The Bounty: The True Story of the Mutiny on the Bounty (3 page)
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Authors: Caroline Alexander
Tags: #History, #Europe, #Great Britain, #Military, #Naval
BOOK: The Bounty: The True Story of the Mutiny on the Bounty
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Peter Heywood, former midshipman on the
Bounty,
had been only a few weeks shy of seventeen on the morning the mutiny had broken out and his close friend and distant relative Fletcher Christian had taken the ship. At Christian’s command, Lieutenant Bligh and eighteen loyalists had been compelled to go overboard into one of the
Bounty
’s small boats, where they had been left, bobbing in the wide Pacific, to certain death.
Bounty,
had been only a few weeks shy of seventeen on the morning the mutiny had broken out and his close friend and distant relative Fletcher Christian had taken the ship. At Christian’s command, Lieutenant Bligh and eighteen loyalists had been compelled to go overboard into one of the
Bounty
’s small boats, where they had been left, bobbing in the wide Pacific, to certain death.
Fletcher Christian’s control of the mutineers was to last no more than five months. When he eventually directed the
Bounty
back to Tahiti for what would be her final visit, he had done so because his company had disintegrated into factions. The majority of his people wished to bail out and take their chances at Tahiti even though, as they knew, a British naval ship would eventually come looking for them; some of these men had been loyal to Bligh, but had been held against their will on board the
Bounty.
Bounty
back to Tahiti for what would be her final visit, he had done so because his company had disintegrated into factions. The majority of his people wished to bail out and take their chances at Tahiti even though, as they knew, a British naval ship would eventually come looking for them; some of these men had been loyal to Bligh, but had been held against their will on board the
Bounty.
Peter Heywood had been one of the last men to take his farewell of Christian, whom he still regarded with affectionate sympathy. Then, when the
Bounty
had departed for good, he had turned back from the beach to set about the business of building a new life. Now, on this fresh March day, a year and a half after Christian’s departure, Peter was setting out for the mountains with friends. He had gone no more than a hundred yards from his home when a man came hurrying after him to announce that there was a ship in sight.
Bounty
had departed for good, he had turned back from the beach to set about the business of building a new life. Now, on this fresh March day, a year and a half after Christian’s departure, Peter was setting out for the mountains with friends. He had gone no more than a hundred yards from his home when a man came hurrying after him to announce that there was a ship in sight.
Running to the hill behind his house, with its convenient lookout over the sea, he spotted the ship lying to only a few miles distant. Peter would later claim that he had seen this sight “with the utmost Joy,” but it is probable that his emotions were somewhat more complicated. Racing down the hill, he went to the nearby home of his close friend midshipman George Stewart with the news. By the time he and Stewart had splashed their way out to the ship, another man, Joseph Coleman, the
Bounty
’s armorer, was already on board. On introducing themselves as formerly of the
Bounty,
Heywood and Stewart had been placed under arrest and led away for confinement. The ship,
Pandora,
had been specifically commissioned to apprehend the mutineers and bring them to justice in England. These morning hours of March 23, 1791, were the last Peter Heywood would spend on Tahiti.
Bounty
’s armorer, was already on board. On introducing themselves as formerly of the
Bounty,
Heywood and Stewart had been placed under arrest and led away for confinement. The ship,
Pandora,
had been specifically commissioned to apprehend the mutineers and bring them to justice in England. These morning hours of March 23, 1791, were the last Peter Heywood would spend on Tahiti.
The news of the mutiny on board His Majesty’s Armed Vessel
Bounty
had reached England almost exactly a year before. How the news arrived was even more extraordinary than the mutiny—for the messenger had been none other than Lieutenant William Bligh himself. After Fletcher Christian had put him and the loyalists into the
Bounty
’s launch off the island of Tofua, Bligh, against all imaginable odds, had navigated the little 23-foot-long craft 3,618 miles over a period of forty-eight days to Timor, in the Dutch East Indies. Here, his starving and distressed company had been humanely received by the incredulous Dutch authorities. Eventually, passages had been found home for him and his men, and Bligh had arrived in England in a blaze of triumph and white-hot anger on March 13, 1790.
Bounty
had reached England almost exactly a year before. How the news arrived was even more extraordinary than the mutiny—for the messenger had been none other than Lieutenant William Bligh himself. After Fletcher Christian had put him and the loyalists into the
Bounty
’s launch off the island of Tofua, Bligh, against all imaginable odds, had navigated the little 23-foot-long craft 3,618 miles over a period of forty-eight days to Timor, in the Dutch East Indies. Here, his starving and distressed company had been humanely received by the incredulous Dutch authorities. Eventually, passages had been found home for him and his men, and Bligh had arrived in England in a blaze of triumph and white-hot anger on March 13, 1790.
