A Ship Called Bounty, December 12, 1789

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GO DIRECTLY TO CAPTAIN SHOPP'S NARRATIVE

The Bounty

Introduction

    Time passed quietly on the islands until December 12, 1789, when a ghostly ship called the HMAV Bounty limped into the harbor and dropped anchor.  The alarms had been sounded from the hills, and a party of representatives stood silently on the beach, as the ship anchored.  The following narrative of Captain Everett Shopp occurred a week or so after December 12, 1789.  It was personally scribed by Petty Officer, Clerk, Shallister Bolsterome, and written in the vernacular of the time.  This vernacular has been eliminated and translated into the words of today.  This is the only document in the words of Captain Shopp, other than entries in the Ship's Log of the Prize Mary, therefore, its value is extraordinary.  To go directly to the narrative, click HERE.  To continue through all the background information that led up to the chance meeting, just read on.

 

Monty Layton Promise, 2004

Three Captains, Bligh, Christian and Shopp

    On September 9, 1754, Bounty's first captain, William Bligh, was born in Cornwall in the British Isles.  On September 25, 1764, Bounty's second captain, through mutiny, Fletcher Christian, was born in Cumberland.  Everett Shopp, of Shoppolis Islands, and captain of the independent ship Prize Mary, was born April 15, 1752 in a London suburb, which made him two years older than Bligh and close to twelve years older than Mr. Christian.

William Bligh 

   The Bligh family, resident in the Cornish parish of St. Tudy since at least 1680, claimed John Bligh (perhaps Blygh) of Bodmin, who passed away on July 7, 1770 at the age of 74, as the first of the family.  John served as a commissioner for the suppression of monasteries in reign of Henry IV.  William himself was born at Tinten Manor, the only son of Francis Bligh and his wife Jane Pearce, a widow whose maiden name was Balsam.  She passed away of unknown causes when William was only 14 years old.  His parents were married in Plymouth in 1853, but William and his sister, Mary, were baptized either at St. Tudy Church, where there is a family plaque, or in St. Nicholas Chapel, part of Tinten Manor.  His father was an Excise Officer, based at Plymouth, and it is reputed that the family waited until the birth of Mary before returning to St. Tudy for baptism on February 13, 1757. 

    Bligh  first went to sea in early 1762, at age 7, as a captain’s personal servant on board HMS Monmouth.  He joined the Royal Navy in 1770 where he served on HMS Hunter and became a Midshipman in 1771 serving on HMS Crescent, as well as, HMS Ranger.  Bligh not only took naturally to the sea but was well-versed in science and mathematics and, in concert with these virtues, was an accomplished writer and illustrator.  He became Sailing Master on the Resolution, commanded by Captain James Cook, when only 22. Bligh unfortunately witnessed the murder of Captain Cook, personally, in Hawaii on February 14, 1779.

    Bligh was launched into his Bounty years as a result of The West India Committee, a group of merchants and property owners, who developed an idea, in February of 1775, to feed West Indies slaves breadfruit, first discovered in the South Pacific in 1748.  Unemployed after leaving the Resolution, he had taken a position as an "enforcer" or "keeper of the peace" at the Cornish Arms public house in St. Tudy, a picturesque parish and village, his birthplace.  On the 14th of January of 1780, Bligh and Captain Shopp met there for the first time, and through social intercourse, found much common ground and interest, as well as, much uncommon ground and disagreement.  It appeared both men found the other interesting at most.  They would not see each other again until Captain Bligh had become Governor of New South Wales and Captain Shopp had founded Shoppolis Islands.

   London's Duncan Campbell's sister, named Mary, also known as Molly or Mally, married William "Richard" Betham on September 13, 1748.  In 1765, Betham accepted a position on the Isle of Man, which had been recently purchased by the British government from its heriditary owner, the Duke of Atholl.  Both Duncan and Mary were children of Dr. Neil Campbell, Minister at Kilmolie, and his wife, Henrietta.  Betham's position as Collector of Customs was designed to suppress smuggling on an island widely regarded as a place of smugglers.  During a twelve-month leave from sea duty, William Bligh met his future wife, and on February, l4 1781, at the parish church of Onchan, Isle of Man, he married Elizabeth Betham, the daughter of Richard and Mary Betham, whose family lived at Bemahague, Onchan at the time.  

    Bligh was already a Lieutenant, and had made several important hydrographic surveys.  Shortly after his marriage, he saw action at the battles of Dogger Bank in August 1781 and also fought with Lord Howe at Gibraltar in 1782.  Bligh was 33 when he took command of the Bounty.  In April of 1789, after leaving Tahiti, then known as Otahette, Bounty was taken away, through a sudden mutiny led by his once-friend, Fletcher Christian.

    After his historic journey with 18 crewman in a small boat, Bligh eventually returned to England, and his career in the Navy continued, seemingly unaffected by the mutiny.  In 1790 he became Captain of the sloop HMS Falcon, followed by service on HMS Medea and HMS Providence.  In 1792 he again visited Tahiti and successfully transported breadfruit  to the West Indies. 

    In 1797 he commanded  HMS Director at the battle of Camperdown  and as Captain of HMS Glatton in 1801 took part in the battle of Copenhagen, after which he was commended for his bravery by Admiral Nelson.  Also in 1801, Bligh was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in consideration of his distinguished services in a variety of categories including, but not limited to, navigation and botany.

    In 1805, Bligh was sent to New South Wales as Governor, but once again his oppressive manner contributed to an uprising, in Sydney, in 1808, the Rum Rebellion.  Captain Shopp, and his wife, plus entourage, had gone to New South Wales, aboard the then-veteran Prize Mary, to visit with the Governor in the Spring of 1807.  This time, their meeting was robust and fulfilling.  As a result, Captain Shopp and now-Governor William Bligh, became distant, but firm friends.  A certain unexplained identification between the two men, as well as a fine-line of mutual respect, had developed unexpectedly.  This was manifested in a letter, written by Captain Shopp on behalf of the deposed Governor, that oddly, never was delivered, nor was ever published in any public manner.  When Bligh heard about it through mutual associates, he did not commit his opinions, nor appreciation, in print, but his thoughts were conveyed to Shoppolis Islands via interesting messenger, one Granville Acres Brand, captain of the privately-held American merchantman, Blaze, about to embark on a voyage to the South Pacific from England at that time.

    The reason for the Rebellion, namely, the end the use of rum as a form of currency, a popular practice before his downfall.  The rebellion was led by one John Macarthur, a pioneer and wool merchant, originally from Stoke Damerel, Devon, who became a leader of the settlers. The British soldiers mutinied as well, and Bligh was forcibly deposed by Major George Johnston, of the 102^nd foot, and imprisoned for two years.  The story of his loyal daughter, Mary Bligh, is of great consequence in Bligh's vision on the world and, at the same time, a testimony for his role as a father and head of household. 

    On his release, he returned to England where he was cleared of all blame, and Major Johnston was tried at Chelsea Hospital in 1811 and cashiered.  Bligh was promoted to Rear Admiral of the Blue, and in 1814, became a Vice Admiral of the Blue.

    In the later years of his life, Bligh resided at the Manor House, Farningham, Kent and, subsequently, died on December 7, 1817 at age 64.  The place was Bond Street, London.  He was buried in the eastern part of Lambeth churchyard, by the side of his wife by whom he had six daughters. 

    During the year 1787, Bligh sailed at least one of Duncan Campbell's ships running from London to Jamaica and back. During this time Bligh became friends with Fletcher Christian, and on the ninth of May 1787, Bligh was promoted to commander of the Bounty.  He, in turn, made arrangements for Christian to be on board, and the rest of the story is history, from the standpoint of Bligh.

   Christian on the other hand, had not married and was free to pursue any field of endeavor since he came from a distinguished family with considerable influence.  He had no direct relationship to Captain Shopp prior to their meeting in December of 1784, but indirectly, Captain Shopp's father shared some commercial ventures with the Christian family. 

 

Fletcher Christian

 

   Christian was born in Cockermouth, Cumbria, England on September 25, 1764, into an influential family that had moved from the Isle of Man to Cumberland.  His birthplace was at the farmstead of Moorland Close and was conveyed to nearby Brigham church for baptism the same day.  Not far from Cumbria's Lake district, Moorland Close sits on the summit of a gentle hill that slopes down to the river Derwent and the town of Cockermouth.  Moorland Close was inherited from the family of Christian's mother.  The family had control of several other properties.

    Christian's father, Charles, the Coroner of Cumberland, was born and raised at Ewanrigg in Cumberland, and his mother's mother, Mary Fletcher, was raised at Cockermouth Hall, their ancestral properties which also included lands at Douglas on the Isle of Man.  By virtue of this, the Christian family and Bethams of Man, the home of William Bligh's wife, were common.  He was distantly related to William Wordsworth, a world-renowned poet, and a schoolmate of then local poet Isaac Wilkinson who described him of likeable personality, not someone who would mutiny on his captain and take his ship.  He attended St. Bees school in Whitehaven before going to sea.

    When Christian's father died, his mother, Ann Dixon Christian, was driven to the edge of bankruptcy.  With Moorland Close about the be foreclosed upon, Christian went to sea at 18, signing as ship's boy aboard Cambridge, a vessel on which his future captain, William Bligh was 6th Lieutenant.  Subsequently, he took two voyages with Bligh to Jamaica on the Britannia, which led to their association aboard Bounty; he had served successfully under Bligh for some four years.  This association, in which Bligh felt his attempts to "mentor" Christian were slighted, was intended to prepare him for promotion and eventual command.  This was confirmed by the Bounty officers, who felt that Bligh gave him too much special treatment.  In truth, the pressures of this union led to the mutiny itself, with Christian feeling driven to his decision by a raging fire in his head.  Isabella Curwen, Christian’s cousin, a well-known beauty and heiress after whom Belle Isle, in the center of Windermere, was named, was the target of Fletcher's early romantic intentions and, as a result, was part of his overall rationale.

    Isabella’s ancestral home was Workington Hall, a short distance from Moorland Close Farm at Cockermouth where Christian grew up. Six months after Isabella secretly married a prominent Whig who had recently bailed Fletcher’s family out of debt.  As a result of both incidents, Christian joined His Majesty's Navy.  It is reputed that since no grave was ever found for Christian, conjecture offers that after the mutiny, he returned to hide on Belle Island, perhaps in the company of his daughter, Mary, then made his way to Chile*, in South America, where one of Bounty's navigation devices was found much later.  Mary is said to actually be buried on Norfolk Island.   

   It has been suggested that it was Isabella’s husband who used his influence to protect Fletcher from capture.  Others, like William Wordsworth, came out on his behalf, and a number of equal efforts were initiated by other of influence.  John, who by then had taken the name and arms of Curwen, attempted to actively save the reputation of his family by darkening the name of Bligh, who, then, had the sympathy of almost the entire British public. 

   After the mutiny, a fellow Bounty crewmember, Peter Heywood, also from the Isle of Man, claimed that Christian had given him a message for his family which exonerated him from his crime of mutiny.  It is also possible, that some "arrangements" had been set forth in the document as well. Heywood only made it public that he had been given this message after he had retired from his successful naval career after being cleared of charges in the mutiny.  What is not known is whether he contacted anyone about it early in its existence, and that, if any, arrangements had, in fact, been made, and perhaps, executed. 

