USA > Massachusetts > Nantucket County > The history of Nantucket County, island, and town : including genealogies of first settlers > Part 57
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##Soon after it was apparent that the ship was badly damaged Capt. Gardner went into the hold with a lantern to ascertain the extent of the injury. It was clear that saving the ship was impossible as it was not improbable that the worst of the injury was not in sight.
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By midnight the water had risen to between decks and it was evident that departure could not safely be delayed. Getting away was attended with great difficulty and hazard and within an hour from the time they got clear the ship upset. The crew left the ship in three boats, but the difficulty of keeping together, a pro- ceeding which seemed advisable, made it seem best to let one boat go and divide the crew of 16 between the other two.
The weather was rough through the night and the boats were kept before the wind until morning, by which time the wind mod- erated. The prevailing winds being from the Northwest they deemed it advisable to steer an easterly course and endeavor to reach the Azores Islands. A sail was made for each boat, and by this means they were enabled to make greater progress and to save the men from the fatigue of rowing. At 10 o'clock that day the sight of a schooner at the north of them temporarily encouraged them, but they soon found that the direction of the wind would prevent their reaching her, and it was evident that no one on the vessel had sighted.them. Their position at this time was latitude 38° 40' North, longitude 40° 52' West.
The next day the breeze was brisk and progress satisfactory. At & o'clock in the evening the wind increased and soon had de- veloped into a gale with frequent and heavy thunder. There was nothing for them to do but to lay to and ride it out. A sea break- ing over into the Captain's boat opened a new peril for it was with some difficulty the boat was freed and then it was found necessary in order to avoid a recurrence of the danger to throw overboard a large part of their fresh water and all their clothing excepting what they wore. A line thirty fathoms long attached to them kept the boats as closely as was prudent. In the morning the wind abated and the sea became smooth.
From the time of leaving the wreck they had been drenched with rain and were very cold and uncomfortable, but with the abat- ing of the gale and the subsidence of the sea came a shift of the wind to North northwest, with pleasant weather and they were able to dry their clothing. At this time they were in latitude 39º 4' North, longitude 40° West. The following night the wind in- creased again until it became a dangerous gale making it neces- sary to lash their boats together and drift. The water and pro- visions were getting short and they were put on an allowance of a gill and a half of water and a cake of ship bread per, man a day.
The following twenty-four hours the breeze was strong from the North-north-west with squalls. The following morning they set their sails and steered east. Nothing noteworthy happened until 4 p. m. of the 8th day of October when to their exceeding joy they sighted the island of Flores .* At 8 p. m. they were under the protecting lee of the land. At 9 o'clock the next morning they landed at St. Cruz, the principal town of Flores. By this time their
*One of the Azores group.
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supply of water was completely exhausted. They had been in their boats seven days and eight nights, and had journeyed nearly : six- hundred miles.
The people of Flores received them with kindness and hospi- tality. Houses and everything needed for their comfort were pro- vided for them by the Governor of the island and the United States Vice Consul. Capt. Gardner had several times visited Flores, and was acquainted with the Governor who greeted him with much cordiality. They remained on the island until January 27th 1808. Mr. Macy gives as the names of the crew* "Capt Edmund Gardner, Barnabas Russell, David Bunker, Roland Hussey, Charles Folger, Linzee Coffin, David Cleveland, William Morris, Samuel Peters and seven others, strangers to Nantucket."
SHIP COMMERCE
Nothing is known of the fate of the Ship Commerce, Jesse Bunker, master, which sailed from Nantucket in 1805, on a whale- ing voyage. She was spoken in June, 1806, near the equator, homeward bound with a cargo of oil. There was a heavy gale of wind soon afterward and it is supposed that the ship. foundered with all on board. Casks of oil and wreckage supposed to be from her were found near where she was last seen.
