The
commissary, whom we have before men-
tioned, and to whom we became subse-
quently attached, in consequence of his
being less of a rogue than the generality
of these people, was the first to present
himself. He was followed by the collector
of customs, a covetous-looking old hunks
with a Jew phiz, and his nose and chin in
close intimacy, whose subsequent conduct
did not belie our skill in physiognomy. In
his suite were many others of various ranks,
who, with their long trains of servants, filled
the decks with their bodies and the air with
the perfumes from them. "

CHAPTER XXIV

Conspiracy to Defraud the Captain — Villainy and Turpitude of Offi-
cials — Everybody Clamorous for Presents, from the King down
— Women Merchants — Remarkable Story about a Tigress and a
Puppy — Selling Wives to Creditors.

'T'HE captains of the Franklin and Mar-
mion were completely at the mercy
of the Viceroy's officials in regard to the
measurement of the ships, and were doomed
to pay whatever tonnage duties the rogues
saw fit to impose. It was a barefaced act,
from which there was no redress: hence,
the captains had to submit to the fate which
awaited them with what degree of com-
placency they could command. Captain
White continues his Journal as follows :

" Immediately after the first introduction,
which was conducted with some ceremony
though with little civility, demands were
made for liquors, and as we were anxious

to get rid of them as speedily as possible,

285

286 The Old Shipmasters

we hastened to gratify them, and then
urged them to proceed to business. It was
not, however, till after a long consultation,
in which they were frequently very loud
and vociferous, that they commenced their
operations, the manner of which was as
follows : A line perpendicular to each end
of the keel is marked on deck, one-third of
the distance from the mark nearest the stern
to that forward is set off for the place of
admeasurement, where a straight pole is
placed horizontally across the ship, over the
gunwale, from which plummets are sus-
pended in order to find a line perpendicular
to the wales in that part, which is marked
on the pole.

" On this measurement the tonnage duty
is payable by the touick, or covid, a measure
of sixteen and six-tenths inches, which is
divided into decimal fractions, which are
called by the natives tat, and by the lin-
guists puntas, from the Portuguese, thus :
10 tat make a touick, or covid. The exaction
of this measurement is made at the rate of
100 quans, or 8o Spanish dollars, per covid.

Of Salem 287

On the amount so found is an imposition
of 3 per cent, to pay the officers for the
trouble and expense of measuring. Another
exaction of i per cent, is made in favor of
the soldiers for the trouble and expense of
looking on ; and to crown the climax of ex-
tortions the government allov^s but 18
mace, called the Anamese tien, each equal
to five cents, for a Spanish dollar, when
paid them for anchorage, etc.; whereas in
the bazaars, and in all other commercial
operations, the dollar is always worth two
quans of ten mace each. The mace is
divided into 60 parts called dong by the
natives, and by the Portuguese sepeks.
Sixty dong, or sepeks, make a tien or mace,
and 10 tien make a quan.

"After having settled the measurement,
which was not done without some quarrel-
ing between the commissary and the col-
lector, on whom the potations seemed to
have contrary effects, the former strongly
inclining to favor us, and the latter to cheat
us by extending the measure, they pro-
ceeded to gorge themselves with what had

288 The Old Shipmasters

been prepared for them. It would afford
but little, if any, amusement to recapitu-
late the scene of debauchery which en-
sued ; suifice it to say that about 1 2 o'clock
they proceeded on board the Marmion
where the same shameless conduct was
repeated; the quarrel about measurement,
however, being carried on with more as-
perity, the old collector's rapacity increas-
ing in a ratio with his inebriety. At about
4 o'clock, much to our satisfaction, they de-
parted and left us in possession of quiet,
but by no means clean, ships. Among
many other impurities, not the least dis-
gusting was the saliva impregnated with
their masticatory, which had been liberally
ejected in every part, as chance might di-
rect, leaving crimson spots which required
no little labor to efface.

" On the following day we paid another
visit to the governor for the purpose of
regulating the amount of sagouetes, etc.
He informed us that there was a fixed and
immutable law of the kingdom regulating
these matters, which he dare not pretend to

o o

Si ~f

"§ .S

C/3

Of Salem 2

abrogate or evade, and even if he wished
do it, there were so many other officers w
were to participate with him, that that ;
tempt must necessarily prove futile. Befc
departing, we were informed by the lingu
that the governor was about despatching
courier to the king with our official pape
and desired to know if we wished to sei
him a present. We answered him in t
affirmative, and knowing there was a Fren
naval officer in the service of that monarc
we requested permission to write to hii
which he readily granted. We according
prepared a letter in French, to M, Vannii
the king's admiral at Hue, requesting 1
good offices in our behalf, and that he wou
endeavor to procure a reduction of the s
gouetes, and he was requested to prese
to his majesty an elegant sabre, which a
companied the letter.

"Scarcely had this party taken leave b
fore we were visited on board the vessel 1
a bevy of women, who we found we
merchants, or rather merchandise brokei
They, after asking for and receiving a gla

290 The Old Shipmasters

of brandy each, began to open business,
offering sugar, silk, cotton, and other articles
for sale, but produced no samples. We
were astonished to find that the article of
sugar, which they knew was the primary
one with us, or, at least, what had been the
most inquired for, had risen from 80 to 100
per cent, since our arrival, but that other
articles had not advanced in the same ratio.
Finding this to be the case, we were more
particular in our inquiries for silk, cotton,
gambooge, and other articles, the reputed
productions of the country, of which we
ordered them to bring samples, after being
told their respective prices. They came on
board the following day. Our astonish-
ment may, however, be conceived when
they informed us that the commodities of
which we had inquired the previous day
had advanced about 50 per cent, in price.

