Alwyn, I have recently transcribed an unusually detailed Official Log of a
mid-Victorian sailing ship, the Iron Duke. The master was Samuel Parry from
Amlwch, Anglesey. This is not Merioneth of course, but I thought you would
probably know of people or institutions in Gwynedd who might be interested in
it -- there is a mutiny and various misdemeanours reported in graphic detail.
I have already sent a copy to the Welsh Mariners (thanks for that tip), the
Welsh Maritime Museum in Cardiff and Anglesey Record Office, but perhaps it
deserves a wider circulation.
James
Iron Duke (45933)
Registered Liverpool, 1435 tons, owners Hargrove & Co.
Master: Samuel Parry (cert no. 7139), aged 39, born Amlwch, Anglesey,
address: “on board”.
Mate: Andrew Sinclair [earned master’s ticket no. 32782 the previous year,
but sailing as mate], aged 33, born Shetland.
Crew: Mate, Carpenter, Bosun, Sails, Steward, Cook, 16 Seamen and I Boy. No
grog allowed. Each man allowed per week:
7 lbs bread
6 lbs beef
3H lbs pork
11 lbs flour
1 lb peas
31 ozs coffee
14 ozs sugar
21 quarts water
Left Birkenhead for Bombay November 1869.
Official Log
[Parry’s spelling has been retained except for his erratic use of capitals.
Some entries are out of sequence in the log, possibly because he ran out of
paper and had to go back and use gaps left earlier. The pages are numbered
and some are missing. All text comes from the Crew Agreement and Official Log
in the possession of Memorial University, Newfoundland, except for that
between square brackets and also the footnote, which have been added by James
Hogg, great-grandson of the Ist mate, Andrew Sinclair.]
Novem 9th/69 Birkenhead Dock
All of the crew joine the ship this day and the ship saild [according to the
title page of the Official Log the commencement of the voyage was November
10th].
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
Novs 12th/69 in the channel
Promoted Charles Burman from AB to 3d Mate at £2. 15 per month.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
Novem 20th/69 Lat 47 42 N, Long 8 24 W
O.C. Johnson one of the AB was at the wheel. the ship running with a strong
breeze on the starboard quarter from the NNW. he brought the ship up to the
wind and the sails all aback. I told him to put the helm up instead of puting
the helm up he put the helm hard down and laugh at me. I went down and took
hold of the wheel and try to put it up but he held all he could against me
however I got him clear of the wheel and got the helm up and got Joseph
Harris another man to the wheel but the ship would not go off for a long time
intill we got the fore yards forward. and all this time this man was giving
me all kind of insolence. I took hold of him and put him to the lee wheel to
larn how to steer but he resistat at first but he had to go. but it seems
that this man has been put up to all this by others. Jest to see how far they
could go on with there insolence and him been a foreigner and was easily lead
wrong.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
November 24/69 Lat 36 25 N, Long 17 36 W
Patrick Hayden A.B. while we were trimming the yards I found that Patrick
Hayden was not there. I ask the mate where he was and he said he did not know
and went forward to see about him. But he so [saw] the mate coming forward it
seams. He came aft then on the other side of the deck. I ask him what was he
doing in the forecastle while other men of the watch was at work. He give me
all kind of insolence by saing that the mate send him forward, and the same
time the mate looking for him. I call him up on the poop and ask him what he
was giving me that insolence for. He said that was nothing to what he would
do yet. I went up to him and ask him what did he mean by that.Then he
commence to withdraw his words when he show [saw] that I was determin, and
saying that he would not give me any more of the same, but I could see in his
face that he was a dangerous fellow.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
November 28/69. Lat 24 49 N, Long 22 50 W
William Griffiths A.B. was forward hauling out the fore topmast studding sail
tack with the remainder of the watch and was giving every one insolence and
stoping the work. I call him aft and ask him what he was giving people
insolence in that manner and then he commence to give me all the insolence he
could and continual disobedient.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
[Illegible] 12th 1869 Lat 38 55 N, Long 18 6 W
[see footnote *]
Found that William Hall steward was westing [wasting] the provisions. he had
2 casks of flour eused in 1 month and all hands were geting potatoes at the
time. I told him not to have any more to do with the provisions and give the
3rd mate charge of everything, to serve out to the crew and also to the cabin
and also told the steward not to go neare the provisions any more. This was
read out to William Hall and he said it was right.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
Janry 2/70 Lat 40 51 S, Long 8 44 E
William Griffiths still continued disobedient and went to the forecastle to
lay up without saying a word to anyone. I called him aft and ask him what was
he doing there. he said he was sick. I ask him then what was the reason that
he did not come to report himself sick instead of going into the forecastle
to lay up for 2 days and I know nothing about it he only give me an
insulting answer and saing that he would not work. But I could find nothing
amater with him. he said that his leg was bad but we could see nothing amater
with his leg and he went to the forecastle again and saying that he would not
work. I told him that I would log him.
Samuel Parry Master
Jany 3/70
W. Griffiths still off duty and we can see nothing amater with him.
Samuel Parry
4th do.
W. Griffiths still of duty and no medicines has any effect on him. Medicine
used for him Caster Oil and the Saline Mixture according to the instructions
in the Medical Book and olov [all of] the dates [?].