SHIP HENRY
The Ship Henry, Isaac Gardner, master, returning from a whaling voyage to the South Seas, on July 29, 1813, in latitude 38° North Longitude 69° West encountered a terrific gale of wind which threw her on her beam ends and carried away her masts while lying to waiting for its abatement. The upper deck was torn up and the entire crew were swept overboard excepting the two mates who were in the run of the ship at the time and were drowned. All who were carried overboard regained the ship ex- cepting one, a black man. The ship at once sunk to the water level, leaving the bowsprit only above water, on which the crew took refuge. Those who regained the ship were Captain Gardner, John Sprague, Samuel Jenkins, Charles Lewis, Owen Rowland, Paul Hussey, Thomas Fuller, Robert Jackson, William. Amos, Francis Randal and Newport Green. Those who perished immediately were George Bruff, John Gardner and Richard Thompson. : Capt. Gardner and Newport Green soon after were swept away and drowned. The next day but nine were left. The survivors suc- ceeded in salvaging a cask of molasses and some beef which formed their principal subsistence. One by one they perished-John Sprague died August 10; Owen Rowland August 15; Robert Jack- son August 21; Francis Randal, August 25. Subsequently the sur- vivors caught some fish.
After forty-six days of these terrible experiences the survivors were taken from the wreck by an English cartel ship from Chatham,
*Hist. of Nantucket p. 242.
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Capt. Arms, and arrived in New Bedford September 25. The only survivors of the crew were Samuel Jenkins, Charles Lewis, Thomas Fuller, Paul Hussey and William Amos.
THE GENERAL LINCOLN
The General Lincoln, a ship of 285 tons burthen, Shubael Chase, master, sailed from' Nantucket, September 21, 1818, bound on a whaling voyage to the Coast of Brazil. Six days after sailing, while in latitude 39° 30' North, longitude 45° West, a heavy gale was encountered, blowing from S. S. E. to E. S. E. and continuing through the night. At 8 o'clock the next morning the wind abated, and soon died away entirely, leaving a heavy and dangerous swell. The calm lasted but about fifteen minutes, when a breeze sprung up from the westward and rapidly increased until it reached hurri- cane velocity, with a mountainous sea running. The ship was soon thrown upon her beam ends and it seemed impossible to save her. The flying vapor and spray made the day almost like night while the roaring of the wind made it almost impossible to understand orders: The ship was finally cleared of some of her spars and righted. Soon afterwards she shipped a heavy sea and six men were washed overboard. Three regained the ship but the others were drowned. When the gale subsided the pumps were manned and the ship cleared of water. The officers and crew determined to stay by the ship and endeavor to work her into port but they could make but very limited sail and the unfavorable weather con- tinuing gave them little encouragement. Falling in with the brig Telegraph, of Providence, Captain Hill, the situation appearing so hopeless, the men took a few of their belongings from the ship and putting them on the brig abandoned their own vessel.
THE ESSEX
One of the most remarkable and serious disasters that ever befel a whaling ship was that which sunk the Essex, and forced her men to journey for ninety-three days in open boats before the feeble remnant of a stalwart crew succeeded in finding safety. The first mate, Owen Chase, wrote the story of their hardships after their return home and it is from his book that the stories of that terrible period of privation and suffering are taken.
The Essex, a ship of 238 tons burthen, commanded by Cap- tain George Pollard Jr., sailed from Nantucket August 12, 1819, bound for the Pacific Ocean on a whaling voyage. She had been thoroughly repaired and was in all respects a sound, substantial vessel: "She had a crew of 21 men and was victualled and equipped for a thirty months voyage. On the second day out she was struck by a sudden squall, thrown upon her beam ends, one boat smashed and two destroyed and some other damage done. The ship righted herself. A call was made at the island of Flores, and supply of fresh vegetables and meat secured, and a whaleboat purchased at the Isle of May, one of the Cape de Verdes from the wrecked ship
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Archimedes, of New York, which was stranded on the beach. Noth- ing of especial importance happened and the ship in due time arrived off the cruising ground along the Coast of Chili, where they ob- tained 250 barrels of oil. From there they went to the Coast of Peru where they got 550 barrels more. Off to the westward of Charles Island, while lowered for whales the mate's boat was badly smashed by a whale that rose directly under it. Thus far little had occurred that was not liable to happen to any whaling vessel.
