VI.
THE AFFAIR OF QUALLAH BATTOO: 1831-1832.
Within a few years after the Empress of China opened the way to the Orient, American merchants established a considerable trade with the Dutch East Indies. Java was the first island visited, the Empress of China having stopped there on her way to Canton. The adjacent island of Sumatra was doubtless the next to attract the attention of our shipmasters. Trade with it was begun in 1789 by Captain Jonathan Barnes, of Salem, commander of the brig Cadet, who in that year arrived at Boston with a cargo of pepper, spices, and camphor. The traffic in pepper with the Sumatrans soon became quite extensive, and in 1802 no less than 30 American merchantmen visited the island. Salem led its competitors, Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, in the pepper trade. Her shipmasters prepared charts and sailing directions for the coast of Sumatra which were used by both the merchant and national marine.
Among the Sumatran ports most frequented was Quallah Battoo, situated on the west coast in the kingdom of Acheen, a part of the island that had not been brought under subjection by the Dutch. Quallah Battoo was governed by local rajahs, who were practically independent of their suzerain, the King of Acheen. It contained about 1100 inhabitants, and was defended by several small forts. The Quallah Battooans were described as a treacherous and warlike people, much given to piracy. They were no more crafty, however, than certain American traders, who were wont to use quicksilver in their hollow scale-beams, and who would slip ashore at night and fill up their hollow scale-weights with lead or shot.
Toward the end of the year 1830 Captain Charles M. Endicott arrived at Quallah Battoo in the Salem vessel Friendship, and having purchased a considerable quantity of pepper began loading it on board his vessel, a mile or two distant from the weighing place on shore. On the morning of February 7, 1831, Endicott, his second mate, and four of his sailors went ashore to weigh pepper, leaving the first officer and the rest of the crew on board to receive it. Early in the afternoon a boat loaded with pepper and manned by Malays was dispatched to the ship. Instead of proceeding directly to their destination, the treacherous boatmen, in accordance with a prearranged plan, ran their craft into the high grass and exchanged places with a band of armed desperadoes, who on reaching the ship clambered on board and without much difficulty captured it, killing the first officer and two seamen and wounding three others. Four seamen escaped by jumping overboard and swimming ashore.
Meantime Endicott and his party, discovering that the movements of the boatmen were suspicious and suspecting treachery, managed to reach their remaining boat and push off from the landing place before they were attacked by the hostile natives in hot pursuit of them. When half a boat's length from the shore, they were unexpectedly joined by Po Adam, a neighboring rajah of considerable wealth and influence and a friend of the Americans. "What, do you come, too, Adam?" said Endicott. "Yes," was his reply, "if they kill you, they must kill me first, captain." On shore crowds of Malays had assembled, brandishing their weapons; and a ferry-boat, with eight or ten men on board, armed with spears and creeses started in chase of the retreating Americans, who perceiving that they would be overtaken, boldly turned about and pulled toward their antagonists presenting the sword of Adam, their only weapon. This audacious movement so alarmed the pursuers that they kept their distance and permitted Endicott to escape. When he came in full view of his ship he found the Malays in complete possession of her. As he was practically without weapons, and three native boats were descried pulling toward him, he decided not to undertake the recapture of the ship until he obtained aid. Rowing to the adjacent port of Muckie, 25 miles distant, he found there three American merchantmen, the captains of which on hearing his story agreed to give him their assistance. Accompanied by Endicott, they sailed for Quallah Battoo and on arriving there demanded the peaceful surrender of the Friendship. The rajah in authority positively refused to give up his prize, sending word they might take it if they could. On receiving this message the three captains opened fire upon the vessel and the Malay boats that were still carrying away plunder, and were answered by the guns of the vessel and the forts on shore. Finally they sent a boarding party to take possession of the Friendship, which it easily did, the Malays deserting her as it approached. She had been plundered of her specie, opium, stores, provisions, nautical instruments, and clothing.
When the news of the outrage on the Friendship reached the United States in the summer of 1831, several merchant captains appealed to President Jackson for protection, saying that the conduct of the Sumatrans toward their countrymen was becoming more and more treacherous, that captains and supercargoes were detained on shore and extravagant sums demanded for their ransom, and that during the 40 years that Americans had traded with the island not one of our national vessels had visited it. The President at once decided to send the frigate Potomac to Quallah Battoo to obtain redress for the wrongs perpetrated on our citizens.
The Potomac at this time was at New York, under orders to convey Martin Van Buren, minister to the court of St. James, to England, and thence proceed to the Pacific station. She was a 44-gun frigate of 1726 tons burden, carrying 400 men. Her commander, Commodore John Downes, had been recently chosen to command the Pacific squadron. He had entered the navy in 1802, had seen important service in the War of 1812 under Commodore Porter during that officer's noted cruise against British whalers, and later had served on both the Mediterranean and Pacific Stations. His tour of duty as commander-in-chief of the Pacific squadron was his last service at sea. Certain words written by him in 1833, respecting the importance of this squadron have an almost prophetic significance: "Everything conspires to render the Pacific of great interest to the people of the United States at the present time. Our future sea fights are as likely to take place here as on the Atlantic Ocean, for here we are acquiring a preponderating commercial interest, and here must be our navy also.
Downes's instructions from the Department directed him to proceed to the Pacific Station by way of the Cape of Good Hope, Quallah Battoo, Batavia, and Canton. At Quallah Battoo he was to obtain information respecting the attack on the Friendship, and, if it agreed substantially with the account received by the Department, he was to demand restitution of the property plundered from the ship, an indemnity for the injury done to her, and the punishment of those concerned in the murder of her crew. Should satisfaction be refused, he was to vindicate our rights by seizing the murderers, retaking the stolen property, and destroying the vessels, forts, and dwellings of the town.
Downes sailed from Sandy Hook on August 26, 1831, and after a passage of so days arrived at Rio Janeiro where he took in water and provisions. At the Cape of Good Hope, his next stop, he learned much from the British officers respecting the character of the Quallah Battooans, who were represented as the chief pirates of Sumatra, brave and treacherous men, by no means to be despised as enemies. This information caused him to depart somewhat from his orders, being of the opinion that to carry them out strictly would defeat the main object of the expedition. He decided to make a sudden descent upon the natives, surround their forts, and prevent the flight of the rajahs. He, therefore, approached the town disguised as an East Indiaman, having concealed the guns and closed the ports of his ship. For the events immediately following his arrival the narrative of Francis Warriner, the schoolmaster of the Potomac, may be quoted:
At noon on the fifth instant [February, 1832], we hoisted the Danish national flag, and about two o'clock came to anchor off the town, after a passage of 55 days from the Cape of Good Hope. We came to in merchantman style, a few men being sent aloft, dressed in red and blue flannel shirts, and one top-sail being dewed up and furled at a time. We were all anxious to obtain a glimpse of the place and of the adjacent scenery, but no person was allowed to gratify his curiosity in this respect, for fear of disclosing our true character to the natives. Not a single breeze fanned us. Every port being closed, the air that we breathed was close and stifled. The melted tar fell in drops upon the deck, and fairly broiled from the seams between the planks. We were obliged to preserve the strictest silence, and our situation remained, as it had been for several days, uncomfortable in the extreme.