   Unfortunately, he took the details of the message with him to his grave. Peter Heywood died believing that Fletcher Christian had returned to England claiming to have seen him in Plymouth.  He could not confirm this fact, because the figure in the distance, upon being called upon, ran away into the darkness.  It would not have been in Christian's best interest, nor those left on Pitcairn, to have acknowledged the call.  What is possible is that Christian did not run away, but conversed with Heywood, and the story of running away was conjured up as a way of masking the even or offering it in a more-acceptable version.  It is even possible that Christian, upon returning to England, initiated the contact to develop the story and make further arrangements.

    In support of this contention, Bounty’s cutter strangely disappeared from Pitcairn, as well as coin that had been carried aboard Bounty.  It could have been used to "buy passage" on one of the British whaling vessels that periodically sailed past.  He left three children, Friday (whose name was later changed to Thursday), who died in Tahiti, Charles who died on Pitcairn, and Mary on Norfolk, not England.

 

Everett Shopp

 

   In the Spring of 1752, the influential family of a reputed Freemason since 1730, living in London, England, at Soho Square, Sir Addison Bales Shopp, a man of 52, added one more to the list of potential members with the birth of a boy named Everett Lynn Shopp.  The boy's formal birth date was April 15, 1752.  It would be assumed that a gentleman's son would follow in his father's footsteps, but not in this case.  All through Everett's childhood, in their family townhouse and young life in Cornwall, Plymouth and London, the taller-than-others male stressed travel and adventure by insisting upon taking "trips" that took him away from home for days, then weeks, then months, then years, then finally forever.  The social caste in which he lived, held nothing of enchantment for him, and as he later pointed out, "It was my family's lifestyle that permanently embedded my wanderlust."  He was successfully entered into Eton and was an excellent participant in Eton Fives, but this was not enough.  His tenure did not last long, since he was a young man of travel rather than of study.  To augment his universal approach to self-education, he talked his father into enlisting the services of tutors in the various subjects of the time and excelled at each of these sessions.  Eventually, he declared himself "graduated," and entered into the life of business and commerce. 

   Home was an enjoyable experience for all involved, and everyone got along rather well.  There was a steady traffic of people through the homes, because each family member had a following.  Everett, because of his continued traveling, was the only missing link on many occasions, but no one held it against him, because, when he was home, the personalities that had attached themselves to him during a given journey were most interesting and sometimes fascinating, particularly one man, the independent architect, John Nash, from whom Everett learned much about architecture, building and design, a prevailing interest of his.  In return, Everett encouraged Nash's independence and fed him profusely.  His friendship with Nash, and another contemporary architect, Sir John Soene, led to Everett's eventual construction of his own estate, Evenlee, on Shoppolis Islands. 

     Everett was quite close to his sister, Madelaine. who managed to talk him into various affairs and interests on the lady side.  He was always apologizing for something he did, which just served to amuse his amiable sister into planning more "dates."  Madge was two years older than he, being born in 1750.  After their mother passed away in 1790, at 60, she and her husband intended to join Everett on Shoppolis Islands, but her husband's untimely death in a carriage accident in late 1790, made her think twice.  She married again in 1805, and accepted the responsibility of her husband's one child, named Forest Dinsmore.  Her second husband, The Honorable Markham Dinsmore, an attorney in London, was not prone to island life, therefore she remained in England.  She and Everett corresponded moderately over the years, but never saw each other again.  This fact remained one of his greatest regrets.

     Everett made friends all over England, and surrounding countries, which put him in good stead regardless of many of the political storms that blew through the influential families of the world.  He fought in various conflicts with friends of other nations, and actually participated in a dual over a woman in the Spring of 1770.  The dual was somewhat influenced by the young Everett, because he arranged for the pistols to be empty of shot.  After the other man recovered from his wounded ego, the group retired to the local inn for a hearty breakfast which lasted into the wee hours of the next day.  His Second, Beauford Bland married Everett's sister a year later.  His opponent in the dual, Count Alexander Bressler of Darmstadt, became his best friend.  The young lady, the object of the dual, eventually married a homely preacher and became the large mother of eight.

     Everett was highly regarded as a business person and became quite wealthy and influential, in part, because of his father's feeble attempts to overload him with duties, which he deftly avoided by paying someone else to do his work.  Then, he could be off again.  He was many times at odds with his father over issues such as how family money was accumulated through trade during the French and Indian War, through slave trade involving the South Indies Company and other "interesting" commercial involvements during the Robert Walpole years.  When his father cut his funds to reign him in and "correct" his point of view, Everett, in his early twenties, informed his father that his end of the business had made him independent, and that if he wanted to control him, his efforts would fail.  His father was so impressed with this, he continued the funding, which served to make him even wealthier. 

     In 1775, he became interested in the Colonies, which he visited frequently.  He was pleased to have met with Benjamin Franklin, who introduced him to the finer sides of science, politics and venery.  He also enjoyed the company of Captain John Paul Jones, who once remarked that he liked Shopp enough to risk his friendship and meet him offshore ship-to-ship in a raging battle to the waterline; Shopp politely declined the offer.  Shopp was flattered at this unique compliment from so controversial and commanding a man as Jones.  Everett thought about this some time later when he was entertaining the idea of privateering. 

     Eventually, Everett had more money than he needed, so he began to concentrate on the sea and its adventures.  He signed on to one of his father's ships and went to sea.  By twenty eight, he was a master and owner of a ship, the Queen, an 800-ton Indiaman with 4 extended commercial voyages under her keel.  She was 13 years old at the time and was ready for retirement, but Master Shopp, put her in for a quick refit and was profiting again.

     There were many individuals he enjoyed who were not of his station.  This interesting man of commerce and adventure, idealism and philosophy enjoyed the company of the street people, the men of the docks and the women of the evening.  He was often seen in the company of those who would sooner cut your throat than look at you.  He was a formidable person, even in his favorite city, Philadelphia, because he could call together a motley selection of diverse individuals for any given occasion.  He was not a man to be underestimated, and the influential people of Philadelphia knew this.  He was also well connected in England and had the respect of those who conducted commerce and warfare on the seas. 

     In Philadelphia, just before sailing his company ship to the islands for the last time, before he purchased his own ship, he was asked to a home a few blocks from the waterfront and introduced to George Washington and his wife.  He accompanied them and his hosts, the Samuel Powels, via carriage, to a farm in the nearby countryside for a dinner and an overnight.  In the morning, the General and his wife were gone, and the hosting family saw him back to Philadelphia and his ship.  He had been asked a favor by the General, and he had agreed.  It was a year later, that the Captain made good on what was requested of him through the noted Mr. Lear.  Everett often stated through his life, that if a man could be like General Washington, he deserved to be king, and that if that man were General Washington, then he deserved to refuse the post.

    When it came to ladies in his life, he did manage to attend a number of events that proposed a selection of young ladies, but none took his fancy until he met Ms. Sophy Streatfield of Chittingstone Castle in the Weald of Kent during the summer of 1778.  For a time, there was a kindling of some warmth until she came in contact with Mr. Henry Thrale of Thrale's Brewery, with whom she became enamored.  The embers quickly sputtered out for Shopp, but not until young Everett had been to the Thrale's estate, Streatham, near Tooting.  At this beautiful home, Everett met the likes of Dr. Samuel Johnson, Sir Joshua Reynolds and the marvelous Mrs. Elizabeth Montagu.  His relationship with Sophy would remain friendly, and he would always attribute a certain amount of his social, political and commercial movement to her.  He continued to frequent the Anchor in Southwark, until his exit from English society in 1783.  He never formally became a Freemason, because he felt he had always been one.

     Being an avid participant in evening entertainment, he had the dubious pleasure of meeting the impressive ship's Master, William Bligh, late of Cook's Resolution, at the Cornish Arms public house in St. Tudy on the 14th of January of 1780.  Shopp, two years older than Bligh, and a popular figure in Cornwall, frequented the various inns in the area and spent many hours at "Margaret's."  He asked if Bligh had ever been to the popular port for sailors of the Royal Navy, and he said he hadn't.  Shopp suggested that he do so, and shook hands with the man.  He had no idea that in nine years, he would be walking a distant Pacific beach with a man who called himself Fletcher Christian, or that he would be sitting at dinner in New South Wales with the then Governor William Bligh and his family some time later.

     One of the more important parts of their discussions was about Joseph Banks and his methodologies.  Bligh mentioned a number of interesting instruments that were applied including a type of telescope for viewing the bottom of the sea and the paraphernalia necessary for fishing on coral reefs.  Bligh told him of the unusual striped sharks they had seen and more details on the types of fish that could be found.  He described many land features and more.  For this information, Shopp paid for the drinks they consumed. 

The Story

      In February of 1787,  Prime Minister Pitt informed the West India Committee that his government would sponsor an expedition to the South Pacific for breadfruit.  Son of William Pitt the Elder, Earl of Chatham, Prime Minister William Pitt was known for his tough policies against corruption, fiscal reform, shifting power toward the House of Commons and the union with Ireland.  The Tories and friends of George III helped him become prime minister.  As a result of these policies, among others, a ship called Bounty was purchased and tasked to the breadfruit mission. 

   His Majesty's Armed Vessel (HMAV) Bounty, formerly known as the Bethia, was a coastal trader that had been built in the realm of 1785 at Hull and was primarily used for coal carrying (collier).  She was a three-masted, full-rigged, bluff-bowed, spirited ship of a modest 215 tons purchased by the Navy Board on May 23, 1787.  Bethia was purchased for £1950 and, upon the suggestion of Sir Joseph Banks, was renamed Bounty.  Sir Joseph, an influential man of the times, was the naturalist who accompanied Captain James Cook on his first great voyage of discovery on board the Endeavour from 1768 to 1771.  He was also a great advocate of British settlement of New South Wales in Australia, which rendered this gentleman a important place in the history of Australia and Shoppolis Islands as well.

   Bounty was transferred to Deptford for refitting which included provisions for breadfruit maintenance and transport, her primary reason for being purchased.  In addition, her masts were shortened and her ballast reduced.  As an armed ship, she mounted four 4-pounders and ten swivel guns.  Bethia was found to have belonged to Duncan Campbell, the uncle of Bligh’s wife Elizabeth suggesting that Campbell’s influence may have played a role in the choice of Bligh as commander of the ship, but it was Banks who suggested it.  The Bounty was quite small being 90 feet 10 inches long with a beam of 24 feet 4 inches and a draft of 11 feet 4 inches. 

   She had no superstructures, therefore all accommodations and facilities were below deck creating a dark and wet atmosphere for the crew. Her three masts varied in height from 48 to 59 feet. There were three yards on the fore and mainmasts and two on the mizzenmast. The Bounty figurehead portrayed a woman in a riding habit.  Her crew and characteristics are provided at the end of this document in Table 1.  Table 2 provides the Polynesian women of the Bounty, and Table 3 provides the Polynesian men.  Table 4 provides members of the crew, who for one reason or another, never made first muster.  Table 5 summarizes story steps, in event order, by date.