Notice of the mutiny and a description of the mutineers were swiftly dispatched to British and Dutch ports. In Botany Bay the news inspired seventeen convicts to escape in an attempt to join the “pirates” in Tahiti. Although it was at first supposed that two Spanish men-of-war already in the Pacific might have apprehended the
Bounty,
the Admiralty took no chances and began to mobilize an expedition to hunt down the mutineers. The expense and responsibility of sending yet another ship to the Pacific was not appealing: England seemed poised on the verge of a new war with Spain, and all available men and ships were being pressed into service. However, putting a British naval officer overboard in the middle of the Pacific and running away with His Majesty’s property were outrages that could not go unpunished. Eventually, a 24-gun frigate named
Pandora
was dispatched under the command of Captain Edward Edwards to hunt the mutineers.
Bounty,
the Admiralty took no chances and began to mobilize an expedition to hunt down the mutineers. The expense and responsibility of sending yet another ship to the Pacific was not appealing: England seemed poised on the verge of a new war with Spain, and all available men and ships were being pressed into service. However, putting a British naval officer overboard in the middle of the Pacific and running away with His Majesty’s property were outrages that could not go unpunished. Eventually, a 24-gun frigate named
Pandora
was dispatched under the command of Captain Edward Edwards to hunt the mutineers.
Departing in early November 1790, the
Pandora
made a swift and uneventful passage to Tahiti, avoiding the horrendous storms that had afflicted the
Bounty
three years before. Whereas the
Bounty
had carried a complement of 46 men, the
Pandora
bore 140. The
Pandora
’s commander, Captain Edwards, had suffered a near mutiny of his own nine years earlier, when in command of the
Narcissus
off the northeast coast of America. Eventually, five of the would-be mutineers in this thwarted plot had been hanged, and two more sentenced to floggings of two hundred and five hundred lashes, respectively, while the leader of the mutiny had been hanged in chains. As events would show, Captain Edwards never forgot that he, the near victim of a mutiny, was now in pursuit of actual mutineers.
Pandora
made a swift and uneventful passage to Tahiti, avoiding the horrendous storms that had afflicted the
Bounty
three years before. Whereas the
Bounty
had carried a complement of 46 men, the
Pandora
bore 140. The
Pandora
’s commander, Captain Edwards, had suffered a near mutiny of his own nine years earlier, when in command of the
Narcissus
off the northeast coast of America. Eventually, five of the would-be mutineers in this thwarted plot had been hanged, and two more sentenced to floggings of two hundred and five hundred lashes, respectively, while the leader of the mutiny had been hanged in chains. As events would show, Captain Edwards never forgot that he, the near victim of a mutiny, was now in pursuit of actual mutineers.
Also on the
Pandora,
newly promoted to third lieutenant, was Thomas Hayward, a
Bounty
midshipman who had accompanied Bligh on his epic open-boat journey. With memories of the thirst, near starvation, exposure and sheer horror of that voyage still fresh in his mind, Hayward was eager to assist in running to ground those responsible for his ordeal. His familiarity with Tahitian waters and people would assist navigation and island diplomacy; his familiarity with his old shipmates would identify the mutineers.
Pandora,
newly promoted to third lieutenant, was Thomas Hayward, a
Bounty
midshipman who had accompanied Bligh on his epic open-boat journey. With memories of the thirst, near starvation, exposure and sheer horror of that voyage still fresh in his mind, Hayward was eager to assist in running to ground those responsible for his ordeal. His familiarity with Tahitian waters and people would assist navigation and island diplomacy; his familiarity with his old shipmates would identify the mutineers.
So it was that in March 1791, under cloudless skies and mild breezes, the
Pandora
sighted the lush, dramatic peaks of Tahiti. Closer in, and the mountain cascades, the graceful palms, and the sparkling volcanic black beaches could be seen beyond thundering breakers and surf. The few ships that had anchored here had all attempted to describe the vision-like beauty of the first sight of this island rising into view from the blue Pacific. Bligh had called Tahiti “the Paradise of the World.”