"On the 20th of November," (quoting from Mr. Chase's ac- count, *) 'cruising in latitude 0° 40' S, longitude 119° W.) a shoal of whales was discovered off the lee-bow. The weather at this time was extremely fine and clear, and it was about 8 o'clock in the morning that the man at the masthead gave the usual cry of "there she blows.' The ship was immediately put away, and we ran down in the direction of them. When we had got within half a mile of the place where they were observed, all our boats were. lowered down, manned, and we started in pursuit of them. The ship, in the meantime, was brought to the wind, and the main-top- sail hove aback, to wait for us. I had the harpoon in the second boat; the Captain preceded me in the first. When I arrived at the spot where we calculated they were, nothing was at first to be seen. We lay on our oars in anxious expectation of discovering them come up somewhere near us. Presently one rose, and spouted a short distance ahead of my boat; I made all speed towards it, came up with, and struck it; feeling the harpoon in him, he threw himself, in an agony, over towards the boat, (which at that time was up alongside of him) and giving a severe blow with his tail, struck the boat near the edge of the water, amidships, and stove a hole in her. I immediately took up the boat hatchet and cut the line, to disengage the boat from the whale, which by this time was running off with great velocity. I succeeded in getting clear of him', with the loss of the harpoon and line; and finding the water to pour fast in the boat, I hastily stuffed three or four of our jackets in the hole, ordered one man to keep constantly bailing, and the rest to pull immediately for the ship; we succeeded in keeping the boat free, and shortly gained the ship. The Captain and second mate, in the other two boats, kept up the pursuit, and soon struck another whale. They being at this time a considerable distance to leeward, I went forward, braced around the main-yard, and put the ship off in a direction for them; the boat which had been stove was immediately hoisted in, and after examining the hole, I found that I could, by nailing a piece of canvas over it, get her ready to join in a fresh pursuit, sooner than by lowering down the other remaining boat which belonged to the ship. I accordingly turned her over upon the quarter, and was in the act of nailing on the canvass, when I observed a very large spermaceti whale, as well as I could judge, about eighty-five feet in length; he broke water about twenty rods off our weather-bow, and was lying quiet- ly, with his head in a direction for the ship. He spouted two or three times, and then disappeared. In less than two or three sec- onds he came up again, about the length of the ship off, and made directly for us, at the rate of about three knots. The ship was then going with about the same velocity. His appearance and at- titude gave us at first no alarm; but while I stood watching his movements, and observing him but a ship's length off, coming down for us with great great celerity, I involuntarily ordered the boy at
*Page 24.
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the helm to put it hard up; intending to sheer off and avoid him. The words were scarcely out of my mouth, before he came down upon us with full speed, and struck the ship with his head, just forward of the forechains; he gave us such an appalling and tre- mendous jar, as nearly threw us all on our faces. The ship brought up as suddenly and violently as if she had struck a rock, and trembled for a few seconds like a leaf. We looked at each other with perfect amazement, deprived almost of the power of speech. Many minutes elapsed before we were able to realize the dread- ful accident; during which time he passed under the ship, grazing her keel as he went along, came up alongside of her to leeward, and lay on the top of the water, (apparently stunned with the vio- lence of the blow,) for the space of a minute; he then suddenly started off, in a direction to leeward. After a few moment's re- flection, and recovering, in some measure, from the sudden con- sternation that had seized us, I of course concluded that he had stove a hole in the ship, and that it would be necessary to set the pumps going. Accordingly they were rigged, but had not been in operation more than one minute, before I perceived the head of the ship to be gradually settling down in the water; I then or- dered the signal to be set for the other boats, which scarcely had I despatched, before I again discovered the whale, apparently in convulsions, on the top of the water, about one hundred rods to leeward. He was enveloped in the foam of the sea, that his con- tinual and violent thrashing about in the water had created around him'; and I could distinctly see him smite his jaws together, as if distracted with rage and fury. He remained a short time in this situation, and then started off with great velocity, across the bows of the ship to windward. By this time the ship had settled down a considerable distance in the water, and I gave her up as lost. I however, ordered the pumps to be kept constantly going, and en- deavored to collect my thoughts for the occasion. I turned to the boats; two of which we then had with the ship, with an intention of clearing them' away, and getting all things ready to embark in them', if there should be no other resource left; and while my at- tention was thus engaged for a moment, I was aroused with the cry of a man at the hatchway, "here he is-he is making for us again." . I turned around, and saw him about one hundred rods directly ahead of us, coming down apparently with twice his or- dinary speed, and to me at that moment, it appeared with tenfold fury and vengeance in his aspect. The surf flew in all directions about him, and his course towards us was marked by a white foam of a rod in width, which he made with the continual violent thrash- ing of his tail; his head was about half out of water, and in that way he came upon, and again struck the ship. I was in hopes when I descried him making for us, that by a dexterous movement of putting the ship away immediately, I should be able to cross the line of this approach, before he could get up to us, and thus avoid, what I knew, if he should strike us again, would prove our inevit-
able destruction.