About four o'clock, Commodore Downes sent a party ashore for the purpose of reconnoitering the place. This party consisted of our first lieutenant, Mr. Shubrick; first lieutenant of marines, Mr. Edson; Lieutenants Pinkham, Hoff, and Ingersoll; acting Sailing-master Totten, and Passed Midshipman Tooley. They left the ship under pretence of contracting for a cargo of pepper. Mr. Shubrick went as captain of the ship, Mr. Edson as supercargo. The remainder in the capacity of common sailors to pull the boat, and they were dressed in a manner conformable to the different characters they assumed. They were obliged to smear their pantaloons with tar, and to stain their hands with rhubarb, that they might resemble old weather-beaten sailors. Their real design was to examine the relative position of the different forts, previous to making the intended attack. When all had approached within a few yards of the beach, they found it lined with a large body of men, exhibiting a warlike appearance, armed with javelins, creeses, cleavers, and sabres, and manifesting very hostile intentions. They, therefore, did not deem it prudent to land. Mr. Shubrick inquired for the rajah. They replied, "He no come down, he be one so great man." Mr. Edson next questioned them as to the price of pepper. They said, eight dollars per picul; but he finally succeeded in inducing them to lower the price to four dollars. A small number were invited to come down to them, and after a consultation was held, about half a dozen approached. Our officers finding that it was their intention to surround the boat, and apprehending some hostile design, pushed farther out to sea. The Malays then exclaimed, "What for you no come ashore?" An excuse was offered, and they were finally told that the next day the captain would come on shore and complete a bargain with them. They inquired with what cargo our ship was freighted and were informed that it was with opium. The gentlemen shortly afterwards returned to the ship, having obtained but an imperfect knowledge of the place, and without ascertaining anything relative to the most advantageous method of assailing the forts.
During the absence of the party ashore, four Malay fishermen, attracted by the sight of an old clump of an Indiaman, as they supposed our ship to be, came alongside to sell their fish. Mr. Barry, who could converse a little in the Malay language, invited them on board. One came up with a couple of fish in his hand, but as soon as he reached the gangway, and saw our formidable battery and about 500 men thickly stowed together, he dropped his fish in the utmost consternation, hurried back to the boat, and gave the alarm to his three companions. They were then told not to be afraid to come on board, that we would buy their fish, and that no harm should befall them. But they were not to be caught in such a manner. They had no idea of becoming prisoners on board of a ship of war, and began hastily to paddle off. Fearing they might give the alarm on shore, a mizzen-top-man instantly leaped through one of the ports into the boat, and seized them. They set up a yell and made some resistance, but a rope was instantly let down, and they, finding that they were about to be dragged into the ship, notens volens, through one of the ports, thought it policy to submit. As they came over the gangway, they trembled; and lifting their eyes and clasped hand to heaven, like men not knowing where they were, cried aloud, "Allah!" in an imploring tone of voice. They were the poorest, smoke-dried specimens of human nature that we had seen, but perhaps more deserving our commiseration than ridicule…
"Our ship now presented a busy scene. It was determined to commence an attack upon the town the next morning, and every necessary preparation was accordingly made. Muskets were cleaned, cartridge boxes buckled on, cutlasses examined and put in order, etc. During the evening, the commodore sent for the officers commanding the several divisions, and gave them their instructions. They were ordered to land, surround the town and forts, and demand indemnity for the outrage committed upon the Friendship, with the punishment of those concerned in the barbarous massacre of her crew; but were directed to spare the women and children. I had some conversation with a few of the junior officers, upon the subject of the perilous enterprise in which they were about to embark. They felt that it would not be so much a matter of jest as they had been disposed to think it might be. There was some shrinking at the thought of impending danger…
At eight bells (12 o'clock at night) all hands were called. Those assigned to take part in the expedition were mustered, when Lieutenant Shubrick, the commander of the detachment, gave them special orders. No man was to utter a word after he had entered the boat; no one was to fire till the command was given; and no man was to desert his ranks. Considerable time was occupied in getting the men into the boats, and in making all things ready. Several of the officers felt impatient at the delay and were fearful that they would be unable to effect a landing in season to surprise the enemy. At length the gallant band, to the number of 282 men—including officers, left the ship about two o'clock.
The landing party was commanded by the first lieutenant of the Potomac, Irvine Shubrick, and was divided into four divisions—three of seamen and one of marines. The first division of seamen was commanded by Lieutenant R. R. Pinkham ; the second, by Lieutenant Henry Hoff; and the third, by Lieutenant Jonathan Ingersoll. The division of the last named was strengthened by a piece of artillery, a 6-pounder called the Betsey Baker, in command of Sailing-master R. S. Totten. A company of marines, commanded by Lieutenants Alvin Edson and G. H. Terrett, constituted the fourth division. The capture of a fort was assigned to each division. Mr. John Barry, of Salem, formerly the second officer of the Friendship, and now master's mate of the Potomac, acted as guide. Commodore Downes remained on board throughout the engagement, taking a station at the larboard gangway, with a spy-glass in his hand. At times, however, he was on the point of running in closer with his ship to aid the landing party. The officers and crew on board took up positions in various quarters, some in the tops, and some hanging upon the shrouds, others in the rigging, and still others on the Jacob's ladder, all "gazing with breathless anxiety." Let us return to Warriner's narrative:
It seems our party had effected a landing near the dawn of day, amid a heavy surf, about a mile and a half to the north of the town, undiscovered by the enemy, and without any serious accident having befallen them; though several of the party were thoroughly drenched by the beating of the surf, and some of their ammunition was injured. The troops were then drawn up in regular order, and under the chief command of Lieutenant Shubrick, took up their line of march against the enemy, over a beach of deep and heavy sand. They had not proceeded far, before they were discovered by a native at a distance, who ran at full speed to give the alarm. The lieutenant ordered his men to quicken their pace, to press onward, and, if possible, to take possession of the forts, ere the enemy should be apprised of the approach. A rapid march soon brought them up with the first fort, when a division of men under the command of Lieutenant Hoff, was detached from the main body, and ordered to surround it. By the time the detachment had reached the rear of the fort, the remainder of the forces had gained its front, and were passing it on their march to assail the other forts, when a shower of balls from some quarter passed over their heads.
The first fort had been found difficult of access, in consequence of a deep hedge of thorn-bushes and brambles with which it was environed. The assault was commenced by the pioneers with their crows and axes, breaking down the gates and forcing a passage. This was attended with some difficulty, and gave the enemy time for preparation. They raised their war-whoop, and resisted most manfully, fighting with spears, sabres, and muskets. They had also a few brass pieces mounted in the fort, but they managed them with so little skill as to produce no effect, for the balls uniformly whizzed over the heads of our men. The resistance of the natives was in vain. The fort was stormed and soon carried; not, however, till almost every individual in it was slain. To'onkou N'Yamat, usually called Po Mahomet, a chief of much distinction among the people, who had been principally concerned in the piratical act of taking the Friendship, lost his life at this fort. The mother of Chadoolah, another rajah, was also slain here. Another woman met her death at this fort, but her rank was not ascertained; she fought with the spirit of a desperado.
The sword of war should ever distinguish between armed and unarmed opponents, but if women openly jeopardize their lives in the forefront of battle, can it be expected that they will escape unharmed? A seaman had just scaled one of the ramparts when he was severely wounded by a blow received from a weapon in her hands. But her own life paid the forfeit of her daring, for she was immediately transfixed by a bayonet in the hands of the individual whom she had so severely injured. The seaman's head was wounded by a javelin, his thumb nearly cut off by a sabre, and a ball was shot through his hat. Had it not been for his fortitude and activity, he must inevitably have lost his life.
Lieutenants Edson and Terret, accompanied by a corps of marines, proceeded onward to the rear of the town, without commencing any act of hostility, till they arrived within the neighborhood of the fort which they had been ordered to assail. A bold attack was made upon the fort, and after a spirited resistance on the part of the enemy, it surrendered. Both officers and marines here narrowly escaped with their lives. One of the natives in the fort had trained his piece in such a manner as to rake their whole body, when he was shot down by a marine, while in the very act of applying a match to it. The cannon was afterwards found to have been filled with bullets. This fort, like the former, was environed with thick jungle, and great difficult); had been experienced in entering it. But for their crowbars and axes, the men could not have succeeded. A fire was opened near this fort from a neighboring thicket, upon the marines, by a party of the natives in ambush. It is probable that this was the spot where the unfortunate Brown lost his life. In the vicinity of this fort, Lieutenant Edson found several women and children greatly terrified, and it was with difficulty that he could pacify them. They were carefully conducted to a place of safety, where they remained till the close of the action, when they were humanely released.