    On June 8, 1787, the Bounty was successfully commissioned at a cost twice her original purchase price.  Lord Howe, who had promised to look after Bligh's promotion if the voyage went well, visited Bligh at Deptford and lightly suggested that Bligh take a cask of wine aboard at Teneriffe and mature it by circumnavigation for Joseph Banks. The ship left the River Thames on October 9, 1787 under the command of the river pilot, but at sea, suffered a delay off the Isle of Wight due to stormy conditions.  The weather was so angry that on the very first day a seaman fell from a yardarm but survived major injury. 

   On October the 15th, Bligh sent his family to Portsmouth for goodbyes.  There was some misery, since one of his daughters had smallpox.  Bligh reached Spithead by 4 November only to wait twenty days for Howe's final orders.  He became increasingly impatient, and on 28 November the ship's crew received two month's pay in advance to compensate.  Bligh feared he would be unable to get about Cape Horn in time because of the delay.  He was correct.  On Christmas Eve, the storm converted itself into a full gale but abated on the 25th. A celebration occurred on the ship for all hands to commemorate the holiday.

    The weather did not cooperate long, and the wind increased to full storm again.  On the 27th, the stern windows were breached under the weight of water resulting in the flooding of the main cabin and the loss of some navigation equipment.  On deck, the news was no better with the loss of seven hogsheads of beer and two casks of rum.  The Bounty finally found her sea legs after repairs at sea, and was, at last, underway.  She sailed south toward a supreme test of her stamina and that of her crew of 46 men. Captain Bligh would attempt to take the ship West around Cape Horn, a remarkable task under the best of circumstances.  Unfortunately his attempt proved futile. 

    Bounty crossed the Atlantic on a south-south-westerly course for Cape Horn.  After a five-day stop at Santa Cruz harbor, Tenerife Island, to take on water and additional supplies, the Bounty left port with some valued local wine.  The excitement of this addition soon dwindled when Captain Bligh cut the ship’s company’s allowance of bread by one third deciding to sail directly for Tahiti non-stop, westward.

   The ship crossed the Equator on her way to Cape Horn on February 7, 1788, and the usual ceremonial cruelties brought on those first crossing this line gave way to a more appropriate celebration.  Bligh not not allow ducking or the like and preferred tarring and shaving and other harmless but humiliating events to take place instead.  Officers had to pay forfeits of rum to the men and there was much dancing to the fiddle of Michael Bryne, the blind seaman Bligh had signed on to provide a backdrop to daily exercises, a practice he insisted upon.         

   The rest of the voyage to the Horn was somewhat uneventful, and contrary to Bligh's opinion, not enjoyable, as he seemed to feel it was.  During this time, an unusual event took place, one referred to as the Cheese Incident. This incident was complicated by the fact that Bligh was not only captain of the ship but also purser, a circumstance that confirmed The Admiralty's intent for Bligh to make a profit from being purser.  It appears that they had reduced his salary to the same degree assuming that he could make back, or better, by being purser.  It was not odd for a purser to make income this way, but it was unusual to have that person the Captain as well. 

   To ensure everything would be fair, all supplies were opened in the presence of the whole ship’s company, but this day would be different. When a casket of cheese was opened, two cheeses were found to be missing. Bligh, for some reason assumed that someone on board had stolen the cheese, and appeared to have a convenient lapse of memory.  Henry Hillbrant, an able seaman and cooper on the Bounty offered that the cheese had been sent to Bligh’s home as the result of orders given by John Samuel, the ship’s clerk and Bligh’s personal servant. The captain lost his temper and threatened to flog Hillbrant or anyone else for making such accusations.  The Cheese Incident provided only a preview of what was to come, but it did give evidence of Captain Bligh's approaches to situations, some common, some uncommon.

   After a fatiguing and futile effort to round the Horn, in the face of Westerly gales, eight crewman were injured, one of whom was the ship’s surgeon, Dr. Huggan; the other seven were seamen. Since there were only thirteen able-bodied seamen total to man the rigging, an attrition of this magnitude rendered the crew of only six men to handle sails impossible.  Under these conditions, with sails heavy and stiff with snow and ice, it became impossible to furl them. To avoid further injury and perhaps the loss of the ship, or at least the mission, the Captain turned the ship around offering congratulations for a job well tried.  There was no loss of life or serious injury, which the Captain accredited to a collective effort by all.  The Bounty arrived safely in Cape Town, on the southern tip of Africa, on May 24, 1788.

   During this leg, Bligh promoted Fletcher Christian to acting lieutenant which caused unrest among the crew.  There were others with more experience and age qualified for this, particularly John Fryer, appointed Sailing Master (and ostensibly executive officer to Bligh).  Those already in situation, appeared challenged by this preferential treatment. 

   A crewmember was flogged which was expected and understood.  Punishment on an English Navy ship was accepted in a manner most people would not understand.  In the seventeen months that Bligh was in command of the Bounty, he ordered eleven floggings for a total of two-hundred and twenty-nine lashes. The two dozen lashes that Matthew Quintal had to endure on March 11, 1788, for insolence and mutinous behavior toward sailing master, John Fryer, seemed to be accepted quietly. Many captains of the time would assigned Quintal an even stiffer punishment, and the crew knew it. 

   Oddly, some felt that many of Bligh's problems on his ship were the direct result of his leniency, not excessiveness, when it came to physical punishment.  Statistically Bligh was less of a tyrant than most of the Navy commanders of his time.  Bligh's humiliating words seemed to offer more harm to those around him than inflicting physical punishment.  This, of course, must be qualified by stating that in this time in history, a man’s honor was more important than his life.  Bligh used this knowledge like the cutting edge of a cutlass against regular crew as well as officers.  He seemed to make verbal-lashing episodes public, in the presence of others, which made matters worse.  To injury was added humiliation. 

   Bligh was also quite complimentary of the men at times, and and seemed quite gracious under certain circumstances.  He seemed to relish episodes where he displayed the kindness of a benevolent despot, a king, perhaps; it seemed to make him lordly and understanding.  His mood swings were becoming everyday events and taxed all parties, but the voyage continued with no loss of life, a fact Bligh continued to remain quite proud of. 

    The Bounty sailed eastward from Cape Horn to the Cape of Good Hope. There was a strong westerly wind which pushed Bounty to nine knots and a reputed ten, on occasion.  Even though things appeared to be relaxing, and spirits were high, there was a great deal of frustration over the fact that they were four months from England, but was still far from their Tahiti destination.  Bounty was leaking severely from the traumas of rounding the Horn causing the pumps to be manned the whole day around. 

    Table Mountain was sighted on May 22, and the next evening, the ship anchored in False Bay for extensive repairs. The panorama stretched out before them from Table Bay to False Bay and around the mountain to the Hout Bay Valley and Kommetjie. All aboard had a magnificent view across the Cape Flats to the mountains.  The Bounty had to be completely recaulked; the rigging and the sails overhauled, and the ship provisioned again.  It took all of  38 days of constant repair to be refitted for duty.

    Bounty put to sea on July 1, 1788 leaving False Bay far behind.  She followed an east-south-easterly course for Adventure Bay in Van Diemen’s Land. This turned out to be the longest period at sea for the ship bound for Tahiti, a distance of well over six-thousand miles.  Having had strong westerly winds most the the time, the lookout sighted St. Paul Island, a virtual dot on the horizon. Fifty-one days at sea, on August 20, 1788, the lookout sighted Mewstone Rock outside Adventure Bay in Van Diemen’s Land.  Again, Bligh's prowess as a navigator had proved itself.  Bligh ordered the ship wooded and watered in the bay and set part of the crew to planting fruit trees and vegetables for the use of aborigines as well as for future ships going that way.

    During this period, William Purcell, the Bounty's angular ship’s carpenter and also a warrant officer, had been ordered to assist with hoisting water into the hold but refused insolently because he felt his position was not to be applied in this manner.  If Purcell had been an ordinary seaman, he would have been flogged, and the matter would have put aside, but since he was a warrant officer, he could not be flogged without the authority of a court-martial, and Bligh felt that this would not be in the best interest of the voyage to put the man in irons until the ship returned to England where he could be tried. 

   A court martial, by its nature, should always be applied in a timely manner, and Bounty was not due back in England for another fifteen months.  It was also quite apparent that the loss of the ship's carpenter could be disastrous to the mission and the ship.  Bligh decided to "withhold provisions" from Purcell until he agreed to obey orders. Purcell did so immediately and corrected his conduct as well as demeanor, but unfortunately, as was typical of the laws of the sea and His Majesty's Navy, denial of provisions was not considered an appropriate punishment for mutinous behavior and everyone on board knew it.  This was another example of laxness that was leading to disrespect for authority, particularly Bligh's.

   The ship, newly refreshed and ready to sail, left Adventure Bay in Van Dieman’s Land on September 4, 1788, rounded the southern tip of New Zealand where Captain Bligh and his crew discovered thirteen small craggy islands.  In respect for the ship, the islands were called the Bounty Isles.  The Bounty sailed eastward along the Roaring Forties onto October 3, 1788 where the ship assumed a northerly course to take advantage of the south-east trades.  If correct, Mr. Bligh would bring his ship to westward to fetch Tahiti. 

   On Thursday, October 9, two most-unfortunate events developed, the first being the death of able-bodied seamen, James Valentine, who succumbed to blood poisoning.  This loss, brought on as a result of carelessness and inebriation on the part of the ship's surgeon, Thomas Huggan, proved completely unnecessary and avoidable.  The second, involved sailing master, John Fryer, who openly defied authority.  Fryer had been agitated since the promotion of  Christian to acting lieutenant in March 1788 during the attempt to round the Horn. Christian had not actually been promoted over Fryer but rather against the principle that masters were promoted by rate, not by rank, and were never expected to become acting lieutenants when at sea. The difference in their ages could also have contributed to this event: Fryer was thirty-three, Christian twenty-three. 

   Fryer was looked upon favorably by the crew, but Captain Bligh saw things in another light.  He took every opportunity to disparage officers who appeared to match his own levels of ability. To make his own statement and to give himself a degree of dignity, Fryer declined to dine with the other officers and the Captain.  On the ninth, he refused to sign the monthly expense books unless Bligh signed a certificate confirming the sailing master's competence and reliability. Bligh called the ship’s company on deck. Fryer came forward and signed, but only contingent upon his signing "in obedience" to the Captain's orders, and that this stipulation could be canceled at a later time. 

   Another instance of disobedience occurred ten days later when the gunner’s mate, John Mills, and the botanist’s assistant, William Brown, refused to dance for exercise, an order Bligh felt particularly close to.  He took pride in his innovation, and was not pleased with this refusal.  Mills and Brown both had their grog stopped, which at sea was considered tantamount to physical pain.