"It would be tedious and painful to re-
capitulate the constant villainy and turpi-
tude which we experienced from these
people during our residence in this country.
Their total want of faith, constant eagerness

Of Salem 2

to deceive and overreach us, and their p^
tinacity in trying to gain by shuffling a
manoeuvring, what might have been bet
and easier gained by openness and fair-de
ing ; the tedious forms and ceremonies
transacting all kinds of business ; the i
certainty of the eventful ratification of a
bargain, unless there is a written contra
which is never made till every art has be
used and every engine of extortion put
motion and exhausted to gain more ;
these vexations, combined with the rai
cious, faithless, despotic, and anti-comm^
cial character of the government, will,
long as these causes exist, render Cocl
China the least desirable country for m-
cantile adventurers. These causes ha
made Japan relinquish the trade ; they ha
driven the Portuguese of Macao from t
country and turned their commerce ir
other channels, and are yearly and rapic
lessening their intercourse with China a
Siam. The philanthropist, the man of e
terprise, and the civilized world genera
can see in the present miserable state oft

292 The Old Shipmasters

naturally fine country no other than a
source of deep regret and commiseration.

"The climate of Cochin China is as fine
as that of any other country within the tor-
rid zone ; the periodical winds passing over
and refreshing every part of it. The win-
ters are unusually cool for the latitude in
which it is situated, and the keen breezes
from the mountains are favorable to health
and vigor. The mountains produce gold,
silver, copper, iron, and other metals. The
forests, besides the various kinds of odor-
iferous woods, such as eagle, the rose, the
sappan, and others, afford ironwood, sev-
eral species of the varnish tree, the dammer
or pitch tree, the gambooge, the bamboo,
and the rattan, besides a great variety of
woods useful in dyeing, in construction,
and in the mechanic arts. The country
also produces cinnamon, honey, wax, peltry
of various kinds, areka, betel, tobacco, cot-
ton, raw silk, sugar, musk, cassia, pepper,
indigo, sago, ivory, gold dust, rhinoceros'
horns, and rice of six different kinds.

"Rice, being an article of such universal

Of Salem 2(

consumption, receives more care in its cu
tivation than any other article in the coui
try. White flour is made of rice, and
used in making cakes and various kinds (
confectionery. Some of the varieties of ri(
produced tv/o crops in a year ; others fv
crops in two years. I have heard it assert(
that the coffee-tree is indigenous in Coch
China. This is a great mistake. Some (
the missionaries have a few trees in the
gardens, procured from Java. While
Saigon, I received a present of about fo
pounds in the pod, from a missionary, ar
this he told me was about one-fiftieth pa
of what was produced in the province th
year.

"The Anamese speak with great ener^
of the irresistible strength and amazii
velocity of the rhinoceros. They say ]
moves so rapidly that it is difficult for tl
eye to keep pace with his movements ; th
no object in his way is any impediment
his rapid career ; that he beats down rocl<
walls, and large trees with great ease, ai
that his track can be easily traced by tl

294 The Old Shipmasters

ruins in his rear. Speaking of this animal
one day to the viceroy, he observed : ' You
now see him here before you in Saigon ' ;
and, snapping his fingers, ' now he is in
Canjeo.' However hyperbolical these ac-
counts appear to be,, we may yet infer from
them that the animal is of astonishing
strength.

"The common tiger of Cochin China is
not greatly dreaded, but the royal tiger is a
most terrific animal. The governor pre-
sented one of the latter to the commander
of each ship. They were confined in very
strong cages of ironwood. That which I
had was a beautiful female, about two years
old, nearly three feet high and five feet
long. (Her skin is now in the Museum of
the East India Marine Society at Salem.) In
consequence of losing, by bad weather, the
stock of puppies and kids provided for her
on the homeward passage, we were obliged
to shoot her. A remarkable anecdote rela-
tive to this animal 1 cannot forbear relating.
In Saigon, where dogs are 'dog cheap,' we
used to give the tiger one every day.

Of Salem 2

They were thrown alive into her ca^
where, after playing with her victim 1
a while, as a cat does with a mouse, Y
eyes would begin to glisten and her tail
vibrate, which were the immediate preci
sors of death to the devoted little prison^
which was invariably seized by the back
the neck, the incisors of the sanguinary be^
perforating the jugular arteries, while s
would traverse the cage, which she lash
with her tail, and suck the blood of herpr
which hung suspended from her mou1
One day a puppy, not at all remarkable
distinguishable in appearance from the 'coi
mon herd,' was thrown into the cage. 1
set up a dismal yell and attacked the tigrc
with great fury, snapping at her nose a
drawing blood. The tigress appeared to
amused at the puny rage of the puppy, a
with as good-humored an expression
countenance as so ferocious an animal coi
be supposed to assume, she affected to tn
it all as play. Sometimes she would spre
herself at full length on her side, at othe
crouching, in the manner of the fabl

296 The Old Shipmasters

Sphinx, she would ward off with her paw
the incensed little animal till he was finally
exhausted. She then proceeded to caress
him into confidence, in which she finally
succeeded, and in a short time they lay
down together and slept.

" From this time they were inseparable,
the tigress appearing to feel for the puppy
all the solicitude of a mother, and the puppy
in return treating her with the greatest affec-
tion. A small aperture was left open in the
cage by which he had free ingress and
egress. Experiments were subsequently
made by presenting a strange dog at the
bars of the cage, when the tigress would
manifest great eagerness to get at it. Her
adopted child was then thrown in, on
which she would eagerly pounce, but im-
mediately discovering the cheat, she would
caress it with great tenderness. The na-
tives made several unsuccessful attempts to
steal the dog from us.

"The coin of the country is perforated
with a square hole in the center, and strung
upon a ligature made generally of the fibers

Of Salem 2

of the pineapple leaf. The string is divid
in the middle by a knot, and five mace, or 3
sepecks, strung on each side, and the en
tied together. Specimens of each kind a
deposited in the Salem East India Mari
IVluseum. A silver ingot, current in t
country when I left it, at three quans ai
five mace, I have also deposited in t
Museum.