Pandora
sighted the lush, dramatic peaks of Tahiti. Closer in, and the mountain cascades, the graceful palms, and the sparkling volcanic black beaches could be seen beyond thundering breakers and surf. The few ships that had anchored here had all attempted to describe the vision-like beauty of the first sight of this island rising into view from the blue Pacific. Bligh had called Tahiti “the Paradise of the World.”
Now, as the
Pandora
cruised serenely through the clear blue waters, bearing justice and vengeance, she was greeted by men canoeing or swimming toward her.
Pandora
cruised serenely through the clear blue waters, bearing justice and vengeance, she was greeted by men canoeing or swimming toward her.
“Before we Anchored,” wrote Edwards in his official report to the Admiralty, “Joseph Coleman Armourer of the Bounty and several of the Natives came on board.” Coleman was one of four men whom Bligh had specifically identified as being innocent of the mutiny and detained against his will. Once on board, Coleman immediately volunteered what had become of the different factions. Of the sixteen men left by Christian on Tahiti, two had already been responsible for each other’s deaths. Charles Churchill, the master-at-arms and the man described as “the most murderous” of the mutineers, had in fact been murdered by his messmate Mathew Thompson, an able seaman from the Isle of Wight. Churchill’s death had in turn been avenged by his Tahitian friends, who had murdered Thompson and then offered him “as a Sacrifice to their Gods,” as Edwards dispassionately reported.
Meanwhile, on his way to the anchored ship, Peter Heywood had learned from another Tahitian friend that his former shipmate Thomas Hayward was on board. The result of this friendly inquiry, as Peter reported in a long letter he wrote to his mother, was not what he had ingenuously expected.
“[W]e ask’d for him, supposing he might prove our Assertions,” Peter wrote; “but he like all other Worldlings when raised a little in Life received us very coolly & pretended Ignorance of our Affairs. . . . So that Appearances being so much against us, we were order’d in Irons & look’d upon—infernal Words!—as piratical Villains.”
As the
Pandora
’s company moved in, inexorably bent upon their mission, it became clear that no distinction would be made among the captured men. Coleman, noted as innocent by Bligh himself and the first man to surrender voluntarily, was clapped in irons along with the indignant midshipman. Edwards had determined that his job was simply to take hold of everyone he could, indiscriminately, and let the court-martial sort them out once back in England.
Pandora
’s company moved in, inexorably bent upon their mission, it became clear that no distinction would be made among the captured men. Coleman, noted as innocent by Bligh himself and the first man to surrender voluntarily, was clapped in irons along with the indignant midshipman. Edwards had determined that his job was simply to take hold of everyone he could, indiscriminately, and let the court-martial sort them out once back in England.
From the Tahitians who crowded curiously on board, Edwards quickly ascertained the likely whereabouts of the other eleven fugitives. Some were still around Matavai, others had by coincidence sailed only the day before, in a thirty-foot-long decked schooner they themselves had built, with much effort and ingenuity, for Papara, a region on the south coast where the remainder of the
Bounty
men had settled. With the zealous assistance of the local authorities, the roundup began and by three o’clock of the second day, Richard Skinner, able seaman of the
Bounty,
was on board
Pandora.
Bounty
men had settled. With the zealous assistance of the local authorities, the roundup began and by three o’clock of the second day, Richard Skinner, able seaman of the
Bounty,
was on board
Pandora.
A party under the command of Lieutenants Robert Corner and Hayward was now dispatched to intercept the remaining men. Aiding them in their search was one John Brown, an Englishman deposited on Tahiti the year before by another ship, the
Mercury,
on account of his troublesome ways, which had included carving up the face of a shipmate with a knife. The
Mercury
had departed Tahiti only weeks before Christian’s final return with the boat—she had even seen fires burning on the island of Tubuai, where the mutineers had first settled, but decided not to investigate. Brown, it became clear, had not been on terms of friendship with his compatriots.
Mercury,
on account of his troublesome ways, which had included carving up the face of a shipmate with a knife. The
Mercury
had departed Tahiti only weeks before Christian’s final return with the boat—she had even seen fires burning on the island of Tubuai, where the mutineers had first settled, but decided not to investigate. Brown, it became clear, had not been on terms of friendship with his compatriots.
At Papara, Edwards’s men discovered that the mutineers, hearing of their approach, had abandoned their schooner and fled to the mountain forest.
“[U]nder cover of night they had taken shelter in a hut in the woods,” wrote the
Pandora
’s surgeon, George Hamilton, in his account of this adventure, “but were discovered by Brown, who creeping up to the place where they were asleep, distinguished them from the natives by feeling their toes.” British toes apparently lacked the telltale spread of unshod Tahitians’.