   On Saturday, October 25th, moving west, the lookout sighted the island of Mehetia, which lay some seventy miles to the east of Tahiti, which was sighted later in the evening.  On Sunday morning, fifty-two days out of Van Diemen’s Land, the ship dropped anchor in Matavai Bay.  A fleet of outrigger canoes filled with Tahitians celebrated their arrival.  The total distance the Bounty had sailed since leaving England on December 23, 1787, was 27,086 miles approximately 108 miles for each 24 hour period.  On New Year’s Day 1789, the ship was anchored in Toaroa Harbor.  The event was celebrated with a double ration of grog, but since it was a regular day at anchor, only two sailors got shore leave, a standard practice. 

   It is important to note that His Majesty's ship, Lady Penrhyn had anchored off Tahiti on 10 July, 1788, after being part of the movement of convicts, in this case, female, to Botany Bay.  She might have been the source of venereal disease contracted by islanders and passed off to Bounty crew members including Fletcher Christian.  The Lady Penrhyn crew most likely contracted their doses from the female prisoners.  The Bounty's log showed that the monthly check, in April of 1789 proved that quite a few had venereal diseases of various sorts, and made the VD list.  This is an important fact when factoring in the effect venereal disease had on the mind, and on those surviving the mutiny to come.

   Monday, January 5, only days after arriving, during the relief of the night watch at 4am, it was discovered that the ship's cutter was missing. Much to the captain's displeasure, it was found that three of the crew, Charles Churchill, the ship’s corporal, William Muspratt, able-bodied seaman and Bligh’s own steward, John Millward, had deserted. Before they had abandoned their ship, they had armed themselves.  Being loyal hosts, the Tahitians informed Bligh that the deserters had left the cutter in Matavai and were sailing a canoe toward Tetiaroa, an atoll thirty miles north of Tahiti.  Bligh arranged for a group of Tahitians to sail to Tetiaroa and capture the deserters by trickery, but the weather proved a substantial obstacle. 

   The deserters were captured toward the end of the month with Bligh confronting the three personally.  He was armed with a sword only.  Muspratt and Millward were subjected to four dozen lashes each, and Churchill to two dozen. Bligh's obvious leniency in the subjecting of punishment for desertion became another example of the vacillations of the captain.  There was no good reason for Charles Churchill, the actual leader of the band, to receive a lesser punishment.  In addition, midshipman Thomas Hayward, who was asleep on watch when the desertion took place, had earlier been sentenced to eleven weeks’ confinement in irons.  Mr. Bligh's inconsistency in delegating authority confused the members of the crew as well as the officers.

   During the night of February 5th, the anchor cable was found almost cut through.  If the cable had parted, the ship would either have drifted ashore or onto the reef.  Hayward had a special friend ashore, namely, a local chief’s brother, Vaetua, who wanted Hayward released. It was suspected that Vaetua had ordered the anchor cable cut, oddly to secure his friend's continued stay, but little evidence was available at the time to prove it.  During the event of Hayward's sentencing, Vaetua had been on board the ship standing directly behind Bligh.  He was armed with a war club, ready to crush the captain’s skull if he had ordered Hayward flogged.  The flogging did not take place, and the event wilted away, but Vaetua's hatred of Bligh remained in place.   

      As a result of her late arrival in Tahiti, the Bounty had missed the proper season for transplanting.  In that time most of the crew acquired Tahitian mistresses, and had become so enchanted with life on the islands that they were reluctant to leave.  Five months had passed in Tahiti, and the loading of the breadfruit plants began. Discipline had become almost nonexistent not only among the seamen but also among the officers.  On March 2, 1789, William Peckover, the gunner, had several items stolen from him by a Tahitian. If Peckover had been an ordinary seaman, he would have been flogged but, again, a warrant officer was involved, and again Bligh was in a quandary.  The Tahitian thief was caught and Bligh had him flogged with one hundred lashes after which the islander was put in irons as a reminder to his like of what would happen to them if they were found guilty of theft. Unfortunately the prisoner managed to escape while George Stewart, acting master’s mate, was on watch.  Again Bligh was exasperated, and again the punishment did not fit the crime. 

   On Saturday, April 4, 1789, the Bounty sailed out from Toaroa Harbor. The inventory aboard included:

• 1,015 breadfruit plants in 774 pots

• 39 tubs

• 24 boxes

• samples requested by Sir Joseph Banks

• 25 hogs

• breadfruit

• 17 goats

• chickens

• coconuts

• plantains

• bananas

• yams

• and more

   Once underway, the Bounty:

• visited Huahine in the Leeward Islands

• discovered Aitutaki but did not land

• arrived at Nomuka in the Tongan (Friendly) Islands on April 23rd to replace three plants and to wood and water the ship

   At Nomuka, Bligh placed Christian in command of a watering party with orders not to use any weapons, but to leave them in the boat. When Christian was confronted by hostile Tongan warriors who threatened him and his men with weapons of their own, he had to return to the boat, since he had no arms. In the confusion, a tool was stolen.  Bligh dressed down Christian in a disparaging manner creating a situation wherein a gentleman simply did not call another a coward.  Only two days later, on Monday, April 27, Bligh accused Christian, in front of the assembled ship’s company, of stealing coconuts.  He called him a thief publicly. This incident led, unfortunately to the mutiny.

   Christian’s first reaction was to get away from Bligh even if this called for extreme measures.  He attempted to construct a raft from a few spare spars and planks in order to leave the ship. He had also torn up his personal papers and given away his personal items and possessions.  His plan to leave the ship on a raft was certainly suicidal, and when Christian mentioned his plan to a friend, midshipman George Stewart, the man pleaded with him not to leave.  He proceeded then to mention that the crew was open to suggestions.

   On the night of April 17th, Christian had had very little sleep. There are some indications that he might have been drinking. When he was awakened for his 4am to 8am watch, he felt his head "was on fire."  In this state, he made the decision to take the ship. Coincidentally, the men on his watch were among the most discontented, so when he approached them, he found little difficulty in getting their attention and cooperation.  Christian and eleven of his shipmates took the ship and set Bligh and eighteen loyalists adrift in one of the ship's boats, namely, the ship's launch, 23 feet long and 6 feet 9 inches wide.  It was loaded with sails, ropes, 32 pounds of pork, 150 pounds of biscuit, a 28-gallon cask of water, and 6 quarts of wine.  She was so heavily laden that her gunwales cleared the water by only one hand, and many items which had been stowed in her had to be jettisoned. Bligh asked for arms, but the mutineers laughed at him. Finally four swords were thrown aboard.  Fortunately this was not totally a ruthless event without any consideration.  Two of the ship's boats were deemed unacceptable for Bligh and his loyalists.  They were provided with a much more capable boat.   

   While Bligh and his crew were beginning their incredible journey, Christian, now in command of the Bounty, was heading for Tubuai, an island 350 miles south of Tahiti.  Here Christian planned to found a settlement.  He was reasonably confident that Tubuai would not be visited for a long time.  In addition, it was not a friendly landing since it had poor anchorage and only one narrow passage through the reef. 

    Christian reached Tubuai and was met with a hostile reception, and as a result he fired at the attacking canoes that carried close to a thousand men. Eleven men and one woman were killed in the fire, but Christian did not relent.  He was determined to establish a colony on the island, but he found the land to be anything but to his liking.  He found rats, no pigs or goats, not even dogs. The Tubuaian women were not as accommodating as their Tahitian sisters, so Christian decided to sail to Tahiti to pick up women, pigs, goats, chickens and more.  Then, he would return.  They sailed on May 31, 1789. 

   Once back on Tahiti, Christian and his crew collected women, including Christian’s wife Mauatua.  Pigs, goats and chickens were collected for their intended use in the new colony on Tubuai. During the stay on Tahiti, Christian did not want to take any risks of his planned refuge becoming known to pursuers, so he forbad anyone to remain on the island.  He loaded the Bounty with:

• crew of 25 men

• 312 pigs

• 96 chickens

• 38 goats

• a bull and the cow left by Captain Cook in 1777

• assorted dogs

• 9 Tahitian men

• 8 boys

• 10 women

• 1 young girl

• collection of cats

• additional plants

   When leaving Matavai Bay the Bounty almost ran aground on Dolphin Bank, and during this event, managed to lose one of the ship’s anchors. They arrived Tubuai on June 23, 1789 without it.

   Christian now made two fatal mistakes. Even though the Tubuian chief, Tamatoa, had offered a piece of land to Christian, he refused it preferring a site to the east which belonged to a minor chief, Taaroatohoa. This decision led to a humiliation which Tamatoa could never forget, and from then on he was Christian’s sworn enemy. 

   Christian’s second mistake was to let the 312 pigs loose on the island. All the Tubuaians had beautiful gardens, and since they had no animals, none were fenced in.  The pigs began to root up the gardens, which led to further bad feelings.  Tamatoa and the third chief on the island, Tinarau, now formed an alliance against Christian and Taaroatohoa. When the damage became even worse, Taaroatohoa changed sides.  Now there would be no peace. A vote was taken to return to Tahiti.

    On September 17, after barely three months on Tubuai, Christian and his crew, together with their Tahitian companions and a few Tubuaians, left for Tahiti and anchored in Matavai on September 22. The nine mutineers and seven loyalists who wanted to remain on the island were let ashore while Christian and the eight mutineers who had cast their lot with him prepared to leave.  Christian sailed immediately when Mauatua, his wife, discovered a plot among the Tahitians to capture the Bounty.  As a result, Christian spent only sixteen hours on Tahiti.

    In the morning, the women sensed that the ship was outside the reef, and ran on deck.  Although the distance to the reef was a good mile, one woman jumped overboard and swam back but none of the others dared to try it.  Six of the women were considered unacceptable and were sent ashore in Moorea.  That left twelve women for the number of men aboard.  Unfortunately, three male Polynesian stowaways were discovered, and now Christian made a fateful mistake: instead of landing the stowaways on Moorea or some other island, he let them remain on board. Now, the numbers were not equitable to anyone.

    Christian was faced with the problem of where to look for his island of refuge. He first considered the Marquesas but decided against it, because the islands in the group were populated and too vulnerable to discovery. The experience on Tubuai had taught him an important lesson. He needed an island which was uninhabited, fertile, remote, and difficult of access.  Christian sailed westward discovering Rarotonga. He then sailed to the Lau group in the Fijis where he discovered the island Ono-i-Lau, then on to Tongatabu where he stayed for two days and traded with the natives for provisions.  Since Tongatabu was less than 100 miles distant from Tofua, the lost ship and its crew were now practically back to the place where the mutiny had taken place seven months earlier.  Around December 16th, Christian decided on Pitcairn as a promising possibility for a permanent settlement, but he wasn't certain where it was.

    Pitcairn was one of the most remote islands in the world. It lay in the middle of nowhere, 4,000 miles from Chile, and 3,300 from New Zealand. The closest inhabited island was Mangareva in the Gambier group, 306 miles to the north-west. Pitcairn seemed to be the fulfillment of Christian’s dreams, an island was reputed to meet all of his requirements: it was remote, difficult of access, lush with vegetation, and apparently uninhabited.  The last of the voyage, and the end of the story remains here.