" Our time was spent till the 14th in fru
less negotiations for cargoes, the produce
the country rising in price daily. We final
determined to take a house at old Saigon,
we were informed that the supercargoes
the Macao ships and of the Chinese jun
made this their place of residence, it bei
the principal mart of commerce in the di^
sion. We accordingly hired a house of t
widow of a Portuguese of Macao, hers
a Cochin-Chinese, at the rate of $150 1
three months. The house was situated
the bank of a small stream which wash
the southern borders of old Saigon. On t
opposite bank of the stream was an esti
belonging to the acting governor, where

298 The Old Shipmasters

occasionally resided ; he was, in fact, there
when we removed, and the second day after
taking possession of our new habitation we
visited him by invitation. We met with the
usual reception — tea, sweetmeats, areka,
etc., were presented us, and, while we were
sipping our tea, an explosion like that of a
pistol took place near us, which produced
an involuntary start in us, highly amusing
his excellency. He had lately received from
Hue some intonating balls, made of a fulmi-
nating powder which had been imported in
the French ships, and took this occasion,
unobserved by us, to throw one upon the
pavement behind us, where it exploded.

" We had a long conversation on the sub-
ject of merchandise, more especially sugar.
He inveighed against the holders of that
article with great acrimony, and advised us
not to be in a hurry or show any impatience,
as they, he observed, must finally come to
our terms ; for, if we departed without pur-
chasing, the commodity would be left on
their hands, and, as they had bought it of
the manufacturers at an advanced price— so

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Of Salem 2

great was the competition to speculate upi
and to forestall us — for which they had 1
means of payment but the proceeds of tl
very article, they, in case of failure, mi
sell their wives and children to meet th(
creditors. On the following day we disco
ered that the old rogue was, sub rosa, ti
principal sugar holder in the district. Thi
well knew that, in regard to merchandis
we were completely in their power, for v
had, by coming up the river, rendered ol
selves liable to pay measurement dues, s
gouetes, etc., and that we would not retu
without purchasing parts of cargoes, at lea:
although at a very dear rate, and it appear
that they were practicing that laudable s>
tern of patience and perseverance which 1
excellency had so kindly recommended
to adopt, and which we, indeed, were oblig
to conform to as a dernier ressort, and
amuse ourselves in the best way we coi
in our unpleasant situation.

" Our house adjoined that of our landlad
a Christian, who had resided some time
Macao, and spoke the Portuguese languag

300 The Old Shipmasters

On the day after we took possession, she
gave us an invitation to her house to meet
a friend of hers. On our entrance, she v/el-
comed us with great cordiality, and intro-
duced to us a person whom, from his dress,
color, and general appearance, we supposed
to be a native. This was Padre Antonio,
one of the Italian missionaries. He ap-
peared to be highly delighted to see white
faces, a sight which he stated to be very
rare to him. Besides his own language, and
Latin of course, he was acquainted with
none but the Anamese, in which he was
fluent. After a short time he accompanied
us to our house, when we found that his
garb was not the only circumstance of his
similitude to the natives, for he found means,
in about half an hour, to dispose of the best
part of a bottle of cordial, to supply, proba-
bly, the expense of saliva produced by
smoking half a dozen charges of tobacco in
a china pipe which was carried by an at-
tendant. In his person and habits, also, he
was scarcely more cleanly than his converts,
with many of whom of the softer sex (in-

Of Salem 3'

eluding our landlady) his attentions we
said to be not confined to spiritualities,
short, our conclusion was that His Holine
the Pope, and the most holy 'Societas (
Propaganda Fide,' had in this instan
chosen an unworthy minister to forwa
their views.

"We were greatly annoyed in our hat
tation by the pertinacious curiosity of tl
natives, for we had no other means of avoi
ing their obtrusive gaze than by causing tl
paling to be matted on the inside. Thi
however, was but a temporary protectio
for on the following morning we found o
fence perforated in every part, like loo
holes in a fort, and through each of them
shining eye levelled at us pointblank. \A
immediately began to repair the breaches
our works, but, like Penelope's web, tl
next morning we found them in the san
state in which they were on the precedii
one. We were finally obliged to desist, ai
submit with the best grace we could to t\
provoking intrusion.

"Almost despairing of securing a cargo.

302 The Old Shipmasters of Salem

made a reconnoitering trip to every store and
warehouse in the city, the result of which
was the finding of only 800 piculs of sugar
in Saigon, 10 tons of raw silk, which was
held at a higher price than it was worth in
Europe, 30 to 50 tons of red dyewood, also
enormously dear, and some dirty cotton in
small parcels.

" We were told by the linguists that the
sugar then at Saigon was but a small pro-
portion of what was in the division, and
that if we would offer a liberal price the
merchants would bring it in ; but we were
now too well acquainted with the duplicity
and roguery of the natives to listen for a
moment to these idle tales."

CHAPTER XXV

Trying to Conciliate the Governor — Sfiameless Rogues — Extortion
Ofificials in Paying for IWeasurement of Vessels. — Paying Char]
at Custom-House in Copper Coin — Assailed by a Shower
Stones — Trying to See who could Hold out the Longer.

T^HE Journal further narrates the difficultii
-^ which Captain White still encounten
in his effort to secure a cargo :

"We endeavored to further our own viev
by marked attention to the acting governc
trusting that if we could conciliate hir
and engage him in our cause, his examp
and influence would effect a removal of tl
non-intercourse existing between us and tl
merchants. We accordingly invited him
our house to pay us a friendly visit, whi«
he accepted, and appointed the next Sund;
at 10 o'clock to call on us.