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair
Febrary 7 Lat 5 0 N, Long 85 0 E
William Griffiths turn to his dutys.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
Febry 14/70 Lat 8 48 N, Long 76 20 E
Midnight. In locking [making secure] ship on the Coast of Malabar William
Griffiths seaman was send up to the fore top to pass over the main top galnt
and royal staysail sheets and was told once before and also this time to
lower them down gently and not heave them down to hurt anyone. He went up and
heave them down nearly on the boatswain's head and was told not to do so. The
mate and him had some high words about it and he give the mate all the
insolence he could. I told the mate to send him aft to me and not to bother
with him while working ship. William Griffiths came aft and commence to give
me all the insolence that his tongue made use of and saying that he would
take out our hearts both me and the mate. By this time James Hill, Thomas
Reves and Patrick Hayden was aft with him and commence to close on me and
call me all the names that their tongues could speak. I ask them what did
they want, that no one never said anything to them and told them to go
forward but they would not go forward but coming up to my face almost
spitting into my face and giving me all the insolence they could. I ask them
what did they want were they mutineers or what. They say is and that they
would carved awer hearts out of our inside. The mate and I cot hold of Hill
and Griffiths and got them into the cabin and made them secure and went out
for the other 2 but they were going forward for there knife and swearing in
the forecastle that they would put the knife in the first one that.would take
hold of them, and then [they] put the lamp out. The lamp was lighted again
but it was put out again by them so we let them 2 be for a time and I went
aft to the cabin to the other 2 and found them repenting for what they have
done and saying that they were very sorry that they were mutineers. I ask
them what was the cause of it, that no one said anything to them ecept
Griffiths. So I let them out of irons and send them about there dutys. And
when the other 2 show [saw] this 2 men going about there dutys they went
also. But it seems that this has been made up by them before this, but those
that was going to join them would not do so, so they found themselves in the
back ground. I told them that I would log them and would have the case
settled by the Magistrate at Bombay but Patrick Hayden made an insulting
laugh at that and saying that he did not care about magistrates nor me
neither. (This was not read out to them in case it might cause another mutine
amongst them).
Samuel Parry Master
March 2nd 1870. At Bombay
The 4 mutineers as above stated are obedient and quiet now so I have not take
them before the Magistrate at Bombay but to leave the case not settled intill
I would get home by a proper magistrate.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
March 30th/70 Bombay.
At 1 p.m. as I was coming alongside from the shore I found William Hall
steward passing bottles or something over the side to one of these bum boats
that change sell and buy things from ships. When I got on board I ask the
steward what he was passing in to that boat and he said bottles. I ask him
who give him orders to sell them he said no one. I told him then not to do
that again and he was also told before not to have anything to do with those
boats. I also told him on the passage out to keep all the bottles that was on
board to go home and he is continually disobedient ever since we left
Liverpool and a greater sluggard. This was read out to W. Hall and he said it
was right.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
May 14/70 Bombay
Christopher Little a stowaway boy from Liverpool was put on the agreement as
boy.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
July 8/70 Lat 34 00 S, Long 24 00 E
William Griffiths again off duty and hes complain is weekness and pain in
the legs.The medicine given to him is the Saline Mixture and wine in his food
as per Medical Book.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
August 2/70 at 5 pm Lat 19 35, Long 2 41
Found that William Hall was still wasting the provisions after been told not
to go near them. The tea was nearly out we had only 17 lbs of tea left out
of 138 lbs which was enough for 18 months and the coffee all out 330 lbs
which was enough for 12 months and the ship as only been 9 months out yet. A
cask of flour was oppen on the 19th of July and out by 2nd of August. So I
found that it was all in vain for me to keep the lad in the cabin for he
was all the time disobedient and wasting everything that he could get hold of
and I have send him to the boatswain and carpenter’s place and took the cook
in the cabin instead and put a boy in the galley to assist him. This was
read out to W. Hall and he said nothing against it.
Samuel Parry Master
Andrew Sinclair Mate
[The Iron Duke arrived back in Liverpool on 27th September 1870. In the List
of Crew and
Report of Character all received a Very Good rating for both General Conduct
and Seamanship except for the following: the mutineer Patrick Hayden was
rated Very Good for seamanship, but only Good for conduct. William Griffiths
and James Hill don’t appear on the list at all, perhaps because they were
taken before the magistrates on return to Liverpool, as Capt. Parry had
undertaken in Bombay on March 2nd. Surprisingly their co-conspirator Thomas
Reves received a double VG commendation. O.C. Johnson was omitted (see
November 20). Against the name of the unreliable steward William Hall, Capt.
Parry wrote an enigmatic “Yes” in both categories (he could have used
“Middling” or “Indifferent”, but chose none of the standard forms of
assessment at his disposal). Against each sailor certain page numbers are
noted to show where he appears in the log. Some of them apply to the pages
that are missing in the copy supplied by the Memorial University of
Newfoundland.
The Iron Duke was built as an iron ship in 1863 by H.M. Lawrence & Co.,
Liverpool, for Gavin B. Millar, Glasgow, with single top-gallant and royals.
There seems to have been a fairly rapid turnover in ownership, because just
before this voyage James Baines & Co., Liverpool (owners of the Black Ball
Line), are said to have sold her to Hargrove and Hellon, Liverpool. In 1886
she was sold to H. Bischoff & Co., Bremen. In 1894 she was converted to a
barque. That September she left Blythe for Iquique (Chile) and went missing.]
*The evidence in this entry that they had been at sea 1 month suggests that
the illegible word was December. However, this would mean the ship had turned
north for a time. It’s possible Parry simply made a mistake in noting the
ship’s position.