The engagement had now become general, and the alarm universal. Men, women, and children were seen flying in every direction, carrying the few articles they were able to seize in the moment of peril, and some of the men were cut down in their flight. Several of the enemy's prows, filled with people, were severely raked by a brisk fire from the 6-pounder, as they were sailing up the river to the south of the town, and numbers of the natives were killed. One of these prows was taken by a party of men belonging to a chief by the name of Po Adam, who resides at Pubo Kio (woody island) on the opposite side of the river. This was the same prow that had been taken from him, a year previous to our arrival, by order of the King of Acheen. Adam is a true friend to the Americans.
A third fort was attacked under the command of Lieutenant Shubrick, assisted by Lieutenant Ingersoll and his division of men, together with acting Sailing-master Totten, in charge of a 6-pounder. Lieutenant Pinkham, being from some cause unable to find the fort he was directed to attack, joined them with his detachment; and the marines, not long after, united in like manner with the main body of the forces. This fort proved the most formidable. It was the largest and the strongest fortified, and the co-operation of the several divisions was ultimately required for its reduction; but so spirited was the fire poured into it by our troops that it was soon forced to yield; and the next moment, the American colors were seen triumphantly waving over its battlements. The greater part of the town was reduced to ashes. The bazaar, the principal place of merchandise, and most of the private dwellings were consumed by fire. The triumph had now been completed over the Malays; ample satisfaction had been taken for their outrages committed upon our countrymen, and the bugle sounded the return of the ship's forces; and the embarkation soon after was effected. The action had continued about two hours and a half, and was gallantly sustained by both officers and men from its commencement to its close.
The loss of the Americans in this their first engagement in the Orient was two killed and xi wounded, among the latter being Lieutenant Edson and Midshipman J. W. Taylor. Shubrick esti mated that the enemy lost at least 150 men killed. Po Mahomet, the principal rajah concerned in the capture of the Friendship, was among the dead. Rajah Po Quallan fled at the beginning of the fight and two other rajahs were absent from the town. Most of the captured cannon were spiked and thrown over the parapets. One pair of colors, 26 stands of arms, and one brass field-piece were captured. Among the spoils of war were a Chinese gong, a Koran, and several pieces of rich gold cloth. Many of the men returned laden with rajah's scarfs and shawls, creeses richly hilted and with gold scabbards, gold and silver chuman boxes, pieces of money, ear-rings, finger-rings, anklets, bracelets, and other ornaments. Some of the sailors promised themselves a rich repast upon chickens and ducks, but going on board sooner than they expected they were compelled to leave the captured fowls on shore.
Soon after the return of the landing party, Downes stood towards the town and fired several broadsides into a fort that had been inaccessible to Shubrick, causing it to display a white flag. He next hoisted a white flag on board the Potomac as a signal that hostilities had been concluded. Then getting under way he sailed to the neighboring port of Soo-soo where he remained a few days. While lying there he received a flag of truce from Quallah Battoo, the bearer of which informed him that many of the inhabitants had been killed and all their property destroyed. He begged the commodore to grant them peace. Downes replied that he was now satisfied and that peace was granted, but that if they again committed piracy and murder upon American citizens other ships of war would be sent to inflict further punishment. Alarmed at the fate that had befallen Quallah Battoo, the rajahs of some of the neighboring towns sent delegations to Downes to declare their friendship for him, and to present him with propitiatory gifts of fruits and vegetables. The summary vengeance inflicted by the Potomac was long remembered by the natives, and had a most salutary effect. At home Downes was criticised by some of the newspapers for the severity of the chastisement administered to the Quallah Battooans, but not by President Jackson, who approved the course pursued by him.
On February 18 the Potomac sailed from Soo-soo for Pangoriang in Bantam Bay on the coast of Java, where a supply of wood and water was obtained. Thence she went to Batavia, from which place Downes proceeded to Buitenzorg to call upon the governor of Java. On the passage to Macao the commodore's secretary died of consumption and was buried at sea. It is worthy of remark as illustrative of the generosity of sailors that the officers and crew of the Potomac contributed more than $2000 for the support of the children of the dead man. From Macao some of the officers made an excursion to Canton. Early in June the Potomac sailed for the Pacific Station by way of the Sandwich Islands. She finally arrived home in May, 1834, having circumnavigated the globe from west to east, the first American ship of war to accomplish that feat.
VII.
THE EMBASSIES TO COCHIN CHINA, SIAM, AND MUSCAT: 1832-1837.
To make sure that satisfaction would be obtained for the outrage committed on the Friendship, the Secretary of the Navy in January, 1832, decided to send a little fleet composed of the sloop of war Peacock, Master-Commandant David Geisinger, and the schooner Boxer, Lieutenant W. F. Shields, to Quallah Battoo to carry out Commodore Downes's orders in case that officer should fail to do so. From Quallah Battoo, Geisinger was to proceed to Macao and protect our commerce in Chinese waters. On his return voyage he was to visit certain Asiatic and African ports and afford every facility (quoting the words of the Secretary of the Navy) "to Mr. Roberts, the gentleman who acts in the capacity of clerk to the commander of the Peacock, to enable him to carry into effect and success his instructions from the State Department." As the chief events of Geisinger's cruise are connected with Roberts's mission a brief account of its origin may be here presented.
Edmund Roberts was a prosperous merchant and ship owner of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. His commercial interests led him to visit the Orient and to study the needs and possibilities of American trade in that part of the globe. Convinced that the establishment of commercial treaties with certain Eastern rulers would prove highly beneficial to his countrymen, he wrote to Levi Woodbury, one of the New Hampshire senators at Washington detailing the neglected state of our trade and showing that the favors granted to Great Britain in the Orient gave that country an advantage over our own. Soon after Woodbury became Secretary of the Navy, Roberts was appointed a special envoy of the State Department and clerk to the commander of the Peacock, and was authorized to negotiate treaties with the courts of Cochin China, Siam, and Muscat, placing our commerce on an equality with that of the most favored nations. He was also to visit Japan if he found "the prospect favorable."
David Geisinger, the commander of the Peacock, entered the navy as a midshipman in 1809, and became a lieutenant in 1814, a master commandant in 1829, and a captain in 1834. He was one of the officers of the Wasp during her notable cruise off the English coast in 1814, and had the good fortune to be sent home in command of the prize Atalanta, thus escaping the fate of his shipmates who were lost with their vessel at sea.
In March, 1832, the Peacock sailed from Boston for Rio Janeiro, where she expected the Boxer to join her. Disappointed in her expectations, she, on June 25, went to sea without her consort, and two months later came to anchor in the Bay of Bencoolen on the west coast of Sumatra. Learning here of the destruction of Ouallah Battoo by Commodore Downes, she proceeded to Lintin by way of Manila. The success of Downes and the satisfactory state of our commerce with China left Geisinger free to pursue the remaining objects of his cruise. Having received on board Mr. John R. Morrison, a son of Dr. Robert Morrison, who was to act as interpreter, translator, and private secretary to the envoy, he sailed from Lintin for Turan Bay, on the east coast of Cochin China, reorded as the best place from which to communicate with Hue, the capital of that country, 50 miles distant. Unfortunately he was prevented from entering the bay by contrary winds and a strong current setting to the eastward. He, therefore, bore away for the port of Vunglam, where he arrived on January 6, 1833, and where he remained more than a month.
From Vunglam, Roberts entered into communication with some minor officials of the Cochin China government, with whom he held numerous parleys and conferences, they at times coming on board and he, accompanied with Geisinger, going ashore. As a preliminary to the opening of negotiations, the officials insisted upon many formalities, more or less insulting to the Americans, to all of which Roberts refused to accede. They asked to see President Jackson's letter to the Emperor, they found fault with Morrison's translation of it, and they objected to the rank of the envoy. On this latter point Roberts succeeded in satisfying them by adding to his title of "special envoy from the United States and a citizen of Portsmouth, New Hampshire," the names of the counties of his State and several of its towns, thereby giving his name a most distinguished and formidable appearance. The principal official remarked that the envoy had more titles than any prince of the empire. Roberts's immediate object was to obtain permission to visit the Emperor or to enter into communication with him and his chief minister. Failing in this, he abandoned his mission to Cochin China.