" According to promise, he made his a

pearance with great pomp and ceremon

303

304 The Old Shipmasters

guarded by a detachment of soldiers with
swords, pikes, and shields. Our landlady
had undertaken the management of the
table and old Polonio acted as master of
ceremonies. After the first reception was
over, the governor asked us several ques-
tions about our country, how we liked Co-
chin China, etc., which we satisfactorily
answered. We, however, did not fail to
complain of the sugar merchants, on whom
we bestowed several epithets, by no means
of a flattering nature, a very considerable
part of which he might with good propriety
apply to himself without fear of encroaching
on the property of others. He probably felt
his ' withers wrung' ; but how were we to
know that the great ' Oung-quan-tung-
kion,' the second officer in rank in the di-
vision of Donnai, and who had once the
honor to represent his august sovereign at
the court of Pekin, was a petty dealer in
sugar and other merchandise, and was
leagued with other dealers to gain by
fraud and extortion an undue advantage over
strangers, who were in their power ? His

Of Salem 3

excellency was pleased to join in the inve
tives against the sugar merchants, and
reiterate his advice of a former day — '
practice patience.' A collation was th
served : we presented him some wine,
which he took part of a glass and passed t
bottle to his attendants, who soon de
patched it, and a bottle of cordial met t
same fate. He asked us if we had any c
jects of curiosity to show him, to which \
answered in the negative, being aware
his motive. One of the linguists, howevi
who, by the way, was a shameless rogi
told him that he had seen in my apartme
a double-barreled fowling-piece, which
was finally obliged to produce. After a
miring the workmanship, he condescend
to borrow it for a shooting excursion t
next day. 1 was obliged to comply wi
his desire with the best grace I could ;
sume, and it was fortunate that on this oc(
sion I took my final leave of it, as no ott
opportunity occurred, for I never saw
again, nor could all the efforts 1 subsequen
made during my stay procure me even

3o6 The Old Shipmasters

glimpse of it, his excellency affecting to be-
lieve it a present. After presenting him
a few yards of scarlet broadcloth, which he
very much admired, he took his leave, prom-
ising us every assistance in his power.

" On the following day, we waited on the
governor in order to make arrangements for
the payment of our measurement dues, as
he had hinted at that subject on the pre-
ceding day. No representation we could
make would induce him to receive the
Spanish dollars at par, he affirming that they
were worth but i8 mace in copper sepecks.
We then offered to pay him in copper se-
pecks, which we knew we could purchase
in the bazaar at the rate of 19 mace to
the dollar, to which, after some demur, he
acceded.

"On our return we busied ourselves in
the purchase and examination of copper se-
pecks — a harassing and perplexing employ-
ment, — and the united efforts of four of us
could enable us to count, assort, and new-
string only the value of 1500 quans in more
than a week. It must be confessed, how-

Of Salem

ever, that we were very inexpert in handl
the money, but we were constrained to
very particular to prevent its being again i
strung and recounted in the custom-hou
a procedure that would, as Pasqual i
Joachim affirmed, subject us to great 1
by reason of theft and destruction of
coin by careless handling.

"A day being appointed for the paym
of what we had collected, the Marmk
launch was freighted with it and despatcl
for the custom-house ; and it was, as n
be supposed, a matter of curiosity to
a stout longboat of a ship deeply lac
with coin, amounting in value to only
Spanish dollars, and weighing nearly t
and a half tons. The sun had nearly
before all the custom-house officials
sembled, and there appeared no dispositi
on their part to despatch the busin
before them. There were much talk
and mystery among them, and it v
evident they were hatching some sche
to cajole us. We, finally, after repea
applications, were permitted to land ■

3o8 The Old Shipmasters

money and bring it to the custom-house,
by which time it was nearly dark. We
urged them to take an account of it and give
us a receipt for the amount, at which they
affected to laugh, and told us that it was too
late to do any business that night, but that
in the morning they would again assemble
and proceed to count and examine it.

" We were thunder-struck at this declara-
tion, for it had been expressly stipulated
that the money should not be again sepa-
rated after we had delivered it, and an officer
had attended on the part of the government
while we were selecting and arranging it at
the house, to supersede the necessity of such
a procedure. By this time the tide in the
creek had ebbed so far as to render it im-
possible to get out with the boat laden ;
otherwise, we should have taken our freight
on board again and proceeded to the ships
with it. In this perplexity the wretches
left us, evidently enjoying our embarrass-
ment. We had now no alternative but to
let the money remain in the custom-house,
which was entirely open in front, and send

Of Salem 2

on board for an armed guard from each sh
When we had posted the guard and giv
them proper directions, we left them. Th
met with no disturbance during the nig)
but what proceeded from an enormous S(
pent, at least 15 feet long, as they state
which came out of the river, entered t
court in front of the building, and came ir
the custom-house, and glided between t
stacks of money with glaring eyes, afi
which they lost sight of it. From the c
scription of the sailors, 1 concluded it was
boa constrictor, and probably had its d
in some part of the building, where it w
retiring to rest after its nocturnal excursi
in search of food.

" It was not till 1 1 o'clock on the followi
day that the officers were assembled
count the money. After counting the fii
hundred quans, which consumed more th
an hour, during which they practiced eve
art to vex and annoy us, rejecting every s
peck which had the least flaw in it or th
was not of standard size, to decide whi
they were furnished with the criteria of coi

3IO The Old Shipmasters

recently from the mint. When they had
counted the loo quans, what was our
astonishment to find that there was an
apparent loss of lo per cent. ! As the rejected
coin did not appear to amount to half that
sum, which on examination we found to be
the case, our indignation was highly excited,
and we insisted on searching the soldiers
who were counting, and on them we found
secreted the balance of the loss. They were
not in the least disconcerted at the discovery,
but laughed in our faces in the most provok-
ing manner.

"We immediately made a report of this
roguery to the head mandarin. He observed
that if they were guilty, and we wished it,
he would punish them. We insisted it
should be done. They accordingly re-
ceived a few slight strokes with a rattan.
It was evidently all a farce, as they were
laughing and chuckling during the infliction,
if it deserves the name. Old Polonio and
Joachim, who were present, now beckoned
us aside, and told us that these vexations
were contrived to force us to relinquish the

Of Salem 3

plan of paying our measurement dues in tl
coin of the country, and to oblige us to p;
them in Spanish dollars, at 18 mace eac
and represented to us the great difficulti
and loss we should experience in a pers
verance in our intention. On hearing tl
we determined to complain to the governc
"We immediately waited on his exc(
lency, and recapitulated our grievances, r
minding him of his promise of assistan
and protection. From his manner we pt
ceived that he was aware of the impositio
that had been practiced, and, moreover, v
had but little doubt that they were ins
gated by him. He declined to interfere, ai
thought it best to allow the officers to cou
the money in their own way, or to make
compromise by giving them a sum of mon(
on condition they would count it, or pern
it to pass for so many Spanish dollars,
18 quans the dollar, and, to prevent furth
trouble, to pay the residue of the gover
ment dues in Spanish dollars. We object
to part of this plan, but suggested that \
would withdraw all the money we h;

312 The Old Shipmasters

deposited in the custom-house and apply it
to other purposes, and pay the whole amount
in Spanish dollars. To this he assented,
provided we would pay a duty equivalent
to the premium of the dollars to satisfy the
officers for the trouble they had already been
to, and might yet be at.

