1-087 (Original)

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NARRATIVE of the MELANCHOLY LOSS of the American Ship, DUKE of PORTLAND.
With an Account of the Providential Rescue of a Young Woman named Elizabeth Morey, from the savages of Toongataboo, one of the Friendly Islands, by the American Ship, Union, Captain Pendleton, which left this Port for China the 29th of August, but came last from Toongataboo, which she left on 5th. Inst. and arrived here on Tuesday last.
DEPOSITION Respecting The Loss of the American Ship, Duke of Portland.
Sydney, Saturday, October 27, 1804,
Elizabeth Morey being sworn, says, that she left the Cape of Good Hope with Mr. Lovat Mellon Captain of the American ship, Duke of Portland, bound to Lima; that on or about the 1st. of June, 1802, the ship touched at an island in the Pacific Ocean, called TOONGATABOO;
That Captain Mellon received a message from a white man, named Doyle, then residing on the island (and who this deponent afterwards learnt had got there from some vessel that had been cast away on another island, and the captain and crew killed); that the Chief wished him, Captain Mellon, to send one of his boats, mann'd to assist him repelling some invaders that had landed from another island. A boat was sent armed, with eight men and the second Mate, (Mr. Anderson); who, after he had performed the duty allotted to him, returned on board in the evening.
That previous to Mr. Anderson's return on board, Mr. Gibson, the chief Mate, with a boat mann'd with four men, went on shore for the purpose of bringing the former boat's crew on board; which he did, and both boats came together.
That soon after the return of the boats on board, the Chief of that part of the island, named Ducava, came on board to return the Captain thanks for the assistance he had received, stopped on board the ship all night, and on the morning following went on shore. The night after the Chief sent word on board for the two boats to be sent on shore for refreshments the next morning. The Captain ordered the Mate not to do so; but the following morning, before the Captain was up, the Mate had sent them both mann'd and armed, with the second Mate.
About two hours afterwards the small boat returned, with two boys in her, accompanied by several canoes and natives, with yams, and the white man Doyle, before mentioned. That after unloading her she was again sent on shore, with the two boys, but the natives with the white man, Doyle remained on board. Shortly afterwards, they took an opportunity of surrounding the Captain, chief Mate, and sailors then on board, seven in number, and killed them all except two boys, this deponent, and a black woman, her servant. They threw the bodies over board.
Elizabeth Morey, seeing the massacre, attempted to jump over board, but was prevented by the white man, Doyle, who told her not to be frightened, for she should not be hurt. She was sent soon after on shore in one of the native canoes, and given to the Chiefs wife. She learnt, after she had got ashore, from the boys four in number, that were left alive, with a white man of diminutive stature, that the whole of the ship's company that were on shore had been killed, except themselves.
For three successive days, the Chief went on board the ship to get her unloaded; but not being able to accomplish the unloading of the ship, he ordered the five remaining white persons to go on board to render assistance in landing her cargo, which consisted chiefly of bales of calico, and different piece goods; and this was accomplished in the six days following. [34] 
All the sails were unbent and landed, except two, and after the cargo was so landed, the four white boys and man took an opportunity of driving the natives over board, killing Doyle, cutting the cables, and standing out to sea with the ship; and what further became of the ship the deponent, Elizabeth Morey, cannot say. HERE ENDS ELIZABETH MOREY'S DEPOSITION.
THE FOLLOWING INTERESTING PARTICULARS RELATIVE TO CAPTAIN MELLON HAVE BEEN COMMUNICATED BY A GENTLEMAN
Captain Mellon sailed from Manila about the latter end of April, 1800, in a brig belonging to Mr. John Stewart Kerr, American Consul at Manila. His instructions were to dispose of the cargo, and purchase in return such commodities as were adapted to the Manila market, having a letter of credit to an amount of twenty thousand dollars the better to enable him to load the vessel.
On his arrival at Batavia he sold the cargo, and contrary to his instructions, the brig also. He purchased there a Ship about 400 tons burthen called the Duke of Portland and the letter of credit he likewise made use of. The Duke of Portland was taken up by the Dutch Company at Batavia, to proceed to Serra Bay for a cargo of rice. Captain Mellon proceeded thither accordingly, and took in the freight; but instead of returning to Batavia, went on to the Isle of France, and there disposed of the cargo.
He went then, to the Cape of Good Hope, and had left the place clandestinely with intention, as was supposed, of proceeding to the north-west Coast of America. It would appear, however, from the deposition of Elizabeth Morey, that his real intention was to go to Lima; in the way thither, he touched for refreshments at the Island of Toongataboo, and there fell a victim, with most of his crew, to the barbarity of the natives, stimulated by the hope of plunder, - and perhaps by the counsel of the villain Doyle. Those of the Duke of Portland's unfortunate crew, whom the barbarous and greedy natives treacherously inveigled and murdered on their shore, served to assuage their inordinate and cursed appetites.
The villain Doyle is supposed to have been one of a brig's crew that was unfortunately wrecked on some of the islands between three and four years since, whose people were distributed, and the major part inhumanely murdered by the natives. The brig had sailed from Canton for this Colony, and belonged to Mr. Berry of Canton. One of her surviving hands, whose name is Slater, had the good fortune to be brought away by Captain Reid, in the ship Plomer, after a residence among the savages of two-and-twenty months.
DEPOSITION Respecting the Ship Union, and the Rescue of Elizabeth Morey.