From Vunglam the Peacock sailed for the Gulf of Siam and after a 10 days' voyage arrived at the bar of the Menam River. Communication was at once opened with the King of Siam, who courteously sent three boats to convey the American embassy to Bangkok, the Siamese capital. A party consisting of Geisinger, Roberts, Morrison, and several officers, were thus conveyed to Bangkok, where on their arrival they found a house especially prepared for their accommodation by the king, who also provided them with a cook, a purveyor, servants, and a superintendent, and feasted and entertained them in a royal manner throughout their stay. As the king was quite willing to treat with the United States, Roberts and the Siamese minister of foreign affairs at once began negotiations and on March 20 completed their labors by signing a treaty of amity and commerce—the first diplomatic Instrument executed by the United States and an Asiatic power. It fixed the duties to be paid by American merchantmen on entering Siamese ports, abolished certain barbarous penalties for debts, and provided for the friendly treatment of shipwrecked American sailors.
Shortly before the embassy returned to the Peacock, it paid a visit to the king, who received it in accordance with the manners and customs of his court. Of this reception Roberts has left us the following account:
We entered at length the vestibule through a line of soldiers, and passed to the right of a Chinese screen of painted glass, into the presence of His Majesty. There lay prostrate, or rather on all fours resting on their knees and elbows, with hands united and head bowed low, all the princes and nobility of the land; it was an impressive but an abasing sight, such as no freeman could look on with any other feelings than those of indignation and disgust. We halted in front of the presents which were delivered the day previous, being piles of silks, rich fillagreed Silver baskets, elegant gold watches studded with large pearls; they were well disposed to make a show. Having gone through the first ceremony of bowing, we sat down on a carpet; on our being seated the prostrate slaves around us (being the great men of the land) bowed simultaneously three times to the ground, in a slow solemn manner, and we joined in the ceremony as had been previously agreed upon. The king was seated under a canopy, in the Asiatic style, on a cushion of red silk velvet, on the lower and more advanced of the two thrones, which occupied the upper end of the apartment; this was a square seat raised some half dozen feet .from the floor. Everything was blazing in gold in and about the two thrones; the larger and unoccupied one was of an hexagonal shape, and resembled a church pulpit, so that the king's person when seated in it, can be visible only through the open spaces, in the form of Gothic windows, about four feet in height by one and a half and two in width. One of these windows is in front, and one on each side of the throne. A pair of curtains of gold cloth formed a partition between him and several individuals of the royal family, who lay crouching just without, on separate carpets, leaving a wide open space between the throne and the two interpreters, who were midway of the hall. Before the curtain and on either side, were eight or ten umbrellas of various sizes; these consist of a series of canopies of eight or ten tiers, decreasing in size upward.
His Majesty is a very stout, fleshy man, apparently about 45 years of age, of a pleasing countenance. He was dressed in a cloth of gold tissue around the waist, while a mantle was thrown gracefully over the left shoulder. Four noblemen's sons were seated at the base of the throne, at the rear and sides, having long-handled pear-shaped fans, richly gilt, which they kept in constant motion. A few questions were addressed by the king in an audible voice; they were repeated in a lower tone by the phaya phiphat, or second praklang, to the phaya churat, or chief of the Chuliahs, by whom they were whispered to the captain of the port, who interpreted them to us in the same low tone—the answers were returned through the same channels by us—inquiring, in the first place, as to the health of the President and all the great men in our country; our own healths; those of the officers and crew; how long we had been from America; where we had been, and whence bound; desiring me to acquaint the praklang with all my wants, that they might be supplied, etc. The curtain was now drawn and His Majesty disappeared; the court made three solemn kotows, and we our three salams, and then retired.
From Siam the Peacock went to Singapore to land Morrison and to obtain supplies, and thence to Batavia, where she was joined by the Boxer. After calling at Anjer, the two ships sailed for Mocha, Arabia, in the Red Sea, where they arrived on August 31. Of their visit to this port and their subsequent movements, Captain Geisinger wrote as follows:
I found the place in possession of a Turkish rebel chieftain, named Turkic ben Almas, from Grand Cairo. I was informed he had taken and held this and other places on the eastern side of the Red Sea in the name of the Grand Seignor, but his authority for so doing was not yet recognized by his master. He was formerly an officer in the service of the Pacha of Egypt, and it is quite a doubtful case yet whether he has taken possession of the country for the Sublime Porte, for the Pacha of Egypt or for himself. He evinced a very friendly disposition towards us and the American flag, and expressed high gratification in seeing two American vessels of war in the port, being the first, he was told, that were ever in the Red Sea. In fact it was supposed by the people of Mocha that there were no vessels of that description belonging to our country, or else they would have occasionally visited this and other neighboring places for the protection of our extensive commerce. Our stay at this place was necessarily very limited owing to the near expiration of the southwest monsoon, and, therefore, on the evening of the first of September we sailed for Muscat, the principal place of destination in these seas, and on the 18th of the same month both vessels anchored in the cove of Muscat.
The most friendly disposition was manifested by the Sultan and his officers during our stay, and supplies of wood, water, etc., were furnished gratuitously. We found him very intelligent and affable and greatly beloved by his subjects. Without doubt full reliance may be placed in his faithfully fulfilling his engagements. He now owns eight ships of war, carrying 22 to 74 guns, and 57 sail of vessels (variously rigged) carrying from four to 18 guns—with a very extensive commerce. The Sultan did us the honor to visit the Peacock and was received with the highest honors we were capable of bestowing. He examined every part of the ship and expressed himself in strong terms of admiration at what he considered her fine condition, etc. The Sultan having made several voyages in his own ships of war to his possessions in Africa and elsewhere, is considered to be a good judge of everything relating to naval affairs.
The Sultan of Muscat was a powerful prince who ruled over a large territory extending from the Persian Gulf to the southern limits of Zanzibar. Our merchantmen carried on a considerable trade with his people, the increase and improvement of which was one of the objects of Roberts's embassy. On the day after the arrival of the two ships, Roberts, Geisinger, and Lieutenant Shields had an audience with the Sultan and he readily consented to enter into a treaty with the United States, willingly granting larger concessions than our envoy asked for. By the terms of the treaty signed on September 21, our commerce with his dominions was placed on the same footing as that of the most favored nations, and he promised to support our shipwrecked sailors at his own expense until they found an opportunity to return home.
From Muscat the Peacock and Boxer sailed for Rio Janeiro, touching on their way at Mozambique and the Cape of Good Hope. As they were to remain on the Brazil Station, Roberts took passage for the United States on the sloop of war Lexington, arriving at Boston on April 24, 1834. His treaties with Siam and Muscat were ratified by the President and Senate on June 30, and he was shortly thereafter commissioned to return to those countries and exchange ratifications. He also received orders to make another attempt to negotiate with Cochin China, and to visit Japan and enter into treaty with the ruler of that nation.
To add dignity to the new embassy a little squadron, under the command of a commodore, was placed at the service of the envoy. It consisted of the sloop of war Peacock, Commander C. K. Stribling, and the schooner Enterprise, Lieutenant A. S. Campbell, both under the command of Commodore E. P. Kennedy, who was authorized by the Department to hoist his broad pennant on board his flagship. Kennedy thus gained the distinction of being the first commander of the "East India squadron." He entered the navy as a midshipman in 1805, and after serving in various stations as a subordinate officer attained the rank of captain in 1828. He died in 1844 while in command of the line of battle ship Pennsylvania.