"After several journeys between the cus-
tom-house and the governor's house, and
night again approaching, we were under the
necessity of succumbing to these harpies,
and we delivered them the money and took
their receipt for I750. It would be tedious,
in short impossible, to relate the tissue of
fraud and knavery which the Cochin-Chi-
nese daily and hourly endeavored to practice
upon us.

"After we returned to our house in the
evening, and while sitting in the veranda,
we were assailed by a shower of stones
which appeared to be thrown from the other
side of the stream. The noise of the de-
scending missiles brought our landlady to
her gate, and, while we were talking with
her on the subject, we were assailed by

Of Salem :

another shower of stones from invisi
hands, one of which, striking Maria on 1
ankle, caused a severe contusion, and ;
other inflicted a serious wound on the a
of one of the young gentlemen. We i
mediately armed ourselves and proceeded
the spot whence the stones appeared to
thrown, and searched every place whi
we thought any person could be conceal
but without success. After our return, a
while we were talking upon the subject, '
were saluted with another discharge, up
which we made a second sally, but with
better success than before. We were th
fain to retire inside the house and close 1
shutters, after which a few random stor
were thrown, and we were then left to 1
quiet possession of our lodgings. This i
noyance was repeated almost every eveni
afterwards, and sometimes in mid-day, I
no search, inquiry, or offer of reward for 1
detection of the offenders could elicit a
information, neither could we ever div:
the cause of it. It was evident, howev
that it came from the direction of 1

SH The Old Shipmasters

governor's house, to whom we made com-
plaint. He answered that he was frequently
molested in the same manner, and that if
we could secure the offenders and bring them
to him, they should be punished, and this
was all the satisfaction we could obtain.

" As we reaped no advantages by living on
shore, and the sugar merchants were still
inflexible, we determined to try the effect
of a stratagem. We accordingly paid the
balance of our measurement fees, filled our
water casks, bent some of our sails, and
made other preparations for sea. We re-
moved part of our effects on board from the
house, and on the 31st of October the two
commanders, to add weight to the ' note of
preparation,' removed on board. From the
secrecy we had maintained in regard to our
real intentions, and by the show we made
in our ostensible determination, we flattered
ourselves that we should bring the mer-
chants to reasonable terms, as they would
not, we presumed, permit us to depart with-
out purchasing their commodities. A whole
week, however, elapsed after this without

Of Salem 3

producing the desired effect. The sar
dogged indifference was apparent in the
which had annoyed us so much heretofo
during which time preparations were maki
for our feigned departure. We finally ask
the linguists if the merchants would r
come to some accommodation, rather th
see us depart with no cargoes, when,
our astonishment and mortification, th
answered, with the greatest coolness, tl
the Cochin-Chinese were too well versed
deception to be blinded by the shallow ar
fices we had adopted, but that they w(
willing to try which could hold out t
longer.

" We had now little hope but in the vie
roy, who was daily expected, and repi
sented as a very different man from t
present incumbent, being very attentive
Europeans, coveting their company, and
ways ready to assist and protect the
having been formerly mandarin of strangi
at Hue. We were somewhat encourag
on hearing that the season for the new cr
of sugar was approaching, when, as it w

3i6 The Old Shipmasters

represented, it would be plentiful and cheap,
and we labored with all our might to believe
as much of this as possible, as a sedative to
our excited feelings.

"While upon an excursion one day, in
pursuit of some planks to repair one of our
boats, we observed before an old woman's
stall what we supposed to be boiled turtle,
and exposed for sale in square pieces ; but
our linguist told us it was cayman, or alli-
gator, and bid us follow him, which we did,
to an enclosure back of the building, where
there were about 20 of these hideous ani-
mals, from two to 12 feet in length, walking
about with their jaws bound together, and
the stench from them was intolerable. The
method of taking them, we were told, was
by placing a number of small lines in their
haunts, with which they became entangled,
and fell an easy prey to the hunters.

" In a species of palm-tree, at the top is a
succulent bud, in the heart of which is an
unctuous white maggot, as large as one's
thumb, which is esteemed a great delicacy,
and is a monopoly of the royal family and

Of Salem 3

mandarins of first distinction. A present (
about a dozen of these buds, containing tl
worms, was sent us by the viceroy as
mark of great consideration. It is hard
necessary to say we declined eating th
delicacy, but gave them to Pasqual's wil
who was highly delighted with the tid-bi
that our over-fastidious taste had rejected.

"A circumstance which contributed
amuse and beguile us of many a tedio
hour, and which was of great advantage
us in our researches after information co
cerning the country, occurred at this tim
It was our introduction to Padre (Fathe
Joseph, the elder Italian missionary, a r
markable man of fifty, of mild and unassur
ing manners, of dignified yet conciliatii
deportment, of great zeal and correctness
the discharge of his pastoral duties, of a mc
blameless and self-denying life, evincing th
he was honest in the sacred cause, and
man of erudition and great observation. 1
spoke the French language with considerat
fluency, and to him I am indebted for mu
valuable information.

3i8 The Old Shipmasters

" On the 6th of December, the arrival of
the viceroy was announced by the discharge
of a few guns, and by the display of the
Anamese flag at the citadel. . . . We
embraced the earliest opportunity of paying
our compliments to the viceroy. The rigid
discipline and exact subordination observed
in his presence were exemplified in the pro-
found silence and abject prostrations of the
courtiers. The mode of salutation is thus
practiced : The visitor enters the hall from
the side, at the right of the throne, and
passes the ends of the platforms farthest
from it, till he arrives at the open area in
the front. He then faces the object of his
homage, clasps his hands together, while
his arms hang suspended before him ; he
then raises his hands, still clasped, to his
forehead, and lets them fall before him. He
then unclasps his hands, falls in the attitude
of genuflection, with his hands placed on
the earth and touching it with his forehead.
He then rises and repeats the same cere-
mony two, five, or eight times, the number
being three, six, or nine, according to the

Of Salem 3

rank between the respective persons payii
and receiving homage.