Daniel Wright, Chief Mate of the ship Union, of New York, being sworn, says, that on or about the 29th. of August, 1804, he sailed in the said ship from the harbour of Port Jackson, under the command of Captain Pendleton, having taken on board Mr. John Boston, whom this deponent understood to be Supercargo; that they touched at Norfolk Island, and from thence proceeded to the Island of Toongataboo, one of the Friendly Islands, where they arrived on or about the 30th of September.
Soon after they came to anchor, a number of canoes visited them, but left them at sunset. On the following morning they came off in great numbers, among whom was a Malay, that spoke broken English, who informed them that they could get plenty of wood, water, and refreshments there, and was very urgent for the ship's boats to be sent on shore. One of the ship's boats was accordingly hoisted out, mann'd with six men, 4 muskets, and 2 cutlasses; in which boat the Captain and Mr. Boston went. Soon after the departure of the boat from the ship, the natives became very troublesome from their numbers on board and round the vessel. The chief Mate stationed all his remaining hands about the ship to prevent their coming on board, but still they succeeded in getting up, contrary to his wish, to the number of thirty, who were observed had passed a number of clubs into the ship's channels, ready to be handed in; and from his observations he had no doubt that they meant to take the ship.
The Chief frequently urged the chief Mate, to let more men come on board, which he positively refused, telling him, that he should be obliged to turn out those who were already on board, which he did, the greater part without any resistance or much trouble. The Chief did not seem in any wise dissatisfied with this proceeding, but remained on board some time after, to eat and drink with the deponent.
Shortly after, the Chief took leave of the ship, and was accompanied by the whole of the canoes alongside. Immediately, the chief Mate hoisted the colours of the ship, and fired a gun, to put those on shore on their guard, but soon after, taking up the spy glass and looking toward the shore, he perceived the ship's boat on the beach, lying broadside on, in the hands of the natives, and a number of natives about her. [35] This might have been between one and two o'clock, the boat having been gone about four hours. The chief Mate, then put the ship in the best order he could, expecting an attack from the natives - but no canoe came off that night. The next morning two canoes came within hail, but would not come on board; and from several gestures which they made, the people on board wanted to fire on them, having construed those gestures to mean that the boat's crew were murdered. They also wished to get the ship under way, and leave the place immediately, but which the chief Mate would not allow of. No further intercourse passed that day.
The day following, several canoes came within hail, in one which was the Malay, who asked the chief Mate to come on shore, for that the Captain and Mr. Boston wished him. He endeavoured to get the Malay alongside, but could not prevail upon him to do so though he promised to accompany him. The Malay then went on shore again.
The same afternoon the Malay came off again, accompanied by several canoes, in one of which was observed a European woman, who spoke to them in English, as did also the Malay, inviting him on shore. But by particular signs from the white woman, when unnoticed by the natives, she forbid them to comply with the request. Finding they could not prevail in getting another boat from the ship, they took their departure, and nothing further occurred that day.
The next morning, being the third after the boat in which the Captain and Mr. Boston had gone on shore, several canoes again came off, in one of which was the white woman, and in the other the Malay, repeating the former request. The white woman then stood up in the head of the canoe, cried out that those on shore were murdered by the natives, and then leaping into the water, swam towards the ship; the men on board presenting their muskets, and thereby deterring the natives from picking her up, by which means she reached the vessel, and was taken on board.
The said woman informed the chief Mate that the Captain and boat's crew had been murdered on shore; upon which information he ordered the natives to be fired on, and saw two fall in one of the canoes; that he immediately directed the cable to be cut, and putting out to sea, shaped his course for Port Jackson, where he arrived in 19 days without accident.
The deponent further states, that when getting under way, and sheeting home his top-gallant sails, he heard two muskets fired on shore, but cannot take upon himself to say what produced this circumstance, further than that the white woman informed him that the Chief had told her it should be done to induce him (the deponent) to believe the people were alive and well on shore.
HERE ENDS DANIEL WRIGHT'S DEPOSITION.
CONCLUDING DEPOSITION
Elizabeth Morey again being sworn, says that she lived with the Chief's wife on the Island of Toongataboo, and that on or about the 30th of September, she understood a ship had arrived at the Island - she then residing at the opposite side thereof.
One of the natives had come over for the purpose of bringing the Malay, who was known by the name of Charley, to go on board her. Three days after the vessel's arrival she was sent for by the Chief to converse with one of the white boys that had come on shore, from whom she learnt the ship's name, that she was from New York, and that the Captain and several of her people were on shore.
The Chief desired her to go off to the vessel, and endeavour to get some more of her boats on shore. She went off in the canoe as she was ordered, accompanied by the Malay, with five other canoes, and did as she was directed, being afraid to do otherwise; but from the conversation she had overheard among the natives previous to her going off, she was satisfied that the greater part of those who had gone onshore were murdered. But being assiduously watched by the Malay (Charley), she could not communicate her information to the officers on board the ship, except by signs.
The next morning following, she was again sent for by the Malay, who informed her that she was again to go off to the ship to repeat her former message, and endeavour to get on shore some of her people. She went off accordingly, accompanied by four canoes, in one of which was that subtile wretch Charley the Malay, who had been a servant to Captain Mellon, and had found means to escape the massacre. On coming near the ship, she stood up in the head of the canoe in which she was, she called to the people on board, informing them that their comrades were murdered by the natives on shore, then jumped overboard and swam for the ship.
She heard the two muskets fired on shore, which she knew was done by the Chief as he had told her he would do so before she left the shore, to give an idea that Europeans were on shore, firing for a boat.
FINIS
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