On July 12, 1835, Kennedy sailed with his squadron from Rio Janeiro for Muscat. Three days out of port the Enterprise, proving to be a dull sailer, was given orders to part company with the flagship and pursue her own course to the Indian Ocean. The Peacock arrived at Zanzibar on September 2. For the stirring events of her cruise during the next few weeks, Kennedy's narrative is the best authority:
The Enterprise not having arrived, we sailed from Zanzibar on the 8th September for Muscat; and on the 21st, about two hours after midnight, an almost fatal accident befell the Peacock by being stranded near the island of Mazeira, on the desolate coast of Arabia. At meridian on the day previous the ship was found by the chronometers, etc., to be 72 miles to the eastward of that island; and it was intended to preserve that distance from the coast until we should come into the latitude of Cape Ras al Had. But to the violent and uncertain currents on that coast (of which we were ignorant until after the accident), also to the fact that the island is placed on the charts upwards of 30 miles too far to the westward (which has been ascertained by the survey now prosecuting on that coast by order of the British government) must be attributed our misfortune.
After several ineffectual attempts to heave the ship off into deeper water (which failed owing to the anchors breaking and coming home), we became fearful she would be destroyed by the first gale, when no succor could be had short of Muscat, a distance of upwards of 400 miles. The boats, being incapable of saving one-third of the crew, were constantly beset, too, by numerous piratical vessels, who attempted in a most audacious manner to cut off the launch and cutters when carrying out anchors—using also every stratagem to plunder our raft of provisions, etc., and while their number was hourly augmented they clearly manifested the purpose of destroying us and making prize of the ship so soon as they were in sufficient force. Placed in this perilous situation, with very slight hopes of saving the ship, having on board only a small supply of water, in a climate where the sun burns with an intensity which can scarcely be surpassed, I could only look to Muscat for assistance. Being unable to spare either of the large boats, on which rested our only hope of saving the ship and crew, and it being very inconvenient to send a lieutenant on that service, Mr. Roberts, our envoy to Asia, with a promptness and fearlessness which mark all his movenients, most kindly volunteered his services to proceed on this most dangerous expedition in an open boat 20 feet in length amidst numerous piratical craft and a boisterous sea, accompanied by Passed Midshipman Wm. R. Taylor and six men. They arrived safely at Muscat in 101 hours, having been pursued by pirates and more than once nearly lost owing to the boat filling with water.
As soon as the situation was made known to the Sultan by Mr. Roberts (with whom he was previously well acquainted) the former forthwith ordered the Sultana, a new sloop of war, to be prepared by noon of the following day to proceed to the Gulf of Mazeira with a supply of water and provisions. A courier was likewise dispatched to the Governor of Zoar, a large town near Ras al Had, with orders for him to proceedimmediately with six large dows, earring 300 soldiers and a quantity of supplies, to protect the ship and crew until the arrival of the Sultana. Having determined to omit no measure which could benefit us, he likewise ordered 350 Bedouins to proceed overland for the protection of the crew in case it became necessary to seek shelter on that most wretched coast. Within one hour and three-quarters from the time of Mr. Roberts's arrival, the ship was preparing for sea, the courier many miles on his way to Zoar, and the Bedouins were in readiness to mount their camels. The Sultana sailed at the appointed time, and the next morning we fell in with her about 50 miles from Muscat.
Two days after the boat left us, having lightened the ship by starting three-fourths of our water, everything in the spirit-room, and throwing overboard one-half of our guns, a large quantity of shot, two chain and one hemp cable, rafting sundry barrels of provisions, naval stores and our spare spars (which were finally lost), and striking everything from aloft, we were most fortunately enabled by the great and unceasing efforts and perseverance of the officers and crew, who conducted themselves perfectly to my satisfaction, to heave the ship into deep water, and then to reach Muscat, although in a very leaky condition.
During our stay at Muscat, which was no longer than necessary to complete the business with which Mr. Roberts was entrusted by the Department of State, the Sultan supplied us with large quantities of provisions, vegetables, and fruit, and paid us such personal attention as laid us all under obligations that can never be forgotten. The good Sultan, being still unwearied in his efforts to serve our country through us, dispatched several large boats to Mazeira and saved the xi pieces of lost cannon. They were carried to Muscat laden on board a baghelo and sent to this place [Bombay], where they have arrived after others had been purchased, but which have been returned to the government from whom they were received. I have made suitable acknowledgement for his truly friendly and unsurpassed promptness in every measure that could benefit us, or contributed to our personal comfort.
On September 30 the ratified treaty was exchanged with the Sultan, and 10 days later Roberts and Kennedy took final leave of that generous ruler. The Peacock proceeded to Siam by way of Bombay, Colombo, and Batavia. At Bombay, where she was thoroughly repaired, facilities for such work being freely offered by the officers of the British East India Company, she met the Enterprise, and thence the two vessels sailed in company, being the first American warships to visit British India. Late in March, 1836, they arrived at the mouth of the river Menam, whence Roberts, Kennedy, and several officers went to Bangkok, where they were most courteously received by the Siamese government. The exchange of ratifications was attended with much pomp and ceremony. The delivery of the treaty to the officers appointed to receive it is thus described by the surgeon of the Peacock, who witnessed the proceeding:
Mr. Roberts took the treaty in his hand, and, after holding it up above his head in token of respect, delivered it to a Siamese officer, the secretary of the P'hra Kiang. He also held it above his head, and then shaded by a royal chat (a large white silk umbrella) borne by a slave, passed it into the boat, where it was received upon an ornamental stand, and after covering it with a cone of gilt paper, it was placed beneath the canopy. At this moment our band ceased, and that of the Siamese began to play.
The date of the exchange of ratifications was April 14, 1836. Two days before this the commodore was compelled by illness to return to his ship, and soon after the ceremony at Bangkok, Roberts and the rest of the party came on board, all of them unwell and some of them seriously sick, with cholera and dysentery. The squadron next proceeded to Turan Bay, where it remained eight days, at the end of which time, Roberts, having tried in vain to open negotiations with the Emperor of Cochin China and being still sick, abandoned his mission to that country. On May 22 the squadron arrived at Macao, with 61 men sick with cholera and dysentery. Provision for the invalids was made at a temporary hospital on shore, where most of them rapidly recovered. Lieutenant Campbell and Mr. Roberts, however, died, early in June, and they were buried at Macao. The officers of the squadron erected a monument to the memory of Campbell, and the American merchants residing in China contributed the money for a similar memorial to Roberts—the first American diplomat in the Far East.
The visit to Japan was now abandoned. On June 23, 1836, Kennedy sailed from Macao for home by way of the Bonin Islands, Sandwich Islands, and the west coast of North and South America. He arrived at Hampton Roads on October 27, 1837, having been at sea 524 days, and having sailed 54,285 miles.
VIII.
THE CRUISE OF COMMANDER AULICK: 1835-1836.
In the spring of 1834 Secretary of the Navy Levi Woodbury ordered Commodore Alexander Wadsworth, commander of the Pacific squadron, to dispatch one of the sloops of war under his command on a cruise to the Feejee and Pellew Islands, China, and Sumatra. The sloop selected by Wadsworth was the Vincennes, Commander John H. Aulick, which vessel, it is recollected, made her first voyage to the Orient in 1829-1830, under the command of Captain Finch.
Aulick entered the navy as a midshipman in 1809, and was promoted to a lieutenantcy in 1814 and a captaincy in 1841. He saw important service in both the War of 1812 and the Mexican War. In the former conflict he served for a time as a junior officer on board the Enterprise, displaying much gallantry in that vessel's engagement with the British brig Boxer. His work as commander-in-chief of the East India squadron in 1852-1853 will be described in a succeeding chapter.