" His excellency was highly gratified wi
our presents. The kaleidoscope was pa
ticularly admired. 1 directed the linguist
inform the viceroy that this was a new ii
vention, and had excited much admiratic
in Europe, and then proceeded to explain i
uses and mode of application. No soone
however, had he looked through it than 1
took it from his eyes and addressed a fe
words to the linguist, who repeated fro
his excellency that the instrument might 1
new in Europe, but was by no means ra
with them. He then directed a few won
to an officer in attendance, who returned in
few minutes with several kaleidoscopes co
ered with embossed paper. They were, it
true, of inferior workmanship, but in princip
did not differ in the least degree from that
Dr. Brewster. We were, however, great
surprised that an invention of such recent o:
gin in Europe should be found in this seclud(
part of the world, especially as those we sa
were evidently of Chinese manufacture."

CHAPTER XXVI

Fight with Snakes in the Donnai River — The Viceroy's Quaint Ban-
quet Complimentary to the American Officers — The Viceroy Helps
his Guests by Cramming Food down their Throats — The White
Men a Curiosity to the Ladies of Saigon — Difficulty in Obtaining
Rice — Preparations to Repel Pirates — Sailing of the Franklin —
Arrival at Salem.

TJOW Captain White, after all his trials
and troubles with the merchants and
mandarins of Saigon, finally secured a cargo
will now be told, together with other inci-
dents connected with his long and venture-
some voyage. The captain was possessed
of a liberal education, and, withal, of rare
literary attainments. He belonged to an old
historic family, celebrated, not only for its
wealth, but for all those essentials which
contribute so much to give importance and
standing to a community. Salem has been
singularly fortunate in having had men of

this stamp, who, through all the passing

320

The Old Shipmasters of Salem 3

generations, have been conspicuous in forr
ing and fashioning her institutions, whii
have given prestige, glory, and character
her name, both at home and abroad.

"Men, high-minded men, have been
Her bulwark, stay, and strength."

But to return to Captain White's Journa
"The missionaries and Pasqual had fr
quently told us that the greatest rogue
the custom-house department — and o:
who had great influence — was absent on
visit to Hue, and was soon expected to i
turn ; that to his villainy might be attribut
the loss of the Macao trade and the dimin
tion of that with China, and that he was
great favor with the government, whic
notwithstanding its professions of friendsh
towards strangers and favor to foreign cor
merce, was decidedly opposed to any int(
course with them. The bearer of our lett
to the authorities, or rather to M. Vanni(
an official of the king, asking his aid towa
effecting a reduction of the sagouetes, and
bespeak his good offices in our behalf wi

322 The Old Shipmasters

the government, was the very personage
who had been so represented, and his sub-
sequent business proved that the picture
which our friends had portrayed had not
been caricatured. The name by which he
was always known among those who spoke
the Portuguese language, and by the natives
who did not, was ' Aqua-ardiente,' the
Portuguese name for brandy ; but whether
this was a gratuitous cognomen of the
Macao sailors, or was a corruption of his
proper name, we did not care to inquire.
The first act of this troublesome fellow was
to demand an enormous fee for the transpor-
tation of the letter from Hue, which was
finally commuted to a bottle of rum and a
yard of red cloth. . . .

"Snakes of several species are frequently
seen swimming in the river, among which
are the cobra-de-capella, or hooded serpent,
and the small green viper, whose bite is al-
most instantaneously mortal. It is said to
be purblind in the daytime but very quick-
sighted in the dark. One of these latter
subjects, now in the Museum of the East

Of Salem 3

India Marine Society at Salem, was killi
by me. It had ascended from the river ar
perched on the rowlock of the boat ve
near my hand while I was reclining und
the canopy. A large cobra-de-capella w
pursued by the second mate of the Frankli
in the boat, for about a mile. He foug
with great fury and was frequently wound(
by the boat hook till he finally eluded furth
pursuit by diving under the bottoms of tl
country vessels.

" At the time appointed we again wait(
on the viceroy. He was attended by abo
40 of the officers of his own househo
and the government linguists — Antoni
Mariano, Joseph, and Vicente— who we
native Christians. We were received wi
great cordiality and attention, and his e
cellency, throwing aside the pride, pom
and circumstance of his exalted station, co
versed very freely with us. His eager i
quisitiveness and judicious selections
subjects of inquiry proved him to be a m;
of an enlarged mind, prompted by an u
quenchable thirst for knowledge and infc

324 The Old Shipmasters

mation ; and the judicious remarks which
he made on a variety of subjects convinced
us of the strength of his natural powers and
the extent of his acquirements. War, poli-
tics, religion, and the customs and manners
of European nations were the topics on
which he dwelt with great interest ; and
having heard that I held a commission in
the naval service of my country he was very
particular in his inquiries on the subject of
naval tactics and maritime warfare. When
his curiosity had been gratified in these
particulars, he was pleased to pass many
encomiums on the superior intelligence,
skill, and power of 'Olan,' and with an
emotion of mortified pride deplored the
comparative barbarous state of his natiye
country.