I bawled out to the helmsman, "hard up!" but
she had not fallen off more than a point, before we took the sec- ond shock. I should judge the speed of the ship to have been at this time about three knots, and that of the whale about six. He struck : her to windward, directly under the cat-head, and com- pletely: stove in her bows. He passed under the ship again, went off to leeward, and we saw no more of him. Our situation at this juncture can be more readily imagined than described. The shock to our feelings was such, as I am sure none can have an adequate conception of, that were not there; the misfortune befel us at a moment when we least dreamt of any accident; and from the pleas- ing anticipations we had formed, of realizing the certain profits of
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our labour, we were dejected by a sudden, most mysterious, and overwhelming calamity. Not a moment, however, was to be lost in endeavoring to provide for the extremity to which it was now certain we were reduced. We were more than a thousand miles from the nearest land, and with nothing but a light open boat, as the resource of safety for myself and companions. I ordered the men to cease pumping, and every one to provide for himself; seiz- ing a hatchet at the same time, I cut away the lashings of the spare boat, which lay bottom up, across two spars directly over the quar- ter deck, and cried out to those near me, to take her as she came down. They did so accordingly, and bore her on their shoulders as far as the waist of the ship. The steward had in the mean time gone down into the cabin twice, and saved two quadrants, two practical navigators, and the captain's trunk and mine; all of which were hastily thrown into the boat, as she lay on the deck, with the two compasses which I snatched from the binnacle. He attempted to descend again; but the water by this time had rushed in, and he returned without being able to effect his purpose. By the time we had got the boat to the waist, the ship had filled with water, and was going down on her beam-ends; we shoved our boat as quickly as possible from the plank-shear into the water, all hands jumping in her at the same time, and launched off clear of the ship. We were scarcely two boat's lengths distant from her, when she fell over to windward, and settled down in the water."
Mr. Chase describes the horror they felt over their terrible situation and what a frightful change a short ten minutes had made* "We lay at this time in our boat, about two ship's lengths off from the wreck, in perfect silence, calmly contemplating her situation, and absorbed in our own melancholy reflections, when the other boats were discovered rowing up to us. They had but shortly before discovered that some accident had befallen us, but of the nature of which they were entirely ignorant. The sudden and mysterious disappearance of the ship was first discovered by the boat steerer in the captain's boat, and with a horror-struck countenance and voice, he suddenly exclaimed, "Oh, my God! where is the ship?" Their operations upon this were instantly suspended, and a general cry of horror and despair burst from the lips of every man, as their looks were directed for her, in vain, over every part of the ocean .; They immediately made all haste towards us. The captain's boat was the first that reached us. He stopped about a boat's length off, but had no power to utter a single syllable; he was so completely overpowered with the spectacle before him, that he sat down in his boat, pale and speechless. I could scarcely recognize his countenance, he appeared to be so much altered, awed, and overcome, with the oppression of his feelings, and the dreadful reality that lay before him. He was in a short time how- ever enabled to address the inquiry to me, "My God, Mr. Chase, what is the matter?" I answered, "We have been stove by a whale." I then briefly told him the story. After a few moments's reflection he observed, that we must cut away her masts, and en- deavour to get something out of her to eat. Our thoughts were now all accordingly bent on endeavours to save from the wreck
*"From the time we were first attacked by the whale, to the pe- riod of the fall of the ship, and of our leaving her in the boat, more than ten minutes could not certainly have elapsed." p. 32.