Aulick's executive officer on the Vincennes was Lieutenant John A. Carr. Two of his junior lieutenants were Theodorus Bailey and Samuel P. Lee (a grandson of the Revolutionary statesman, Richard Henry Lee), both of whom fought bravely in the Civil War, and became rear-admirals. Aulick's orders directed him to proceed to the Feejee and Pellew Islands and receive on board his ship any American whalemen or sailors desirous of returning home, to call at Macao and Quallah Battoo for the protection of our commerce, and to make enquiries at all the places visited by him respecting the condition of our trade and the treatment of our citizens. Another particular object of his cruise was the rescuing of the survivors of the New Bedford ship Mentor, Captain Edward C. Barnard, which was wrecked on one of the Pellew Islands in May, 1832, situated some 500 miles eastward of the Philippines. About six months after the disaster Barnard and several of his .men, accompanied by three natives, went to sea in a whaleboat and a canoe, hoping to reach the Dutch East Indies. The canoe was sunk in a squall and the whaleboat was captured by the natives of Lord North's Island—a small island lying in the neighborhood of the Moluccas. Here in February, 1833, the captain and one of his men were rescued by the Spanish ship Sabina, which carried them to Macao, the rest of the crew of the whaleboat being left behind.
Aulick's eventful cruise began with his leaving Callao on one of the last days of July, 1835, and ended with his arrival at Hampton Roads, a little more than 10 months later, on June 5, 1836. He crossed the Pacific in the latitude of South America instead of making a detour northward to the Sandwich Islands', the course followed by all our naval commanders preceding him. He was also the first to visit the island of Guam, our future possession. Soon after his return to the United States he prepared for the Secretary of the Navy a detailed account of his cruise, which is particularly significant for the information it contains respecting our whaling interests, and for the view it gives of the limited knowledge regarding Oceanica possessed by the civilized world in the first half of the nineteenth century. Aulick's report, in large part, was as follows:
Although my orders from the commodore, directing my return home by way of India, mentioned only the Feejee and Pellew Islands, as those which I was required to visit for specific purposes, the general object of my cruise being as matter of course the protection of our citizens and their interests wherever it might be in my power to afford it, I deemed it my duty, as well from this consideration as with a view to procure as often as possible those refreshments for my crew believed to be essential to the preservation of their health, to touch at such other places on or near my route, as are known to be frequented, for supplies, etc., by our numerous whalers and traders scattered over those seas.
Accordingly on taking my departure from the coast of Peru, I directed my course for the Washington Group, and after a short passage of ig days, anchored in Massachusetts Bay, Island of Nooaheevah, on the i8th of August. Our reception by the natives was extremely cordial and friendly. The former visit of this ship, and Commodore Porter's long sojourn among them continue to be remembered, and I believe still exercise a favorable influence on their conduct generally towards all foreigners who visit them. They do not, however, appear to have made any progress towards civilization since the commodore left them, or to have risen in any respect above their character and condition at that time, as described in the journal of his cruise. Acts of treachery and savage violence are still occasionally committed on defenceless strangers, and it behooves all such to be constantly on their guard in their intercourse with them, on all parts of the island, but particularly at the Valley of the Typees. From the best information I could obtain there are on an average about 20 American whalers touch here in the course of the year. Water, wood, vegetables, and fruit are readily obtained here for trifles, but hogs are reserved expressly for the purpose of purchasing muskets and powder; so that I, not being disposed to trade in these articles, was scarcely able to procure one fresh mess for my crew during our stay. But on this point they do not always find their visitors so particular; and I was sorry to learn that, through means of our countrymen chiefly, they were already in possession of a considerable number of arms, and some ammunition.
We sailed thence on the 27th, taking with us two of four American seamen, whom we found there. The other two refused to leave the island. On the 5th September we arrived at Otaheita (Tahiti). This place is much resorted to by our whalers, who find it particularly convenient for refitting and procuring supplies. Some few traders also call here, and, in exchange for various articles of merchandise, get arrow root and cocoanut oil, of which, however, owing to the extreme indolence of the natives, but very small quantities are produced for exportation. No public records of any kind, as I was told, are kept by the islanders, nor could I learn from any source the number of American arrivals there annually; but from a memorandum kept by one of the missionary gentlemen, for about six months of the year 1832, it appears that during that period 42 vessels had anchored in Papeete Harbor alone, of which 29 were American, chiefly whalers. Two arrived while we were there, and several others appeared in the offing. Scarcely any depart without leaving some of their crew behind, either from desertion, sickness, or from their being literally turned adrift by the captains. On our arrival I was informed that there was not less than 20 American seamen lounging about the island in a destitute condition. I immediately caused it to be made known that I would give a passage to all who were desirous of returning to their native country; and the Queen Pomare, having- expressed to me great anxiety to get rid of all foreigners of this description, I was induced to prolong my stay beyond my original intention in order that those who were at distant villages, might have time to avail themselves of my offer. Eleven got on board before we sailed, and were entered as supernumeraries for rations.
We left Tahiti on the 20th, with Queen Pomare and her family on board, she having requested a passage to the next island to the westward, laying directly in my route; and in the afternoon of the same day we landed her at Eimeo. Thence I pursued my course for the Friendly and Feejee Islands, passing within sight of Whytootacke, one of the Hervey Group, and directly over the place (latitude 19° 7' south, and longitude 171° 46' west) assigned to an island on a list of new discoveries in my possession; but no signs of land were visible.
On the 1st of October we arrived at Port Refuge, Vavaoo [one of the Friendly Islands]. In this beautiful harbor we found, to our very agreeable surprise, six American whalers at anchor. Here they ride completely landlocked, secure from the dangers of stormy weather and entirely free from anxiety as to the conduct of the natives, who, though but a few years ago justly ranked among the most savage and treacherous of all the islanders, have now become, as I am well assured, through the persevering exertions of the worthy missionaries residing among them, as honest, amiable, and friendly as those of either the Sandwich or Society Islands. Our arrival was hailed with much satisfaction by the masters of the whalers, for some of whom it proved to be quite opportune. Most of them had been unsuccessful in whaling. Their men, discouraged and dissatisfied, had become insubordinate, and in one instance actually mutinous to such a degree, that at the request of the captain I took out the ringleaders and confined them in irons on board this ship, until by their, at least apparently, sincere penitence and promise of future good behavior, he was induced to receive them on board again. Two of the vessels had lost a number of their crews by desertion. Their deficiencies I was enabled to supply from our list of supernumeraries, to the satisfaction of all parties.
My principal object in touching at this place was to obtain information, if possible, relative to the navigation of the Feejees, of which I had neither chart nor description that could be of the least service to me as a guide in sailing among them. The account I now received from the missionary residents and native chiefs of both this and of the Feejees (several of the latter being here on a visit), as well as from the captains of the whalers, two of whom had been recently cruising in sight of them, fully confirmed what I had been told at Tahiti and elsewhere, namely: that the group consists of more than a hundred islands, scattered over a space of a thousand miles in circumference; that each island is separately encircled by a reef, and the whole group interspersed with numerous and extensive coral reefs and shoals; that not more than two or three places of anchorage are known, and those could only be reached by intricate passages through the reefs; in short that it was believed to be the most dangerous navigation in the world, and ought not to be attempted by a heavy ship like the Vincennes, at least without a small vessel .in company to lead the way and examine the ground ahead. The captain of a small English trader that had been wrecked there a few years ago, in a note addressed to me on this subject uses the following language: "I have no hesitation to say it is perhaps the worst navigation in the world; in fact it makes me shudder to think on the narrow escapes I had before losing my vessel, and what I suffered after. Be cautious and do not venture over the ground at night that you have not gone over in the day."
