Ravenswood Dreaming, page 52
For the Thomas family 1851 got off to a good start. The two boys began school and left each morning dressed proudly in their uniforms. John was around home more instead of being off at sea.
William had announced at the end of the previous year that he was getting married to Ann Pengelly whom he had known since she arrived in Clarence on the Gilmore in 1829 with the Peel group settlers. Then she was only three years old and William was nine. William had some reading and writing lessons from Mrs Pengelly on board the Gilmore and also at Clarence along with other children of the settlers. Then when everyone left Clarence she ran her own school in Fremantle instructing a maximum of sixteen students. When Fremantle School For Girls and Infants opened she was appointed the head mistress. Now twenty two years later William was going to marry her daughter.
Ann’s mother and father were a little apprehensive about their daughter marrying a sea captain. It was a dangerous occupation and there had been several shipwrecks in which men from Fremantle had died. The most recent being the wreck of the Vixon when nine men had died, one of them being William’s brother.
Ann had argued that there were many dangerous occupations in which men are employed, in the port and on farming properties around the outskirts of the settlement. The ship that William captained was a very sturdy vessel built in the colony out of first class timber. William was kind and generous and quite wealthy and would be able to provide for her. Anyway she was of age and could get married without her parent’s permission. Finally they agreed, William was a fine man and they were confident that he could look after their daughter. The marriage was set for the 26th of February.
John promised that he would stay in the port until after his brother’s marriage and wait until they had a short honeymoon. There was plenty to keep him busy running the company and supervising renovations to the hotel.
Before they knew it the 26th of February was upon them. William, the last of the family, was about to marry. Members of both families assembled at St John’s Church for the ceremony and then walked back to the Southern Cross Hotel for the reception. John had arranged for a splendid meal to be served. A toast to the bride and groom was drunk with fine wine from Adelaide, followed by a more sombre toast to absent friends. The bride and groom then left in a spring cart to catch a ferry up the river to Perth for a short honeymoon.
Despite his best intentions, business commitments and the aftermath of his brother’s death prevented John from having much to do with William and Amy Keats. They had paid John and Elizabeth a visit after the loss of the Vixon and expressed their sympathy at the death of James who had been a regular crew member on William’s boat for over a year back in the early days of the settlement. God knows they understood a loss of this nature, as their eldest son had been killed by blacks after shooting Yagan and their other son, who was only thirteen had been forced to leave the colony because he had shot one of Yagan’s friends and feared for his life.
Amy and William Keats were guests at the wedding and stayed for a chat with John and Elizabeth. They had made a start on developing their eating house and inn by obtaining a restricted licence to sell beer, wine and spirits and serve meals from their house. The house had been built with a large living room at the front and a kitchen at the back. It also had a large covered verandah to one side which was shaded from the afternoon sun. The inn had been operating for about eighteen months and had become popular as a “watering hole” on hot days during the summer.
William Keats had been a good friend to the Thomas family in the early days and months of the colony. He had provided employment for James and John and supported them when they started operating their own river boats. It was his boat that had transported them from Clarence to Fremantle. Old John and William Keats had been partners in the fishing venture that had ultimately led to them all being transported to Van Diemen’s Land. Now William was purchasing quantities of Cape wine and South Australian wine from them to supply his inn. In addition Amy Keats purchased the initial crockery, cutlery, kitchenware and glassware for the inn and continued to buy replacement items from time to time. John admired their courage and determination to start again at their age after everything they owned had been confiscated.
For some time now the Fremantle Town Trust of which John was a member had been holding their meetings in the Southern Cross Hotel. William Keats had become a member of a mutual benefit society known as the Ancient Order of Royal Foresters. He had sought and obtained approval from the South Australian branch to open a branch in Fremantle to be known as the Western Branch. He approached John to get permission to hold the inaugural and subsequent meetings of the society at the Southern Cross. John was only too happy to oblige. It was one small way that he could repay William for his help in the past. The first meeting was to be held in August of that year as it would take some time to send the documents to and from South Australia.
After the wedding the word spread and other groups of people approached John looking for somewhere to hold meetings and functions. This led to John dedicating one room (which had been used as a private bar) to be the Meeting Room at the Southern Cross. He looked on this as providing a service to the community. Of course he didn’t mind if they ordered a few drinks at the conclusion of their meetings.
The refurbished and modified Venus had been returned to them in November and, with Captain Mason in command, had embarked on a trip north to Singapore and Batavia. Her enlarged hold was again packed with 20 tons of sandalwood, a product that was always in demand in Asian ports. John was anxious to hear how the ship performed on the longer voyage and was anticipating a large quantity of herbs and spices for sale when she returned sometime in May or early June.
In John’s mind was the thought that Singapore offered great opportunities for trade. Since the British had taken formal control in 1824 several companies had set up businesses there. The harbour was well organized and policed and reliable banks, shipping companies and insurance companies had established branches in the city.