"We were told that some refreshments
had been provided for us, and we were not
a little amused at the ' European style ' of
this entertainment ! The table being high
and the chairs low, we were obliged to re-
linquish this item of European fashion, and
stand around the table. Antonio had pro-

Of Salem 3

cured somewhere two old knives and forl<
which we made good use of in cutting
meat and conveying it to our mouths. T
viceroy attended us with a bottle of tl
liquor we had presented him, in one han
and a glass in the other, with which he pli^
us till we begged for quarter, on which 1
granted us a truce from this well-meant b
obtrusive hospitality. His anxiety, howev(
that we should reap the full fruition of t
pleasure before us, pressed into service 1
manual powers, of which we had had a foi
taste on another state occasion, and he pr
ceeded with his fingers to cram our mout
with a heterogeneous assemblage of fis
fowl, rice, pilaw, curry, pork, potatoe
sugar-plums, etc., without any regard
order or precedence, till our eyes began
start from their sockets, while the big te^
coursed in rapid succession over our d
tended cheeks. The viceroy did not pi
take with us in either solids or fluids, b
derived great apparent satisfaction from
exertions to please him. He promised
use his influence in persuading the holde

326 The Old Shipmasters

of the merchandise to bring and sell it to us
at a reasonable rate. . . .

" There are no wheel carriages in Cochin
China. Persons of distinction are carried in
hammocks of cotton netting in which are a
mattress and pillows to recline upon. The
hammock is suspended to a pole, over which
is placed a canopy. The vehicle is carried
by four or six men. Inconsequence of the
indisposition which occurred to me, 1 used
one of these while in the country, which I
shall present to the Salem East India Marine
Society.^

" In the viceroy's palace were the differ-
ent apartments of his wives and concu-
bines, who were in gaudy dresses of various
colors and loaded down with jewelry. On
our approach they flocked to the verandas
and gazed at us with eager curiosity through
the screens and lattices, behind which they
were partially shrouded. They were in high
glee and frequently called to us, and, as the
linguists said, invited us to approach that

' This vehicle may now be seen in a room in the above-named
Society's building.

Of Salem ;

they might examine our dresses, skins, e
But when we were about to gratify 1
ladies by nearer approach, two stout fello\
who were their guard, drove them back a
posted themselves at the doors as sentinc
As we had no wish to intrude we passed (
" We had long suspected that a plot v
in agitation among the linguists and so;
of the government officers to ensnare us
some troublesome dilemma, and now ev(
day's experience served to strengthen (
suspicion. Antonio, the head linguist, w
was a most consummate scoundrel, had be
employed by us to purchase our sea-stc
of rice from the bazaar. After appropriati
to his own use the money which we I
advanced him for the purchase of the ri
he undertook to be highly offended at bei
reprimanded for his roguery. He fina
told us the rice was ready at his house, a
that we had better send our boats for it. <
being questioned if he had a pass for it,
answered in the affirmative. After securi
the rice, we waited several hours in expec
tion of the officers of the custom-hou

328 The Old Shipmasters

who, he told us, would be on board before
the boats could return with the rice. Night
finally approached, and no officers appeared.
The laws against the exportation of this
article were sanguinary and rigidly enforced,
and should we be deceived in regard to the
pass, and the commodity be found on board,
or alongside our vessels, we were aware
that our lives and the property in our charge
would be the forfeit. We therefore sent the
boats back and disembarked the rice at
Antonio's house. Scarcely had this been
effected when Antonio and some of the
myrmidons of the custom-house came off
from the shore and inquired where the rice
was. We told them it had been sent back
and relanded in consequence of their non-
appearance. They muttered awhile and fin-
ally werit off, evidently chagrined at the
failure of their diabolical plans. We subse-
quently discovered that no pass had ever
been obtained. Our new acquaintance,
Domingo, dared not make known to the
viceroy the many schemes of the officers
against us, as the mandarin of letters, whose

Of Salem :

very name he professed to dread, was si
posed to be at the head of the cabal.

" On the ist of January, Domingo inform
us that he had used all the influence in 1
power towards an accommodation with 1
sugar merchants, but that he had only be
able to bring them to agree to take 15 qu2
per picul, and, as we then found there m
no alternative but to depart without a
cargoes, we finally offered him that pr
for all he would bring us.

"On the 8th and 9th, Domingo brou^
us about 50 piculs of sugar, and nearl>
week elapsed before we saw him again,
finally came and told us he could procure
more. The women brokers interfered, a
determined that no irregular person shoi
meddle with their privileges. They co
plained to the mandarin of letters, and
ordered Domingo to desist, and leave 1
women to manage their business in th
own way. He, however, took care
associate his own agent, a Chinese narr
Chu-le-ung, with the female brokers, w
stipulated to furnish us with all the su

33° The Old Shipmasters

in the district at the price agreed on with
Domingo. Accordingly, on the i6th, we
recommenced taking on board cargo/

"Several circumstances of a suspicious
nature on the part of the natives had lately
transpired, and some acts of covert hostility.
We were frequently put in jeopardy by
the various missiles which were frequently
launched against us while walking the
streets, and by no efforts we made could
we ever discover the perpetrators of these
outrages, excepting in one instance, when 1
was passing up the creek with four men in
our own boat. Among other things hurled
at us were several heavy butts of sugar-
cane, one of which struck my hat and would
inevitably have broken my head had it come
in contact with it. I caught a glimpse of
the fellow, and, seizing a cudgel, jumped
out to my waist in water and pursued him
through the rabble, who attempted to detain
me. He jumped into the creek on the other
side and eluded my pursuit.

' The dotchin, with which both cargoes were weighed, is now in
the East India Marine IWuseum, presented by Captain White.

m

rt
§

Of Salem

"A number of boats had been obser
by the watches lurking about the ships
several nights, and once when the wat
by orders, neglected to strike the usual be
they approached nearer. The officer of
watch declared that this was one of
royal guard-boats. On the following ev
ing, at a late hour, while 1 was sitting o
versing with Joachim, under a roofing
mats which he had built over the quarl
deck, the watch informed us that a la
galley was silently dropping down with
tide, and was quite near us. Joachim v
greatly alarmed, and assured me that it v
a ladrone, and no doubt intended to bo
us. Immediate preparations were made
repel them, and the Marmion was cautiou
hailed to put them on their guard. Th
however, had noticed the pirate and w
on the alert. Although our preparati(
had been made as silently as possible, tl
were discovered by the pirates, who imr
diately manned three or four oars, stee
their vessel a little clear of us, and drop]
anchor about 50 fathoms below the Fra',