 

* "This chronometer was in H.M. late ship the Bounty, at the time of the mutiny, and has been in Chili since the time of the arrival of the American ship that first touched at Pitcairns Island, after the mutineers settled themselves there. It was stolen from the American captain on the ship’s passage from Juan Fernandez to Valparaiso; and next made its appearance at Concepcion, where it was purchased for three doubloons by an old Spaniard by the name of Castillo, who kept it in his possession till his death, which happened lately at Santiago; when his family sent it to Capt. Herbert, to be conveyed to the British Museum. Capt. Herbert sent it to Mr. Mouat to be put in order, and from his relation I am enabled to give these particulars."......"The chronometer is six inches in diameter, with three dials on its face – one for hours, one for minutes, and one for seconds; with an outer silver case, made as the outer cases of pocket watches were sixty or seventy years ago; so that its appearance is that of a gigantic watch. . . ." excerpt from Captain R. A. Newman of HMS Sparrowhawk, 1840.  The general public did not become aware of the discovery until March 1810 when a report of it appeared in the English Quarterly Review (Bligh was still in New South Wales then). The extract of the logbook of the Topaz also appeared in the Sydney Gazette for October 27, 1810 (two days after Bligh arrived in England).

 

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TABLE 1: BOUNTY CREW AND PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

(which includes color coding of roles played in the mutiny itself)

46 members, average age: a bit over 24

• Blue indicates that the individual was a mutineer with Fletcher Christian and moved on after the mutiny to Pitcairn Island (these crewman are in the company of Mr. Christian at the time of scribing; Tahitians are not included in this listing; also Mr. Christian has not decided on Pitcairn or any other island yet)

• Green indicates crewman who was forced to remain on the Bounty but would have accompanied Captain Bligh if there had been room in the boat for him or his trade was not needed on the ship (these man were on the Bounty at the time of this scribing)

• Yellow indicates that crewman remained in Tahiti and did not leave the island with Fletcher Christian (since these men were dealt beyond Mr. Christian's knowledge, their fate was unknown at the time of this scribing)

• Orange indicates the person went willingly with Bligh (this list is complete because Mr. Christian was personally involved in the pressing of these crewmembers into the longboat with Captain Bligh)

• White indicates "other circumstances" which are described (Mr. Christian had first-hand knowledge of these fates)

• Average age of crew including officers: approximately 24 years old (this was determined by Mr. Christian, by surmise, at the time of the walk on the beach)

1. Fletcher Christian, Master's Mate - 24 years old, 5 feet 9 inches tall, blackish or very dark complexion, dark brown hair, strongly made; a star tattooed on his left breast, tattooed on his backside; his knees stand a little out, may be called rather bow-legged; subject to violent perspirations particularly in his hands, so that he soils anything he handles (by his own admission); from an unbroken line of twenty-five generations of aristocracy; on the VD list April, 1789; considered silly with women and easily besotted; reputed to have died on Pitcairn Island; he had two sons, Thursday October and Charles, before he was murdered on Massacre Day, September 20, 1793, and one daughter, Mary Anne, born after his death; could have transmitted family palsy like Parkinsons.

2. John Adams, Able-bodied Seaman (signed on the Bounty as Alexander Smith) - 22 years old, 5 feet 5 inches tall; brown complexion, brown hair, smallpox scars; tattooed, scar on right foot (last mutineer alive); son of a Thames lighterman. Edward Young, nephew of Captain Sir George Young; protégé of Sir Joseph Banks; was known to Peter Heywood earlier; died on Pitcairn Island

3. William Brown, Gardener, Assistant Botanist - aged 27 years, 5 feet 8 inches high, fair complexion, dark brown hair, strong made; a remarkable scar on one of his cheeks, which contracts the eye-lid, and runs down to his throat, occasioned by the king’s evil; is tattooed; on the VD list April, 1789; died on Pitcairn Island

4. Isaac Martin, Able-bodied Seaman - 30 years old, 5 feet, 11 inches tall; sallow complexion, short brown hair, raw-boned; star tattooed on his left breast; died on Pitcairn Island

5. William McCoy, Able-bodied Seaman - 25 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall, fair complexion, light brown hair, strong made; a scar where he has been stabbed in the belly, and a small scar under his chin; tattooed in different parts of his body; died on Pitcairn Island

6. John Mills, Gunner's Mate - 40 years old, 5 feet 10 inches tall, fair complexion, light brown hair, strong made, and raw boned; scar on his right arm-pit; died on Pitcairn Island

7. Matthew Quintal, Able-bodied Seaman - 21 years old, 5 feet 5 inches tall, fair complexion, light brown hair, strong made; very much tattooed; on the VD list April, 1789; died on Pitcairn Island

8. Edward Young, Acting Midshipman - 22 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall; dark complexion and rather a bad look; dark-brown hair; strong made; lost several of front teeth, those that remain are all rotten; small mole on the left side of the throat; right arm tattooed with a heart and dart complete with "E.Y." underneath, and the day of the year 1788 or 1789; died on Pitcairn Island

9. John Williams, Able-bodied Seaman - 25 years old, 5 feet 5 inches tall, dark complexion, black hair, slender made; has a scar on the back part of his head; tattooed; native of Guernsey; spoke French; died on Pitcairn Island

10. Peter Heywood, Acting Midshipman - born in Douglas on the Isle of Man on June 6, 1772; 16 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall, fair complexion, light-brown hair, well proportioned; tattooed, and on the right leg is tattooed the Legs of Man, as the impression on that coin is; young; speaks with the Isle of Man accent; his father had been steward of the Duke of Atholl and Deemster of the Isle of Man, and his uncle was Sir Thomas Pasley in the navy; he had his appointment to Bounty procured by Richard Betham, Captain Bligh's father-in-law; on the VD list April, 1789; pardoned of mutiny

11. Michael Byrne, Able-bodied Seaman Fiddler - 28 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall; fair complexion; Irishman signed on specifically because of his musical abilities and prowess with the fiddle; two-thirds blind; on the VD list April, 1789; acquitted of mutiny

12. Joseph Coleman, Armorer - 40 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall; fair complexion, gray hair, strong made, a heart tattooed on one arm; acquitted of mutiny

13. Thomas McIntosh, Carpenter - 28 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall; fair complexion, light-brown hair, slender made; pitted by smallpox; acquitted of mutiny

14. Charles Norman, Carpenter's Mate - 26 years old, 5 feet 9 inches tall; fair complexion, light-brown hair, slender made; pitted by smallpox; on the VD list April, 1789; acquitted of mutiny

15. Charles Churchill, Master-at-Arms, Ship's Corporal - 30 years old, 5 feet 10 inches high; fair complexion, short light-brown hair; bald headed, strong made; forefinger on his left hand crooked; hands shows the mark of severe scald; tattooed in several parts of the body

16. Thomas Burkett, Able-bodied Seaman - 26 years old, 5 feet 9 inches tall; fair complexion; marked with smallpox scars; brown hair, slender and very tattooed; on the VD list April, 1789; hanged for mutiny on board HMS Brunswick

17. Thomas Ellison, Able-bodied Seaman, Boy - 17 years old, 5 feet 3 inches tall; fair complexion, dark hair, strong made; has his name tattooed under his right arm, and dated "October 25, 1788"; considered a favored person by Duncan Campbell; hanged for mutiny on board HMS Brunswick

18. Henry Hillbrant, Able-bodied Seaman, Cooper - 25 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall; fair complexion, sandy hair, very strong made; left arm shorter than the right, having been broke; Hanovarian; speaks bad English; tattooed in several places; on the VD list April, 1789; drowned HMS Pandora

19. John Millward, Able-bodied Seaman - 22 years old, 5 feet 5 inches tall; brown complexion; dark hair, strong made; tattooed under the pit of the stomach; hanged for mutiny on board HMS Brunswick

20. William Muspratt, Able-bodied Seaman, Tailor & Cook's Assistant - 30 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall; dark complexion, brown hair, slender made; black beard under scarred chin; tattooed; on the VD list April, 1789; pardoned of mutiny

21. Richard Skinner, Able-bodied Seaman, Barber - 22 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall; fair complexion, light-brown hair, very well made; scars on both ankles and on right shin; tattooed; on the VD list April, 1789; drowned HMS Pandora

22. George Stewart, Acting Midshipman - 23 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall; good complexion, dark hair, slender made, narrow-chested and long-necked; star left breast tattoo a star; also one on his left arm, on which likewise is tattooed heart with darts; tattooed on backside; very small features; drowned aboard HMS Pandora

23. John Sumner, Able-bodied Seaman - 24 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall; fair complexion, brown hair; slender made; scar on the left cheek and tattooed; drowned HMS Pandora

24. Lieutenant William Bligh, Captain - 33 years old; born St. Tudy, Cornwall; marine history:

    1. July 1, 1762 Captain’s Servant: HMS Monmouth

    2. July 27, 1770 AB: HMS Hunter

    3. Feb 5, 1771 Midshipman: HMS Hunger

    4. Sep 22, 1771 Midshipman: HMS Crescent

    5. Sep 2, 1774 AB: HMS Ranger

    6. Sep 30, 1775 Midshipman: HMS Ranger

    7. Mar 20, 1776 Master: HMS Resolution

    8. Feb 14, 1781 Master: HMS Belle Poule

    9. Oct 5, 1781 Lieutenant: HMS Berwick

    10. Jan 1, 1782 Lieutenant: HMS Princess Amelia

    11. Mar 20, 1782 Lieutenant: HMS Cambridge

    12. Jan 14, 1783 Half-Pay Lieutenant, during which time, Bligh meets Captain Shopp in St. Tudy

    13. Aug 16, 1787 Commanding Lieutenant: HMS Bounty

    14. Nov 14, 1790 Captain: HMS Falcon (sloop)

    15. Dec 15, 1790 Captain: HMS Medea

    16. Jan 8, 1791 Half-Pay Captain

    17. Apr 16, 1791 Captain: HMS Providence

    18. Sep 7, 1793 Half-Pay Captain

    19. Apr 30, 1795 Captain: HMS Calcutta

    20. Jan 7, 1796 Captain: HMS Director

    21. Jul 3, 1800 Half-Pay Captain

    22. Mar 13, 1801 Captain: HMS Glatton

    23. Apr 12, 1810 Captain: HMS Monarch

    24. May 8, 1801 Captain: HMS Irresistible

    25. May 28, 1802 Half-Pay Captain

    26. May 2, 1804 Captain: HMS Warrior

    27. Apr 30, 1805 Half-Pay Captain

    28. May 24, 1805 Governor of New South Wales

    29. Sep 27, 1805 Commander: HMS Porpoise

    30. Jan 31, 1808 Commodore: HMS Porpoise

    31. Apr 3, 1810 Commodore: HMS Hindostan

    32. Jul 31 1810 Half-Pay Rear Admiral

    33. Jun 4, 1814 Half-Pay Vice Admiral

25. John Fryer, Sailing Master - born at Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk on August 15, 1752; two years older than Bligh; arrived with others in England and went to visit a distant relative of Fletcher and Edward Christian, John Christian at No. 10 Strand, an address close to Duncan Campbell's Adelphi address

26. William Elphinstone, Master's Mate - 36 year old Scotsman; died in Batavia of fever

27. Thomas Hayward, Midshipman - born in Hackney and was twenty seven years old

28. John Hallett, Midshipman - born in London and was only fifteen years old; brother of Anne Hallet, a friend of Bligh's wife, Elizabeth; his father, John Hallett of Hythe, near Southampton, on 25 August wrote to Sir Joseph Banks thanking him for procuring his son's appointment to the Bounty.