These accounts altogether presented certainly a discouraging picture. Nevertheless had my orders been peremptory on this point, nothing should have prevented at least an effort on my part to comply with them, but such was not the case. They required only that I should "visit the Feejee and Pellew Islands, if practicable without great delay or danger"; thus leaving it at my own discretion and on my own responsibility to act as I might judge proper, of course after obtaining the best information I could on the subject. From the information obtained as above stated, it was evidently not practicable without great danger, and, considering the extent of the group and the great number of islands composing it, it was equally evident to my mind that to pay them such a visit as would be likely to produce good effects, if at all practicable, could not be done without greater delay than our limited quantity of provisions and the other duties yet to be performed before reaching China would warrant. To have simply shown the ship off the islands, without getting near enough to satisfy the natives of our power to act efficiently against them, if disposed to do so, would only have had a tendency to confirm them in the security of their position, and probably render them still more audacious and dangerous to defenceless traders than they already are. Under .all considerations then, I could hardly have felt myself justified in attempting the prosecution of that part of my orders, even had no other motive for its relinquishment existed. But I had other strong inducements for the course I determined to pursue, and which course I hope may meet the approbation of the Department.
I had just learnt from Captain Toby, commander of one of the whalers, that about a year before that time two of the boats of the American whaler Wm. Penn had been cut off, and part of their crews murdered by the natives of Oteewhy, or Savie, one of the Navigators Islands. Toby had been there since, had purchased from the chiefs one of the boats, and ransomed some of the men, one of whom made the statement herewith enclosed and numbered "x," from which it appears that no provocation was given by the people of the boats, but that the sole motive for the diabolical outrage was plunder. In addition to this I was informed by several of these captains that an American ship had been seen ashore on one of the Caroline Islands, but a few months before that time. They did not recollect the name of the island, but said they got their information from an American residing at Rotumah, from whom I would be able to obtain the particulars.
Situated, as I now found myself, within three days sail of Oteewhy, and at no great distance from the Carolines, I felt it incumbent upon me to proceed immediately and endeavor in the first place to punish the wretches who had cut off the boats and rescue the remaining captives; and, when that affair was settled, to hasten to the relief of the ship on shore. Accordingly, having obtained a particular description of the place and of the chief who led the murderous gang, I left Fort Refuge on the 7th in company with all our whalers, and on the 9th had the Navigators in view. The next day being off Oteewhy, and, having masked our ports and otherwise disguised the ship so as to give her as much as possible the appearance of a whaler, we stood close in upon the southwest side of the island where the outrage had been committed; and, as I anticipated, we soon had a canoe alongside, on board which besides eight natives were two Englishmen, who had resided some years on the island and spoke the language fluently. These I immediately pressed into service to act as guides. The natives were brought on board, and the canoe hoisted up to prevent escape. Unfortunately the day was too far gone to admit of our landing an expedition before night, and the landing place was said to be too difficult and dangerous to be attempted in the dark. There being no anchorage here, we stood off and on during the night, and the next morning I despatched Lieutenant Carr with 80 marines and musketeers; and gave him orders to endeavor to capture the chief and as many of his followers as he could, and bring them on board the ship uninjured if possible, to bring off any arms he might find and to set fire to the town and destroy it. In the evening Mr. Carr returned and reported that he landed his party without opposition. He found the town deserted, and destroyed it as directed, with whatever the houses contained. The natives had fled to the mountains, where they were so thoroughly sheltered by the rocks and underwood that it was not thought advisable to pursue them.
Oteewhy is an island of perhaps 150 miles in circumference, and not under the authority of a single chief, but is divided into several sections, each of which has its separate and independent chief. Aware of this fact, I had charged Mr. Carr to avoid with the utmost care a collision with the neighboring tribes, who the guides told us had no concern in the atrocious act, to endeavor to open a friendly intercourse with some of them and explain the reasons of our descent upon their island, and assure them it was our wish to punish only the guilty. In this he was perfectly successful. A friendly chief, with some of his people, accompanied him on board, and readily admitted to me the justice of the chastisement inflicted on his neighbor, who he said was a very bad man, and he seemed to regret that we had not been able to capture him. Although this expedition did not succeed to the full extent of my wishes, still the display of an armed force upon their shore, to which they did not dare offer resistance, and the destruction of their town and considerable other property, will, I am persuaded, be long remembered by them, and I trust with a good effect on their conduct towards future visitors. The only man (a Sandwich Islander) of the captured boats' crews, that was then on the island, contrived to get off to us, and is now on board this ship. The other boat had been sold to an English whaler but a few weeks before we arrived.
On the 13th we left the Navigators for Rotumah, taking Wallis Island (a favorite refreshing place of the whalers) in our route, and arrived there on the following day. This island is surrounded by a coral reef, within which there is a good harbor. The entrance, however, though deep, is so very narrow that I did not think it prudent to attempt it. We lay off and on two days, during which time we procured .some water and a quantity of vegetables and fruit. Two American seamen, who had been left there by whalers, were at their request received on board for a passage home. On the 18th we arrived at Rotumah Island, also much frequented by whalers. One came in at the moment of our anchoring. Much to my regret I was not able to get any satisfactory information here relative to the vessel said to be ashore on one of the Carolines. The man to whom I had been referred perfectly recollected that an English brig had touched at Rotumah a few months before and reported having seen a bright-sided ship ashore on one of those islands, but the name and situation of the place he had entirely forgotten. I was, therefore, compelled to abandon all idea of affording her relief. The anchorage at this island being unsafe, I delayed only long enough to fill up our empty water-tanks.
It was my intention on leaving Rotumah to have held a course as nearly as possible direct for the Pellew Islands, which would have led us through a part of the ocean as yet but little known, and where I was in hopes I might be fortunate enough to make some new discovery. But to my great disappointment we very soon encountered strong westerly winds, which compelled us to stand to the northward, until in spite of ourselves we were carried into the midst of the great chain of the Caroline Islands, in longitude 167° E. We then had for a number of days a continuation of squally and thick weather, limiting our view of the horizon to so narrow a space, that it became necessary at times, as matter of prudence, to heave to even in the day time, lest we should run upon some one of the numerous islands or shoals, with which that part of the ocean is known to abound. In this situation, and with no time to spare, I thought it advisable to abandon all further attempt to get to the westward in a south latitude. Accordingly we continued on a northern course to gain the strength of the N. E. trade.
In crossing the parallel of the Carolines frequent indications of the vicinity of land were seen, such as green branches of trees and various kinds of land birds; and by our reckoning we must have passed very near several islands, if they were correctly laid down on the charts. We, however, got sight of only one group, consisting of a number of small, low islands and reefs, called "Brown's Range," in latitude 11° 30' N. and longitude I62° 30' E. It is said these islands were not inhabited when discovered in 1798. That they now are, there can be little doubt, as we saw a large canoe under sail near the land, and I regretted that the lateness of the hour, it being near night, prevented our communicating with her.
On the 19th November we passed between Rota and Guam (of the Marians) and hove to off Port Apra [Guam] where I had intended to anchor for a day or two, but not liking the appearance of the bar and harbor, I delayed only long enough to get off some fruit and vegetables, after which we continued our route for the Pellew Islands, and on the 26th arrived in sight of them. As this whole group is well known to be almost entirely surrounded by dangerous reefs, and as I had no chart or plan upon which the dangers are described or the anchorage pointed out, prudence required that we should approach them with the greatest caution, and it was not until the 29th that, with one of the principal Rupacks on board as pilot, and an English sailor, who had been many years on the islands, as interpreter, we got to anchor in an open roadstead about eight miles from Corror. We soon received a visit from the king of that island, and were informed that two of the unfortunate Mentor's crew were still detained by the King of Baubelthonap, at a place called Arracolon, about 30 miles distant from our anchorage. We also learnt the following particulars on the subject:
When Captain Bernard left these islands after the loss of his ship in 1832, he promised the King of Baubelthonap, into whose hands he had fallen, to return as soon as possible with a certain number of muskets and other articles, which were to be given him as compensation for the maintenance of himself and crew while there, and the aid afforded them in getting away. As security for the faithful execution of this promise, three of his crew were detained by the king, and an equal number of the natives sent with him. At the period of our arrival they knew nothing of the disaster that had befallen the captain and his companions at North Island, and were anxiously looking out for his return. In the meantime one of the men had made his escape in a passing vessel, in consequence of which the other two were the more strictly guarded, and I was assured by the King of Corror (and have since learnt from the men themselves that such was really the fact) that the chiefs had determined to put them to death rather than suffer them to escape, or give them up until the muskets, etc., were paid, and their own people brought back. Under these circumstances it was not to be expected that they would be peaceably surrendered on my demanding them, particularly as it was well known that the ship could not approach nearer than to within 25 miles of Arracolon, on account of the extensive reefs; and to attempt their rescue by means of a boat expedition would by exasperating the savages undoubtedly put their lives in great peril. This course was, therefore, only to be resorted to as a last alternative. It being already my determination in any event to go to North's Island for the purpose of taking off any that might yet remain of those left there by Captain Bernard, I thought it best to proceed to that place at once, and if possible get off the Pellew-men also, and return to these islands, when I had no doubt our men on Baubelthonap would be readily liberated in exchange for theirs in our hands and thus all difficulty be amicably settled.