In March, The Empress, commanded by William, was also heading north, stopping in Champion Bay and Port Gregory and Port Irwin with a large cargo of supplies for the miners, farmers and the soldiers at the barracks. The ship then loaded lead pigs and returned to Fremantle. A short stay of seven days and she was off again, this time with a large cargo of sandalwood consigned by George Shenton, William again in command. She would be away until July.
Much to Elizabeth’s delight John had remained in Fremantle during the voyages of the two vessels. There was still work to do on the hotel and there was always the endless stream of paper work to do with the company.
Since John was on hand to take care of any urgent business to do with the shipping and the shop and hotel were ably managed, Elizabeth took the opportunity to take the children on a holiday to Redcliffe Farm to stay with her mother for a few days. The idea of another holiday was very exciting for the two older boys. To Elizabeth it was important for the children to get to know their grandmother and she herself was looking forward to a break from the added responsibility of the shop, the hotel and the inevitable paper work of the shipping and transport business. In preparation for the journey down to Redcliffe, Elizabeth sent a letter via the mail coach to her mother requesting some information on travel and also what days were suitable.
The letter that came back suggested that they come down to Mandurah on the mail coach and then send a message up the Murray River with one of the fishing or traders boats. Then her brother Joseph would come down to Mandurah in the boat and pick them up. Any day would be suitable. Bring only clothing and other essential things as there were beds and bassinets suitable for the children and plenty of linen.
The task of travelling down to the Murray district with two small boys, a toddler and a baby was a daunting one especially on the mail coach. Not one to be defeated, Elizabeth hired Dan Mason to transport her and the children and their luggage and other paraphernalia on his dray down to Mandurah. The journey in itself was very enjoyable and exciting for the children. They booked in at the Wayside Inn overnight and then sent a message up the river to Redcliffe farm.
The following day about 12:30 pm, Joseph now 21, arrived in the boat and took charge. They were going to stay with Grandmother Cooper on a farm out in the bush.
The little boys were enthralled. In places the trees hung out over the water almost creating a tunnel through which the river turned and twisted. Every bend created an expectation of something new. They spotted several species of water birds sitting as still as statues on fallen half submerged logs and branches. Being rowed up the river by their uncle Joseph was absolutely the best. To them it was like being rowed up a river out of a story book.
Grandmother Cooper was delighted and overwhelmed at having her daughter back on the farm and the sight of the three little boys and the baby was too much and to the confusion of the children, tears rolled down her cheeks. She quickly assured them that she was very happy to see them and a humbug out of the jar on the mantlepiece fixed everything.
They stayed for a full week at Redcliffe. Elizabeth slept late and grandmother bustled around and prepared breakfast for everyone, except the baby of course. During the day they walked in the bush, threw stones in the river, took turns on the swing that hung from the huge she-oak tree in the front yard, patted the dog, patted the sheep, patted the horses and fed them carrots, fed the lambs, fed the fowls and gathered the eggs. They did everything.
Then in the evening they sat on the couch in the living room in their night shirts and Grandmother Cooper read them stories from a very large book she kept on a shelf in the book case.
The week ended all too soon and before they knew it they were back in Fremantle.
John was looking more relaxed, the ships were away over-seas and he was catching up with other work. The repairs and renovations on the hotel were coming along nicely.
The two lighters, Elizabeth and Napoleon, were looking worn and tired. As there were no cargoes to be loaded or unloaded from either the Venus or the Empress, John had both boats lifted out of the water scraped down and repaired and then repainted. He also had their rigging and sails renewed and replaced the oars, bow and stern ropes.
With time on his hands John engaged the boatman James Buckley, who normally operated the Elizabeth, to accompany him on a goodwill tour of the company’s clients. The intention was to sail up the Swan and Canning Rivers, to Perth and as far up as Guildford if that was possible. They estimated that the trip would take them about a week, allowing for stops along the rivers. James Buckley was very happy to oblige John as he would be paid a daily rate and all expenses at inns, guest houses and hotels, for meals and accommodation would be paid for by the company. If they called on three clients a day with an evening stop at the end of each day they could perhaps see around fifteen people. With the boat looking splendid they set sail.
The trip turned out to be excellent. Producers were only too happy to have the chance to talk face to face with the chairman of the company. Difficulties were sorted out, new ideas discussed, information on proposed crops and stock gathered and friendships renewed and strengthened. Quality of service was the most important consideration, along with reliability and competitive charges.
John and James Buckley worked hard but at the same time the contact with people was very enjoyable. The convivial evenings, often spent in the bar of the particular establishment were perhaps the most enjoyable and often proved to be fruitful as people they had not dealt with often showed an interest in taking advantage of their service.