29. William Cole, Boatswain - no description is available; on the VD list April, 1789; ex-HMS Alecto

30. Thomas Hall, Able-bodied Seaman, Ship's Cook - born in Durham and was thirty-eight years old; died Batavia of fever

31. Lawrence Lebogue, Sailmaker - aged 40; one of the oldest men in the crew; on the VD list April, 1789

32. Robert Lamb, Able-bodied Seaman, Butcher - born in London and was twenty-one years old; on the VD list; died Batavia of fever

33. Thomas Ledward, Surgeon's Mate - (no information available)

34. Peter Linkletter, Quartermaster - born in Shetland; 30 years old; died in Batavia of fever

35. William Peckover, Gunner - (no description); had been gunner on Captain Cook's Endeavor; ex-HMS Warspite

36. John Norton, Quartermaster - born in Liverpool and 34 years old; on the VD list April, 1789; killed on Tofua

37. David Nelson, Botanist - (no description); died Kupang of fever

38. William Purcell, Carpenter - (no description); on the VD list April, 1789

39. George Simpson, Quartermaster's Mate - born in Kendal, Westmorland; 27 years old

40. John Samuel, Clerk and Steward -  (no description)

41. John Smith, Able-bodied Seaman, Commander's Servant - 36 years old; born in Sterling; on the VD list April, 1789

42. Robert Tinkler, Able-bodied Seaman, Acting midshipman - 17 years old; born at Wells-next-the-Sea; Fryer's brother-in-law

43. James Morrison, Boatswain's Mate - 28 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall; sallow complexion; long black hair; slender made; did not have use of the first joint of the forefinger of the right hand; tattooed with star under his left breast and a garter round his left leg, with the motto honi soit qui mal y pense; wounded in one of his arms with a musket ball; stayed on ship to retake Bounty when opportunity arose; it never did; pardoned of mutiny

44. Thomas Huggan, Surgeon - died on Tahiti December 9, 1788 of heart attack brought on by intoxication

45. Matthew Thompson, Able-bodied Seaman - 40 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall; very dark complexion, short black hair; slender made; lost joint of the big toe of right foot; tattooed; killed on Tahiti

46. James Valentine Able-bodied Seaman - born in Montrose and was 28 years old; died of infection in 1788

TABLE 2:  THE TAHITIAN WOMEN

1. Faahotu, also known as Fasto, wife/companion of John Williams - led to the warfare that resulted in the deaths of nearly all the Pitcairn settlers; suspected causes of death include:  a swelling of the neck, a fall from a cliff while gathering bird's eggs resulting in the taking of Toofaiti, otherwise known as Nancy, by Williams; bore no children to anyone.

2. Maimiti, also known as Isabella, wife/companion of Fletcher Christian - reputed daughter of a Tahitian chief; tall, perhaps 6 feet;  older rendering her more likely to accept one many only, possibly mid-thirties, therefore mature by island standards; wife to Christian; alleged to have witnessed her husband's death; officially married on Tahiti in the custom of her people; remembered Captain Cook and spoke of him; remembered Heywood, in particular, which brings the incident of Heywood supposedly seeing Christian in Plymouth after the mutiny into a new light; some considered her children to be mentally deficient; had one child with a club foot; died in an island epidemic in her 90s; bore Christian two sons, Thursday October and Charles, before he was murdered on Massacre Day, September 20, 1793, and one daughter, Mary Anne, born after his death.

3. Mareva, also known as Moetua - possibly kidnapped close to the time Bounty left Tahiti; wife/companion, to Tahitians, Manarii, Teimua, and Niau who were later killed; subsequently moved, with Tinafanaea, into home of Vahineatu and John Adams; died sometime between 1808 and 1814; had no children.

4. Obuarei, wife/companion of John Adams as the result of an apparent shipboard trade with Issac Martin for Teehuteaunua, also known as Jenny - died in a fall gathering bird's eggs; had no children.

5. Taio, also known as Mary, wife/companion of William McCoy - after his death, moved in with Adams and lived many years with him.

6. Teatuahitea, wife/companion of William Brown - died of dropsy before 1814; no descendants

7. Teehuteaunua, also known as Jenny, wife/companion of Isaac Martin - during Bounty's return to Tahiti, dedicated herself to Adams and was much of the reason for his decision to back the mutiny; changed her allegience to Martin because of Adam's wandering eye toward Tubaian women; headstrong and emotional woman; childless, homesick; leader of the attempt by the women to abandon the island; involved personally in the battles and conspiracies that plagued the colony; left Pitcairn for Tahiti in 1817 on the Sultan; bemoaned the fate of her homeland to traders and fortune hunters and disease; died of one of the imported sicknesses.

8. Teraura, also known as Susannah, wife/companion of Edward Young - probably born on Moorea, an island adjacent to Tahiti; may have been the daughter of a chief of some prominence; uncertainty as to whether she was one of the Polynesian women kidnapped by Christian and his crew when they left Tahiti in 1790; 15 at the time; was the youngest of the women; fiercely loyal to Young, her first partner; short, petite, good looks; center of storms of intrigue;  that encompassed Pitcairn; after death of five mutineers, Timoa tried to attract her, but, in turn, was killed by Menealee; when surviving mutineers conspired to kill remaining Polynesians, she beheaded Tetahiti while he was asleep with William Brown's widow; remained with Young until his death in 1800; had no children by him even though Young, a confirmed polygamist, fathered seven children with the widows of Fletcher Christian well as that of John Williams; did have a child with the infamous Quintal, who was killed by Adams and Young as a result of jealousy; at 30, married Fletcher Christian's first born, Thursday October Christian, then 15; had seven children with him; during the ill-fated move to Tahiti in 1831, Thursday died, leaving her a widow once more; lived to the age of 75, dying in 1850; outlived other survivor, Miamiti, by nine years; would cut locks of her hair and present the prize to visiting sailors; witnessed the first celebration of Bounty Day in 1850 (burning of the ship in effigy).

9. Tevarua, also known as Sarah, wife/companion of Matthew Quintal - the most abused of the women; lost an ear in a Quintal rage; harshly faithful to him; fell from a precipice in search of food; died soon after Quintal found that Teraura was pregnant with his child.

10. Tinafanaea, also known as Nanai, wife/companion of Titahiti and Oha - may have been from Tubuai; most likely joined voluntarily when the Bounty sailed from Tahiti for the last time; shared as a wife/companion by the two Tubuaians, Titahiti and Oha; reputed to be Titahiti's wife, but that he shared her with Oha; when Obuarei died towards the end of the first year on Pitcairn, she was given to Adams; swapping and willing women proved unacceptable to the Tubuaian men and all that Tararo, in particulary could tolerate; outrage set off the sequence of killing events that eliminated most of the men on the island; stayed in Adams' household even when he took Vahineatua as his wife/companion; died sometime between the visit of the Topaz in 1808 and the Briton and Tagus visits of 1814; left no descendants.

11. Toofaiti, also known as Nancy, wife/companion of Tararo - originally coupled with Tararo; won by drawing lots; sang the warning when she heard of the original plot to kill the white men.

12. Vahineatua, also known as Prudence, wife/companion of John Mills - arrived on Pitcairn as wife/companion of Mills to whom she was very attached; moved into the Adams household when Mills was murdered; insisted on being the one to seduce Tetahiti in order that he could be taken off guard and murdered; killed being pierced in her bowels when she found she was pregnant.

13. Sully, infant that was included in the group; daughter of Teio and an unnamed Tahitian man; ten months old on arrival at Pitcairn; ferried ashore from the Bounty in a barrel; grew up to marry Fletcher Christian’s second son, Charles, in 1810; bore him eight children: Fletcher, Edward, Charles Jr., Isaac, Sarah, Maria, Mary and Margaret; died March 7, 1826, at 36 of unknown causes.

TABLE 3:  THE POLYNESIAN MEN

1. Manarii - one of three Tahitian men who joined Christian and his fellow mutineers in their quest for an island; had to share Mareva; when the two Tubuaians and the man from Raiatea conspired to kill the mutineers at the end of the first year on the island, Manarii participated in killing two of them; on Massacre Day, September 20, 1793, it was he who killed Brown after Teimua had tried to save the gardener’s life by shooting at him with a powder charge only and telling him to pretend to be dead; Brown moved, and Manarii clubbed him to death; shot Teimua to death when the he was accompanying Teraura’s singing on his nose flute; ran to the mountains and joined Quintal and McCoy who were still in hiding, fearing for their lives; quarrel arose between them; killed by Quintal and McCoy; left no children.

2. Teimua - one of the three Tahitian men who accompanied Christian; had to share Mareva with the other two Tahitians; participated in the murders of two of conspirators; on Massacre Day, September 20, 1793, it was he who tried to save Brown’s life by shooting at him only with a powder charge and telling him to play dead; Brown moved too soon and was beaten to death by Manarii; shot to death by Manarii who was probably jealous; left no children.

3. Niau - one of the three Tahitian men who accompanied Christian and the other mutineers to Pitcairn; reputed to have been the youngest of the six Polynesians; had to share Mareva with the two other Tahitians; participated in the murders of Tararo and Oha; before Massacre Day, September 20, 1793, Niau and Teimua had stolen muskets and hidden them in the hills; after the five mutineers had been killed, Edward Young murdered Niau in cold blood; left no offspring.

4. Titahiti - from Tubuai; reputed to have been stowaway allowed to stay aboard; youngest brother of Ta’aroatohoa, the chief of Natieva; followed Christian and his men to Tahiti where he changed his name to Titahiti; shared Tinafanaea (who may also have been from Tubuai) with his compatriot Oha until she was given, by the mutineers, to Adams whose wife/companion had died within a year of the arrival; one of the three Polynesians who conspired to kill the mutineers towards the end of the first year on the island; mutineers found out about the plot through the women and sent the three Tahitians to kill the conspirators; two were killed; Titahiti surrendered and as a result, lived on the plantation of Isaac Martin as a virtual slave; on Massacre Day, Titahiti borrowed a musket from Martin under the pretext that he was going to shoot a pig for supper, then joined Teimua and Niau who had stolen some muskets when they fled to the mountains; killed by Young’s wife/companion Teraura as an act of revenge; left no children.

5. Oha - from Tubuai; reputed to have been stowaway allowed to stay aboard; Titahiti’s companion; both joined Christian and his men; shared Tinafanaea; when Adams’ wife/companion died, the mutineers gave Tinafanaea to him which resulted in a conspiracy between the two Tubuaians and Tararo, the Raiatean whose wife/companion had also been given away, to kill the mutineers; the women betrayed this plan to the white men who sent out the three Tahitians with orders to kill the conspirators; Oha and Tararo were killed, Titahiti surrendered; left no children.