+One may easily pardon the narrator in view of the frightful sit- uation if there are some inconsistences in the story. The ship was still above water and the decks and rigging must have been plainly visible.
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whatever we might possibly want, and for this purpose we rowed up and got on: to her. Search was made for every means of gain- ing access to her hold; and for this purpose the lanyards were cut . loose, and with our hatchets we commenced to cut away the masts, that she might right up again, and enable us to scuttle her decks. In doing which we were occupied about three quarters of an hour, owing to : our having no axes, nor indeed any other instruments, but the small hatchets belonging to the boats. After her masts were goneshe came up about two-thirds of the way upon an even keel. While we were employed about the masts the captain took his quadrant, shoved off from the ship and got an observation. We found ourselves in latitude 0° 40' S, longitude 119° W. We now commenced : to cut a hole through the planks, directly above two large cask's of bread, which most fortunately were between decks, in the waist of the ship, and which being in the upper side, when she upset, .we had strong hopes was not wet. It turned out ac- cording to: our wishes, and from these casks we obtained six hun- dred pounds of, hard bread. Other parts of the deck were then scuttled, and we got without difficulty as much fresh water as we dared to take in the boats, so that each was supplied with about sixty-five gallons; we got also from one of the lockers a musket, a small canister of powder, a couple of files, two rasps, about two pounds of boat nails and a few turtle. In the afternoon the wind came on to blow a strong breeze; and having obtained everything that occurred to us could then be got out, we began to make ar- rangements for safety during the night. A boat's line was made fast to the ship, and to the other end of it one of the boats was moored, at about fifty fathoms to leeward; another boat was then attached to the first one, about eight fathoms astern; and the third boat, like distance astern of her. Night came on just as we had finished our operations; and such a night as it was to us! so full of feverish and distracting inquietude, that we were deprived en- tirely of rest." . Mr. Chase naturally moralizes quite at length on their deplorable situation.
The next day all set to work stripping off the light sails of the ship to make sails for the boats, using also the light spars. Each boat was rigged with two masts, to carry a flying jib and two sprit-sails, the sprit-sails being made so they could be double reefed .. The boats were strengthened and additional sides built up about six inches above the gunwale, a precaution which Mr. Chase says they found of infinite service. Indeed he thinks they owed their preservation to that addition. An observation showed them in latitude 0°, 6' S, longitude 119° 30' W. and that within the twenty-four hours they had drifted forty-nine miles.
By November 22d the ship began to show signs of breaking and as nothing more could be obtained it was essential to get away while their provisions were quite abundant. At noon an observa- tion showed them to be in latitude 0° 13/ N. longitude 120° W. The nearest land was the Marquesas Islands and the next the So- ciety group. They knew nothing of those islands,* but presum- ably they were inhabited by savages and the dangers were as great
*This was in the early days of the navigation of the Pacific and the passing of vessels much more infrequent.
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as from the elements. They had no charts. Captain Pollard's opinion was that this was the season when hurricanes prevailed in the vicinity of the Sandwich Islands. The conclusion was to en- deavour to work eastward to the coast of Chili or Peru. The men were divided; the mate's boat being in poorest condition, six were assigned to it, while the captain's and second mate's boats carried seven each.
Soon after noon they left the wreck and by 4 P. M. they had lost sight of her. The wind was blowing strongly and the mate's boat leaked continuously and required constant bailing. The crews of the boats were divided each, one watch doing the work of nav- igating while those of the other rested. They considered what their chances were for meeting some vessel, especially some whale- ship whose cruising ground was in the latitude where they were steering. They figured that their provisions and water would last sixty days, within which time they hoped to reach the coast of South America With this in mind they put themselves on an al- lowance of a biscuit (1 lb. 3 oz.) and half a pint of water a day.
In his chest, which had been saved, Mr. Chase found some eight or ten sheets of paper, a lead pencil, a suit of clothes, three fish-hooks, a jack-knife, a whetstone and a can of soap. The boat contained as part of its regular equipment, a lantern, tinder-box, and two or three candles. The captain had saved a musket, two pistols and about two pounds of powder. The powder was divided equally among the boats and each mate was given a pistol.
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