It was the last week in May 1851 and the Venus had still not returned from Singapore. John was a little concerned. Perhaps she had been delayed disposing of the sandal wood and procuring enough produce for the return journey. Captain Mason was very experienced and aware that the journey needed to be profitable. An extra week or two waiting in Singapore Harbour was better than returning without enough to make the voyage worthwhile.
In mid-July the Empress had returned and the boats were busy unloading goods from her hold. William and John discussed the fact that the Venus was late. They both agreed that something must be wrong. However there had not been any reports of bad weather to the north. None of the ships in the harbour had reported wreckage. Perhaps she had encountered some problem and Captain Mason had been forced to pull in to a bay or an island to undertake repairs. In the back of their minds they were aware that the ship had been lengthened and a mast had been added and repairs made. It was possible that a problem had arisen from these modifications. Anyway there was very little they could do until they had some news. They just had to wait.
At the end of July the Empress was anchored in Owen’s Anchorage loading cargo for her next voyage. With very little warning, a storm blew up from the north. Thinking that Owen’s Anchorage was quite safe from the onslaught the crew did not worry. The wind however swung a few points to the east which meant it blew straight down the sound. The anchor held but the anchor rope broke and the ship was driven onto the beach at Woodman’s point. The storm lasted for two days and sand piled up around her.
When the storm abated and the waves died down, the crew unloaded most of the cargo, stacked it on the beach and covered it with tarpaulins. The following day, using the ship’s boat, they ran the kedge anchor out about 250 yards and dropped it to the bottom. Then, by hauling on the rope, they slowly pulled the ship out into deeper water and dropped an anchor. A quick inspection did not reveal any leaks. Then, using the ship’s boat and one of the lighters, they reloaded the cargo. That done, the ship was returned to the anchorage in the lea of Garden Island where she was inspected for any damage that might be a problem. Amazingly there was no damage found and she was deemed sea worthy. John attributed this to the strength of the jarrah timber which had been used for the hull and the superb skill of the boat builders. The loading of the rest of the cargo resumed and finally after nine days she was ready for sea. On this voyage William was to be the skipper and the following morning he took her out through the heads and well out to sea before turning north and setting a course for Singapore.
The mishap and the grounding stayed in John’s mind. Altogether the incident had cost them eight days, during which time the crew had to be paid. Other than that there was no serious damage done. However it could have been much worse if she had hit rocks. It seemed to John that fate was working against him and the dream of having a fleet of ships operating out of Fremantle with his two brothers was slipping out of his grasp. Just when he had secured the third ship, disaster struck and the Vixen was wrecked and James and eight other men were lost at sea. Then the Venus, the little ship that had started it all, was over-due and declared missing possibly wrecked. The grounding of the Empress was the final straw. It put a dent in his confidence. The company’s reputation was at stake. When one ship was lost and one declared missing and the third beached in a storm perhaps there was something seriously wrong. That might be what the company’s clients would think. It was not a good look. The reputation of the company was its reliability, its punctuality and its ability to deliver cargo in good condition.
Perhaps, he thought, it was time to get out of the shipping trade. Consider selling the Empress. The shop and the Hotel were good businesses. Life on shore would be safer and simpler. Elizabeth would be happy to have him home. He would have more time with his sons.
He thought about the idea for a few days. Elizabeth was non-committal.
He walked out to the headland past the Roundhouse that had held three of the family prisoner. He came to the rock they had sat on when they had waved goodbye to his father back in thirty five. He sat down.
In the distance he could see the three islands and the three openings out to the sea. Countless times he had sailed through them. He remembered the excitement he felt every time as the ship cleared the end of Rottnest, often breasting the waves and sending the salt spray kisses back into his face.
Then setting the course, North to Singapore and the Orient or South to Vasse, Albany and South Australia or West to Mauritius and the Cape.
His thoughts wandered back to that first day on the river when he and James had hoisted the sails on the Jane and she leapt forward and had to be reined in like a winged horse.
It was what he lived for.
He could not quit now. The sea had seeped into his soul. She was his mistress. She held him captive. He loved her. She challenged him to tear his lips away. But he could not.
Elizabeth knew he had been troubled. He told her that he had decided to continue in the business of shipping. She hugged him and said that she was pleased. She was aware how much he loved it. She knew it was dangerous work but she also knew he did not take any risks. Now that he had made the decision to continue with the shipping she informed him that there would be another baby born in the new year, she thought about April. She had not told him because he was preoccupied and worried about the company and considering selling the Empress. She did not want the news of another baby to influence his decision. But now that he had made the decision she was happy.
She, like him, knew that the loss of the ships was not his fault. He kept them well maintained and fitted out. The loss of the ships was just a run of bad luck.
The captains were very experienced. Anyone could encounter bad weather. He had instructed William to keep well out to sea away from the reefs and islands along the coast. Out in the open sea they had more time and space to alter the ship’s course and sails if necessary to avoid a hazard or ride out a storm.