6. Tararo - from Raiatea; reputed to have been stowaway allowed to stay aboard; may have been a chief; in Tahiti when Christian sailed and he decided to join; was only Polynesian who had his own wife/companion, Toofaiti who was also from the Leeward Islands; upon the death of Williams’ wife/companion , the mutineers decided gave Toofaiti to him which enraged Tararo; the wife/companion shared by the Tubuaians Titahiti and Oha had also been given away causing the three to devise a plan to kill the mutineers; their mistake: confiding their scheme to some of the women who informed the mutineers;. The latter sent the three Tahitians on the island, armed with muskets, to kill the conspirators; was the first one killed; left no children.

TABLE 4:  CREW NOT MEETING FIRST MUSTER

1. PORTMAN, Michael AB - Discharged - no further information available

2. BROWN, William AB - age 23 - Transferred - not the same William Brown that sailed with the Bounty and was one of the first crewmembers assigned by Sir Joseph Banks on behalf of the Admiralty

3. DOUGLAS, Dunbar (AB) - Thomas Douglas, or Thomas Hamilton-Douglas, fourth Earl Selkirk, of St Mary's Isle, a friend of Richard Betham on the Isle of Man, complained on 14 September of the complement of Bounty, since Bligh had refused to include his son, Dunbar Douglas.  Bligh told Selkirk that Lord Howe had fixed the complement of the ship, and there was nothing further to do. Richard Betham, Bligh's father-in-law also desired him to take out Dunbar Douglas, and the fellow had just arrived from the West Indies in time to go out. The result was that Dunbar Douglas was "transferred" to another ship.

4. ARMSTRONG, George, AB - age 35 - Deserted - no further information available

5. BARCLAY, Robert, AB - age 24 - Deserted - no further information available

6. BELL, William, AB - age 21 - Deserted - no further information available

7. CHARLTON, John, AB - age 23 - Deserted - no further information available

8. COOPER, John, AB - age 28 - Deserted - no further information available

9. DODS, Luke, AB - age 20 - Deserted - no further information available

10. DUTTON, Samuel, AB - age 28 - Deserted - no further information available

11. HUDSON, William, AB - age 24 - Deserted - no further information available

12. JOHNSTON, Alexander, AB - Deserted - no further information available

13. KARNEY, James, AB - age 27 - Deserted - no further information available

14. McTAGGERT, John, AB - Deserted - no further information available

15. PAGE, Charles, AB - age 19 - Deserted - no further information available

16. RAY, William, AB - age 17 - Deserted - no further information available

17. SWANN, John, AB - age 25 - Deserted - no further information available

18. TYRE, Alexander, AB - age 23 - Deserted - no further information available

TABLE 5: Numbered Events

1. August 16, 1787 Bligh appointed commander

2. December 23, 1787 Sails from Spithead

3. March 23, 1788 encounters heavy gales off Cape Horn

4. April 22, 1788 Sets course for Cape of Good Hope

5. May 23, 1788 Anchors in False Bay

6. July 1, 1788 Sails from False Bay

7. August 20, 1788 Anchors in Adventure Bay

8. September 4, 1788 Sails from Adventure Bay

9. October 9, 1788 James Valentine dies

10. October 26, 1788 Anchors in Matavai Bay

11. November 15, 1788 Gathering of breadfruit completed

12. December 9, 1788 Thomas Huggan dies

13. April 4, 1789 Sails from Matavai Bay

14. April 11, 1789 Aitutaki discovered

15. April 22, 1789 Arrives at Nomuka

16. April 28, 1789 Christian assumes command

17. May 24, 1789 Arrives at Tubuai

18. May 31, 1789 Sails from Tubua

19. June 6, 1789 Anchors in Matavai Bay

20. June 16, 1789 Sails from Matavai Bay

21. June 23, 1789 Arrives at Tubuai

22. September 17, 1789 Sails from Tubuai

23. September 22, 1789 Anchors in Matavai Bay

24. September 23, 1789 Sails from Matavai Bay

25. October - December, 1789 Rarotonga discovered; sailed to Lau group in the Fijis then to Tongatabu

26. December 12, 1789 Arrives at Shoppolis Islands

27. December 16, 1789 Sails for Pitcairn

  

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The Captain Shopp Narrative

 

Updated Version of Actual Document

The First Person is that of Captain Everett Shopp

 

    I am writing about the happenstances of the twelfth of December in the year seventeen hundred and eighty nine.  It is a clear, superb day for any event as it was on that day, when I walked the beach with a man named Fletcher Christian, of the ship, Bounty, recently anchored and rendered safe and secure in our harbor.  Herein, I convey a most extraordinary meeting, one that I am struck considerably by its aspect, its relative magnitude to our times and expressions of conduct on the high seas, and our obligation to provide to ourselves and to our parties, an example of leadership and responsibility.  Since that extraordinary day contained content of such gravity, and composed so interesting an encounter, involving a person of such unusual character, I am subject to recollections of indelible press.  I have given myself no time to reflect heavily on the occurrences of that day in order not to alter the truths to satisfy my own set of values, those constructed on years of command and practice.  As in any value, its worth must be measured by those to whom value is important, not on those who see no value in the commodity itself.  Gold is nothing to a hungry man.  It is with modesty and care that I convey these most critical events and recollections in a manner that provides fairness and balance to the situation, as conveyed to me personally. These are all but ordinary and common.

    It is about noon, as the sun passes the yardarm, now branches on our little island, our home and sanctuary, so recently occupied by Bounty, a sturdy ship by her appearance.  I have refrained for boarding her or having my steads board her for fear of contamination in either quarter, from her to us, or from us to her.  She has occupants aboard, and they comprise woman and men, islanders and original ship's party.  Her original commander, a Captain William Bligh, is no longer with his ship, having been relieved of his command under extenuating circumstances, while the ship was at sea.  This is called mutiny no matter the reason or cause, yet I hesitate to condemn anyone based on stories, since Mr. Bligh is not here to provide an account of his own.  It would be my pleasure to meet with this gentleman, assuming he has not been claimed by the sea.  His circumstances, as conveyed to me by Mr. Christian, would suggest his chances of survival minimal.  Since it is reputed that he was with Captain Cook on the Endeavor, of which I am familiar, I would assume he has a chance if God is with him and the sea is kind.  

    I recall having met a man of his description and name in St. Tudy, some time ago, and I am sure the Captain of the Bounty and this man are one in the same, but I cannot recall for sure, since we imbibed some pints of beer and passed our times in relative conflict, namely, finding ourselves not in a cooperative arrangement.  If the two men are one in the same, of Cornwall, and one of the Endeavor, I find it odd that they would not be the same.  Mr. Christian was not named at that time, nor was there any mention of the Bounty.  I understand from my companion on the beach, that all these occurrences happened after our chance encounter.  I found the man in St. Tudy, to be remarkably astute, educated and fully found on the workings of ships and seas on which they sail.  I found him lightly pompous, and he was not enchanted with his then station of temporary unemployment.  It is difficult to walk on land when ones heart is at sea.  I know of such things.

    The Bounty arrived in a manner that was peaceful, and we mustered all shore parties in the event that our assessment of her purposes and intentions were in error.  She lay for a time, and a longboat was issued.  The approach was awkward, and it became early apparent that the crew of the boat were not practiced in their art.  The man at the stern was not dressed for the occasion considering the amount of time he had to prepare for coming ashore.  Members of the current watch occupied the beach and indicated, by their presence, the preferred landing.  The watch comprised four, as was our usual practice, with the addition of the Island's translator.

Able-bodied Seaman (AB), Gun Crewman, Gary Link Gareth

Able-bodied Seaman (AB), Gun Crewman, Peter Gennest

Able-bodied Seaman (AB), Gun Crewman, Benjamin Roslin

Able-bodied Seaman (AB), Gun Crewman, Odin Russel

Ship's Translator, Tugdual Turiau

     It was a polite landing, with a single man coming forward, while the others, oars high, waited at the water's edge.  The officer remained outside the reach of a sword, and, hands at his side, began conveying information to Peter Gennest, the tallest and most impressive of our lot.  He remained stiff and unmoved.  He turned and left the group, walking purposefully to my location in a nearby clearing.  He told me that the ship was Her Majesty's Armed Vessel Bounty, recently of the Islands and vicinity.  She was seeking shelter and supplies to continue her voyage.  The captain was a Mister Fletcher Christian, and he was requesting to talk with an officer or official over arrangements.  He was offering goods from the ship in return for addition provisions.  Bounty was requesting only a few days; repairs in order, were slight, and some materials would be appreciated.  I looked toward the beach.  Mr. Christian had not moved, nor had his crew.  Their patience was admirable and appropriate.

    The lack of uniform still caused me concern, and I found the casual appearance and ragged boatmanship distracting, and I, after some thought, sent Mr. Gennest back to inquire as to the condition of the ship's company considering her title.  He returned and seemed concerned.  He was not, by nature, a talkative man, and he was not affected by unpredicted circumstances, but his obvious agitation was disconcerting.  He conveyed to me that the officer on the beach was not the original captain, and that the captain had been replaced by his own person and his selected crewmembers.  I understood why Mr. Gennest was concerned.

    I believed that at that moment, we were faced with pirates or mutineers, regardless of their peaceful and obvious stance.  Either type of crew would preclude the probability of chase, and we, of our new island, were not prepared for a conflict of any kind.  I decided that I would assume the role held by Mr. Gennest, and requested that he accompany me back to the beach as my attendant.  He seemed relieved.

    As I made my way down the beach, I noticed the captain turn his head but not his body.  He knew how to propose himself.  Any unpredicted movement or any action that could be interpreted as hostile, could be answered with firm retribution.  Perhaps, he was at a great disadvantage of some sort.  I let my attention fall on the deck of the ship, close enough to identify women in island dress.  Was she a transport?

    I was impressed with Mr. Christian's steady gaze, and I found no challenge or fear in his eyes.  He was a sturdy man, almost of color, and he was sweating profusely.  I thought him in danger of collapse, but he endured.  I introduced myself, and he seemed relieved, since his study of the nearby Prize Mary, and her impressive size seemed to lose some its impact.  He seemed to relax.  He put out his hand, for the first time, and introduced himself.  This, he did, in a most interesting manner, by including a long list of information, from a mutiny to the number of people aboard his ship and their identities.  I had no further questions at the moment and did not return the handshake.  He withdrew his hand easily. 

    He stated quickly that he would like to send his boat back to the ship, and that he would remain, if that was appropriate.  I could see no reason to refuse this request, and so granted it.  I instructed Mr. Roslin to work with Mr. Christian for a short time to arrange for a boat to be launched.  I authorized this gentleman to make the proper arrangements for accommodation but not to board the ship.  I gave orders to Mr. Russel to meet with the Prize Mary watch to ensure her undivided attention to the period of exchange.  I notified Mr. Gareth that he and Mister Gannest to remain at the shore point to ensure proper exchange of goods and services.  I did not invite any of the Bounty's party to land.  Mr. Christian did not hazard a request.  He remained a polite distance away, until I motioned for him to come forward.  I asked if he would care for any refreshment, and he declined the offer.  I requested that Petty Officer, Clerk, Shallister Bolsterome be summoned to record the happenings in the shore log.  He returned shortly with a small group carrying refreshment and food.  At first Mr. Christian maintained his distance, then slowly moved to the group.  He was obviously a person of refinement; he was no sea rogue, whether a mutineer or not.  