332 The Old Shipmasters

lin. Our vigilance during the night de-
prived them of an opportunity to surprise
us. The galley did not, however, leave the
station during the whole of the next day.
Towards evening we sent Pasqual on board
of the pirate craft to warn them off, threat-
ening to sink them if they did not comply.
In a few moments a stout crew made their
appearance from below, weighed their an-
chor, and pulled up the river, shouting 'Mot-
quan ' in a most stentorian manner,

"Joachim stated to us that several of the
Macao ships had been robbed, and not infre-
quently some of their crews killed, by these
ladrones. He related the following inci-
dent of a Macao ship, under British colors
and officers, which had been robbed. The
weather being extremely warm, the officers
slept on deck. The pirates entered the
cabin windows and took off property in
specie to a great amount. Application was
made to the government to assist in the de-
tection of the robbers, but all the satisfaction
that could be obtained was the promise that
if the captain could find the offenders they

Of Salem ;

should be punished. It was well kno^
that the government connived at th(
outrages.

" ' Aqua-ardiente ' had become capricic
and vindictive, and would frequently, wh
we were taking in cargo, suddenly pu1
stop to all further proceedings, order. 1
boats away, and with his crew leave 1
vessel. He was then only to be won hi
by caresses and sagouetes, for nothing coi
be done without his presence.

"The original schedule, in Cochin-Chin(
characters, of the objects which the ki
wished us to bring him, I shall deposit
the Museum of the Salem East India Mar
Society.

"A few days before we quitted Saig(
Padre Joseph begged of us some wine a
flour. Knowing his abstemious habits, '
asked him to what use he intended to ap]
these articles. He informed us that the ki
had been frequently indisposed of late, a
in the event of his death, an exterminatior
the Christians was feared, and that the w
and flour were designed as elements to

334 The Old Shipmasters

used at the celebration of the Eucharist, of
which he intended to partake with his con-
verts at their last extremity. No persuasion
could induce this worthy, conscientious, and
intrepid man to quit the country with us.
His answer invariably was, that it would
be disgraceful for him to desert his post
in the hour of danger and leave his flock
to the mercy of the wolves ; that now
was the time for him to evince his zeal
and sincerity in the service of his Master,
and although an obscure individual, his
sphere of action limited, and fate had placed
him in this remote part of the globe, his
conduct would be the same as if he were
in the most exalted station, and the eyes of
the whole world upon him.

" On the 29th of January, 1820, both ships
having taken on board less than 1700 piculs
of sugar, Chu-le-ung informed us that there
was no more to be procured ; but that if
we would wait till the month of March,
when the new crop would come in, it would
then be plentiful and cheap. It had been
rumored that the anticipated crop was

Of Salem ;

already disposed of. We waited on 1
viceroy and demanded if it were true,
verbally confirmed the report. Nothing v
now left us but to prepare for immedi,
departure. We took occasion to con
again with the viceroy and represent 1
hardships of our case.

"We incidentally remarked that in 1
list of candidates for sagouetes we obser\
the ' Mandarin of Elephants,' and how a
claims of these officers, who had never b€
employed, could be supported, we w
at a loss to conjecture. He advised us
wait on the several personages in questi(
not omitting to observe, however, that 1
custom-house laws could not be broken 1
by royal edict. We subsequently saw 1
white-elephant mandarins, but got no sal
faction. We had to pay up. On the mo
ing of Jan. 30 we weighed anchor a
dropped down the river, and I shall, I thii
be readily believed, when 1 state that f
tears were shed by us on our departure.

" On our arrival at Batavia, we found tl
there was neither sugar, coffee, nor £

336 The Old Shipmasters

other article which would suit our purpose,
but at the eastern ports of Java we ascer-
tained that cargoes could be procured. We
were, however, interdicted from proceeding
there with any goods already on board, but
must either discharge what cargoes we had
previous to sailing from thence, or we might
remain in Batavia and freight in Samarang,
or other ports, what we wanted to complete
our ladings. Remonstrance was of no avail,
and it was tmally arranged that 1 should pur-
chase the Marmion's Cochin China cargo,
and freight the deficiency of the Frank-
lin's lading from Samarang, while the Mar-
mion should proceed to that place for a full
freight.

"On the 13th of March, the Marmion
sailed for Samarang, in which ship 1 des-
patched my clerk, Mr. Bessel, to expedite
my business in that place. On the 29th of
April we sailed from Batavia, and on the
first of May took our departure from Java
Head. Our vessel being very deeply laden
and the weather boisterous, our upper works
strained and opened so as to admit great

Of Salem 3

quantities of water, in consequence of whi
we were obliged to keep one pump cc
stantly, and both occasionally, in operatic
This situation obliged us to touch at the I:
of France for repairs, where we arrived
the 22d of May. On the 25th our old cc
sort, the Marmion, which had laden \
cargo at Samarang, arrived. She had e
perienced the bad weather, which h
obliged us to stop at the island, and HI
wise touched to repair damages.

" May 29th, having completed repairs, >
sailed for Port Louis, leaving the Marmt
there.

" On the 22d of June we passed the Ca
of Good Hope. Our passage thence till ^
arrived at the latitude of 40° N. was pie;
ant, when, it being the 23d day of Augu
we encountered a most violent hurricai
by which we were dismasted.

" On the 31st of August, 1820, arrived
Salem under jury masts, having been abse
20 months."

TWENTY- SIX
HISTORIC SHIP

The Story of Certain Famous Vess
of War and of their Successors in t
Navies of the United States and of t
Confederate States of America frt
1775 to 1903

By FREDERIC STANHOPE HILI

Late U. S, Mavy

Author of " Twenty Years at Sea," " The Story of the Lucky Little
'Enterprise,'" etc.

With an Introduction by George Eugene Belki

Rear Admiral (Retired) V. J.-V.
^ ^ £^

8% With 32 Illustrations. Net, $3.50. By mail, $3.7

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moderate compass all the general reader and many students desire to know
cerning the great naval duels of the United and the Confederate Stat
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Old Paths and Legends
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