Pandora
’s surgeon, George Hamilton, in his account of this adventure, “but were discovered by Brown, who creeping up to the place where they were asleep, distinguished them from the natives by feeling their toes.” British toes apparently lacked the telltale spread of unshod Tahitians’.
“Tuesday, March 29th,” Edwards recorded in the
Pandora
’s log. “At 9 the Launch returned with James Morrison, Charles Norman and Thomas Ellison belonging to His Majesty’s Ship
Bounty
—prisoners.” Also taken in tow was the mutineers’ schooner, the
Resolution,
an object for them of great pride and now requisitioned by the
Pandora
as a tender, or service vessel.
Pandora
’s log. “At 9 the Launch returned with James Morrison, Charles Norman and Thomas Ellison belonging to His Majesty’s Ship
Bounty
—prisoners.” Also taken in tow was the mutineers’ schooner, the
Resolution,
an object for them of great pride and now requisitioned by the
Pandora
as a tender, or service vessel.
The three newcomers were at first housed under the half deck, and kept under around-the-clock sentry. Meanwhile, the ship’s carpenters were busy constructing a proper prison, a kind of low hut to the rear of the quarterdeck, where the prisoners would be placed, as Edwards reported to the Admiralty, “for their more effectual security airy & healthy situation.” The prisoners in their turn assessed their circumstances somewhat differently, referring sardonically to the shallow, cramped structure, with its narrow scuttle, as “Pandora’s Box.”
At some point during the pursuit of James Morrison and the men on the
Resolution,
Michael Byrn, the almost blind fiddler of the
Bounty,
either was captured or came on board of his own accord. Insignificant at every juncture of the
Bounty
saga, Byrn, alone of the fugitives, arrived on the
Pandora
unrecorded. Eight men had now been apprehended and were firmly held in irons; six men remained at large, reported to have taken flight in the hill country around Papara.
Resolution,
Michael Byrn, the almost blind fiddler of the
Bounty,
either was captured or came on board of his own accord. Insignificant at every juncture of the
Bounty
saga, Byrn, alone of the fugitives, arrived on the
Pandora
unrecorded. Eight men had now been apprehended and were firmly held in irons; six men remained at large, reported to have taken flight in the hill country around Papara.
Over the next week and a half, while searches were made for the fugitives under the guidance of the ever helpful Brown, Captain Edwards and his officers got a taste of life in Tahiti. Their immediate host was Tynah, the stately king, whose girth was proportionate to his outstanding nearly six-foot-four-inch height. Around forty years of age, he could remember William Bligh from his visit to the island in 1777, with Captain Cook, as well as his return eleven years later with the
Bounty.
Upon the
Pandora
’s arrival, Edwards and his men had been greeted by the islanders with their characteristic generosity, with streams of gifts, food, feasts, dances and offers of their women.
Bounty.
Upon the
Pandora
’s arrival, Edwards and his men had been greeted by the islanders with their characteristic generosity, with streams of gifts, food, feasts, dances and offers of their women.
“The English are allowed by the rest of the world . . . to be a generous, charitable people,” observed Dr. Hamilton. “[B]ut the Otaheiteans could not help bestowing the most contemptuous word in their language upon us, which is, Peery, Peery, or Stingy.”
Generous, loyal, sensual, uninhibited—the handsome people of Tahiti had won over most who visited them. By now the
Bounty
men were no longer strangers, but had lived among them, taken wives, had children. . . .
Bounty
men were no longer strangers, but had lived among them, taken wives, had children. . . .
“Sure Friendship’s there, & Gratitude, & Love,” young Peter Heywood would later write, exhibiting a poetic bent:
Sure Friendship’s there, & Gratitude, & Love,
Such as ne’er reigns in European Blood
In these degen’rate Days; tho’ from above
We
Precepts have, & know what’s right and good . . .
Now, sitting shackled in the sweltering heat of Pandora’s Box, Heywood and his shipmates had more than usual cause, and time, to contemplate this disparity of cultures.
On Saturday, the last fugitives began to trickle in. Henry Hilbrant, an able seaman from Hanover, Germany, and Thomas McIntosh, a young carpenter’s mate from the north of England, were delivered on board; as predicted, they had been captured in the hill country above Papara. By the following evening, the roundup was complete. Able seamen Thomas Burkett, John Millward and John Sumner, and William Muspratt, the cook’s assistant, were brought in, also from Papara.
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