    Christian was a nervous man, and he seemed like a horse facing a field.  The line of sand before us seemed to call him.  Without further word, his eyes told me we should walk a bit.  If this man was what he said he was, namely a mutineer, I was interested to know more, but at the same time, I felt a loathing that I could not chase away.  My innate curiosity caused me to indicate that we should walk the beach for a distance.  He seemed relieved, but did not begin the conversation we were about to have.  I was not certain how this interlude would transpire, and I began a slow walk.  He fell in along side me and matched me step-for-step, even though he was considerably shorter, and the sand was soft.  Mister Bolsterome, not particularly fleet of foot, moved along with some difficulty and balanced his writing instrument and paper awkwardly.  I tried to make his pain less distracting, and soon, the three of us were synchronized in a manner unlike aboard ship and unlike ashore, but our sense of humor seemed ready to apply.

    There was short conversation about our islands and his remark about the Bounty being "guided in" seemed quite interesting to him, and after a moment, interesting to me, too.  He following this by mentioning that considering the Bounty's circumstances, being guided into a port could have mixed consequences and causes.  I said nothing, and let the man take his lead.  He told me that he would rather explain the circumstances of Bounty's change of command in order to establish an understanding between us.  I had no objection.  He relayed the events in a remarkably short time considering the complexities involved.  

    He began by telling of Captain William Bligh's appointment as commander of the Bounty in 1787 and their sailing from Spithead in December.  He described the gales of Cape Horn and the turn to Good Hope.  He seemed almost adventurous in his description of their stay in False Bay, and their anchoring in Adventure Bay in September of 1788.  He rambled about in his rather vague description of the Bounty's stay and the breadfruit, then fell silent for a bit.  He seemed so distant for a time, then he resumed his dissertation and was quite animated about his new wife.  After a breath, he described the events leading to his taking of the Bounty on April 28 of 1789.  I had nothing to say at the moment.  Christian fell silent again, and we walked a considerable distance before he spoke.  I had told myself, I would not break the silence; it was his place to talk; it was my place to listen.

    Christian relayed an account of the various ports of call from his taking of the Bounty and the current date.  They included Tubai to Matavai Bay and back again.  It appears the ship and its abbreviated crew were uncertain, and their wanderings did nothing to counter this.  The aimless sailing from April 28 to December seemed desperate and disjointed.  Bounty had laid many miles beneath her keel and had gone nowhere.  She now lay in our harbor, a ship with no home port and no apparent destination.

    His description of harrowing events made me wonder what type of man this was, to retain a weak sanity in the face of insanity all about him.  His ability to maintain command seemed Herculean, and his steadfastness was impressive.  I noted the odd affection he had for the man whose ship he took.  He talked fondly of him and mentioned, more than once, that Mr. Bligh seemed partial to him, and almost fatherly considering how close they were in age.  I was startled when he said he thought of turning a pistol on himself after placing the weapon forcefully in Bligh's face.  I tried to sympathize, but my face remained frozen.  To this point, I had said nothing, and I had no intention of saying a word, but he asked me a question, and I felt compelled to answer.  He asked me how I came about settling on these islands, and what of my ship.  He recognized her as a ship of armed commerce, and that she also had no flag.  I found the question profound coming from a man who was, almost seconds before, totally in the arms of himself.

    I did not answer right away, and he waited patiently.  It was interesting that he did feel compelled to fill the silence with a further question or fill the silence with another aspect of his own story.  I held the silence for a long time testing this interesting man.  Finally, I answered.  I told him of the voyage, a bit of our history.  I did not total our numbers, nor reveal any current aspects of our defenses or situation.  Just to draw us together, I relayed the story of my meeting with Mr. Bligh, assumed to the be the same gentleman, and my opinion of him.  I was brief, and Christian seemed relieved that I showed some signs of conversation.  He politely talked of his own life at Cockermouth Hall, Cumbria and that his family had originally come from the Isle of Man.  His mention of Moorland Close and Brigham Church brought on recollections of my own.  How close our paths have crossed.

    The fact that his father was the Coroner of Cumberland, and that he had been raised at Ewanrigg was more comforting, and I felt the inclination to sit down and talk in a more friendly manner, but I concluded our relationship was not prepared for such a move.  Perhaps, in a short time, we might talk of familiar sites and places.  Perhaps, in a short time, we might find common ground, but the circumstances of our meeting continued to drive a wedge between us.  He was a mutineer, and had stolen a ship from its rightful commander.  He had taken islanders, and he had a crew of fellow conspirators, and there was evident a certain desperation in him.  He was, in fact, a fugitive from his own country, and from his own world, one that he could not visit again for fear of being captured and hanged.  I was providing a degree of succor for such a man and his complement.

    Being a resourceful man, I considered taking the Bounty, and ransoming her off, or putting her in service along with Prize Mary and Fawn.  We had recently acquired the brig, Jenny Kind, abandoned at sea.  Her hulk resided in a nearby harbor and was being prepared for service on our behalf.  I studied the man before me and considered how my act would affect him and his band.  Should I hang him myself?  Should I return him to England and receive a ransom?  The details of each option at my disposal, entertained me for a moment.  What was Christian to me?  Nothing.  What was his complement to me?Nothing.  My responsibility lay with my people and my ships, our island home and the continuation of our success and development.  I stopped and turned to study the Bounty.  Christian was no fool, and he laughed, a polite laugh, but a hearty one.  He did not need to be told my intentions or guess at my thoughts.  I felt the compulsion to laugh, but I retained my composure.  Christian relaxed and studied me for a moment.  This did not make me happy, and I wondered for a moment if I had walked a step too far, or had assumed on human elements too many.  

    He halted my thoughts by mentioning in a firm manner that he would not insult me nor place me in jeopardy by asking for asylum or requesting that he be able to remain in our islands.  He stated firmly that when he took the Bounty, he knew he would only find peace alone and isolated, and that the islands chains about him would reveal a place for himself and his people.  He pointed out that if I had any intention of capturing him, he would consider it a blessing and he would happily hang, if it could be assured that his crew and passengers would be given safety.  I found this pronouncement a bit dramatic, but I knew I was in the presence of a passionate man of unstable controls.  I told myself that I would not become an actor in his drama, and I did laugh.  This took him by surprise.  I don't think he knew I could laugh.  I might have even surprised myself.

    I motioned to some flotsam, and we sat.  I told him I liked the ship, but I had no coal to haul, and he laughed.  Bounty had the turn of a collier, and he knew she was of that ilk.  He told of her conversion and of her attributes.  He relayed a moment of levity with Mr. Bligh, but immediately halted his story.  He knew it to be inappropriate for the moment at hand.  I agreed, but said nothing.  Bligh, for all intents and purposes, was present at our beach, and not facing his fate on the high seas.  Perhaps, he had landed on an island nearby.  Perhaps, he was gone.

    I found myself liking the man named Christian, and I wished in a way, that we had met under other circumstances.  I studied the Bounty again, but this time, I tried to image those on board.  Island women and men, a desperate crew of Europeans, and a stout ship of commerce.  I had to admit the tragedy in the vision, and I gave away a bit of my own humanity at that moment.

    I was in no hurry to return to the settlement, and Mr. Christian seemed likely inclined.  We were silent for a period and watched some of the goings on at the ship.  There were boats moving back and forth, and people were making noises that typified people making the best of an awkward situation.  Those on the ship were loading, and those in the boats were unloading.  It seemed there were so few crew on such a ship.  She was an attractive vessel in her own way.

    He took the moment to tell me that his mother, Ann Dixon Christian, had been driven to bankruptcy, and it had been this situation that had caused him to go to sea at 18.  He had completed school at St. Bees in Whitehaven and felt ready to assume responsibility for his family.  He eluded to the fact that he would be no longer able to help and would, inevitably, bring shame and disgrace on them, because of the mutiny.  He looked at me with an expression that takes men's breath away.  He asked me what would I have done.  I was not in any position to answer.  I thought for a moment, and looked at his eyes.  He was ready for an answer.  I told him that I had never been in a situation such as his, and as master, owner and captain, I insisted on applying rules and regulations that gave me relative assurances that I would not provoke a crew to mutiny.  I told of nailing the cat-o-nine-tails to the mast, and that it was still there.  I told him that I was never a naval officer in the service of the Crown in any level, yet I followed many of the principles applied in that service.

    I said that I would find his situation untenable, and extremely upsetting and that I did not wish to be in his shoes under any circumstances, but I did understand not going back to my homeland.  My decision was by choice, and his was not.  I told him that I would not direct any following ship in his wake, nor would I try to stop his voyage toward destiny.  I told him that our meeting was interesting, and that we would both remember it for a lifetime.  I mentioned that I hoped nothing had happened to Mr. Bligh and his boatload of people, because then the consequences of his actions would be compounded.  I knew that some of the conspirators would hang, because the Crown was a persistent force, and that the chances of their outrunning the chase ships would be unlikely.  I said that if Mr. Bligh did not make it to landfall, that perhaps, nothing at all would transpire as a result, because who would know?  A mutiny was not common scuttlebutt, unless those involved were prone to conversation and some left behind may talk of the incident or confess if confronted by authority.

    Mr.  Christian seemed almost appreciative at my words, but I felt sickened by their sounds.  I found myself saying things that fell from my lips far too easily.  I am not prone to casual conversation about critical subjects, and I thought of myself as a judge and jury, a combination of personalities I choose to avoid for the most part.  Was I excusing Mr. Christian or myself?  To this very day, a few after our encounter, I am not certain of my conclusions nor their effectiveness or reason.  I dislike elevating myself above the situation, and propounding is not a virtue to me.  I leave that to others so prone to that type of delivery.  I feel I did not capture this man.  I feel I did not punish those who earned their punishment, and that if punishment was forthcoming, it would not be my hand that would deliver it.  I am not a seriously religious man, but I feel now that the price that will be delivered on these men and women will be from a hand much greater than mine.  It is the same hand that formed us in the beginning.  Mine is to live my life to the best of my abilities and to serve others responsibly both in command and in obedience.  

    Mr. Christian seemed lost in thought.  I wanted to stay, but I indicated that we should get back to the clearing, and that we both had responsibilities we had to assume.  Our walk back was uneventful and almost devoid of conversation.  The closer we drew to the clearing, the more apparent our differences became. We were only drawn together by our knowledge that we would be drawn apart.  It need not be said that we would not lay eyes on each other again.

    At the clearing, we stood facing each other, and I thought about extending my hand, but I did not.  I nodded, and he nodded.  Without another word, we parted forever.  A few days later, it was reported to me that the Bounty had kedged out of the harbor and was towed out to deeper water.  I wonder what fate will befall them, and what port would accept them.  I felt in my heart that the best of their lives was behind them, and that Mr. Christian would pay for his actions for the rest of his life.  I knew that my life was forever altered by this most-unique meeting.  

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