On the 9th December, six days from the Pellews, we arrived at North's Island, a low, level, green speck upon the ocean, not above a league in circumference, nor elevated probably more than 20 feet at its highest point, above the surface of the sea. Surrounded by a reef and thickly covered nearly to the water's edge with scarcely anything other than cocoanut trees, on the fruit of which a population of at least 400 human beings depend almost exclusively for both food and drink. We were quickly boarded by a number of canoes, in one of which came one of the Pellew chiefs, from whom we learnt the melancholy fate of the greater portion of his late companions. Of the nine men remaining after the escape of Captain Bernard in 1833, he was now the only survivor on the island. His two countrymen and four of the white men died literally from a want of proper and sufficient sustenance. The other two had got away in a passing vessel. Notwithstanding this statement, the truth of which I could hardly doubt, I determined to examine the island for ourselves. For this purpose the first lieutenant, with a party of 50 officers and men, landed with orders to search it thoroughly and bring off any white men that might be found. His report on returning to the ship confirmed the above account, at least so far that there was not then a white man on the island. Having the Pellew chief on board, we arrived at our former anchorage off Corror on the 16th. The next morning I despatched Mr. Carr for Arracolon, with 120 officers, mp.rines, and musketeers, and two Englishmen as guides and interpreters, directing him to get our countrymen by peaceable means if possible, but to use his arms if he found it necessary.
The King of Corror who had on our first arrival endeavored, I believe from humane motives, to dissuade me from such an expedition, when he saw it on the point of departure, ordered his war canoes, with from four to five hundred men, armed with muskets, spears, clubs, etc., to join us and act under the orders of Mr. Carr; he himself proposing to be my companion on board, if I would permit him, until the return of the boats, thus offering his own person as a pledge that no treachery from his people was to be apprehended. After an absence of nearly four days our boats returned, bringing with them the two seamen (James Meader and Horatio King) who after much delay and difficulty were at length given up without resort to force, though obviously through the fear of it alone, for they were extremely reluctant to let them go, without the promised muskets, and seemed quite indifferent as to the fate of the chief in our hands. He was of course set at liberty, and some presents of axes, saws, etc., were made them in consideration for what they had done for Captain Bernard, and of their good treatment of the men just released.
Before closing the subject of our visit to these islands, justice requires that I should here mention the attentions we received during our stay from the worthy chief of Corror, commonly called King George, who by his uniform hospitality and kindness to strangers so well sustains the high reputation for those qualities of his ancestor, Abba Thuile. Immediately on our arrival he sent orders to the different towns and villages subject to his authority to send out their canoes and catch fish and to collect fruit and taro for us; and, besides giving us two bullocks (of which there are barely 20 on the islands), we were supplied from day to day with fish, fruit, and vegetables in the greatest abundance for all hands. Everything came in the form of presents from King George. We of course did not fail to make presents in return, which though probably of more value in their estimation than those we received, were still insufficient in ours to cancel the many obligations we felt under to this kindhearted man.
We sailed from the Pellews on the 20th December and arrived at Lintin on the 2d January, at which time we had less than a fortnight's bread or flour, and barely three weeks' salt provisions on board the ship, from which it will be seen that our hurried movements were not without sufficient cause. Up to that period our crew had enjoyed remarkably good health. We had then only five on the surgeon's report, and those of but slight complaints. But we now very soon felt the effects of the great change of climate to which we were exposed. It was in the midst of the rainy season when we arrived in China and in the course of a few days we had as many as 62 on the sick list, of violent catarrh. In two cases, where the lungs were attacked, it proved fatal. These, with one man lost overboard, as reported in my letter from Lintin, are the only deaths that have occurred amongst us during the cruise. While at Canton I received indirectly from the acting governor of the city the usual orders invariably given to all foreign ships of war that anchor there, namely, to leave the waters of China forthwith and return to my own country. As this was understood to be a mere matter of form and without any other meaning than a simple compliance with "China custom," I took no other notice of it than to request Mr. Wetmore [probably W. S. Wetmore, an American merchant at Canton], the gentleman to whom the note was addressed to say that I intended to go to sea when I was ready. I remained a fortnight afterwards but heard no more on the subject. As it may be satisfactory to the Department to see these curious documents, I herewith enclose translated copies of them, numbered "2" and "3"; with this only remark, that there is not a word of truth in the statement of the "Pilot Tan Ying and others." No enquiries of any kind were ever made of myself or officers, nor am I aware that we were even visited by any of the authorities of the country during our stay.
We left Lintin on the 24th, stopped three days at Singapore, and, passing through the Straits of Malacca, anchored at Quallah Battoo, laie in the evening of the 15th February. On the following morning I hoisted a white flag, and fired a salute of nine guns, and immediately afterwards landed, accompanied by a number of the officers of the ship. We were met on the beach by a crowd of armed men, who, though rather curious, conducted themselves in a perfectly respectful manner, and escorted us to the residence of the rajah. Our reception by this personage was polite and apparently friendly. The salute we had fired was now returned with an equal number of guns. I explained to him through an interpreter that I had called by the orders of the government of my country to pay him a friendly visit, and at the same time to see that our countrymen trading on the coast were not again molested in their lawful pursuits. He replied it was very well; he was glad to see me; said he had nothing to do with the affair of the Friendship; was not there at the time, nor when the place was attacked; hoped we should remain at peace. I invited him to pay me a visit on board. After hesitating some time, he asked if he could bring some of his friends with him, and being told to bring the whole town if he liked, he accepted the invitation.
Two days afterwards he came agreeably to appointment, accompanied by an escort of about 40 armed men, and bringing with him a couple of young buffaloes and some fruit as a present. I received him with a salute of II guns, exercised the crew at quarters, and paid him every other attention in my power. He remained on board several hours, and, when about to leave, requested me to give him a letter to be shown to others who might call there hereafter, certifying in effect that our intercourse had been of the most free and friendly character and that I was satisfied with his conduct. Such a letter was cheerfully given him. I was informed that several of our trading vessels have loaded pepper at this place since the visit of the Potomac, and that the trade is now carried on as if nothing had happened. Whatever injury the town may have sustained on the occasion of the attack by that ship, has since been entirely repaired, and I was assured that its defensive works are in a much better condition now, than they were at that time.
We left Quallah Battoo on the loth, and the same night spoke an American vessel bound there. We anchored for a few days at Cape Town, and also at St. Helena. Our worthy consuls at both those places enjoined it upon me to say to the Department how desirable it was that a ship of war should occasionally pay them a visit. The frequent difficulties occurring among the crews of the different vessels (particularly whalers) that touch at their ports and which it is not always in their power to reconcile in a satisfactory manner, would, they believe, be greatly diminished and the interests of those concerned in the vessels much benefitted by the presence from time to time of a man-of-war. I received on board from the hands of those gentlemen four American seamen who were desirous of a passage home.
(To BE CONTINUED.)