The Buffalo being ready for Sea, I receive an Intimation from Mr. Marsden, that the late Governor has obtained a Remission of my unexpired Time, and consents to take me home as his Clerk.—I wait on his Excellency accordingly, and receive orders to go on board.—We set sail.
The process of fitting out and victualling the Buffalo, with other causes, delayed the Governor’s departure for some weeks after the appointed time. At length I received, about the first of February, in a note from Mr. Marsden, (who with his family, had removed to Sydney, in readiness for embarkation,) the agreeable tidings that Governor King had consented to take me on board the Buffalo, in the capacity of his private clerk, and had obtained the sanction of Governor Bligh for my departure from the colony. Mr. Marsden concluded with advising me to wait on Governor King without delay, for the purpose of receiving his commands. I immediately hastened to Sydney, and waited on his Excellency; who after some conversation, told me that the Buffalo’s complement being already full, it was not in his power to put me on the ship’s books[45], but that he would give me a passage, and himself supply me with provisions. He then inquired if I was incumbered with any debts; and, on my answering that I owed to individuals about twenty pounds, and to Government, for various articles from the stores, about fifteen pounds, his Excellency advised me to take measures for settling these accompts, and, having so done, to repair on board with the least possible delay. I now returned to Parramatta, (having first given the usual notice of my departure for publication in the Sydney Gazette,) and applied with diligence to the settlement of my affairs. I was not displeased at the Governor’s intimation respecting not putting me on the Buffalo’s books, because, had he so done, it being war time, I might have found a difficulty in getting clear of her on our arrival in England: on the other hand, by going home as a passenger, although I should forego the advantage of pay, for the time occupied in our voyage, yet I should be at liberty to quit the ship the moment we anchored. I was not altogether so easy with respect to my debts, as I feared my utmost means were inadequate to their liquidation. ’Tis true, I had a watch, some good clothes, and other effects, which altogether might suffice to discharge my private debts, but then I should much distress myself by the deprival of these useful articles. As to my Government debt, I had a secret hope that the generosity of Governor King (which was often conspicuous when his privy purse was not encroached upon,) would induce him to assist me in surmounting that difficulty.
I lost not a moment in settling my business at Parramatta, and returning to Sydney with all my worldly goods, I waited on my principal creditor, with whom I managed to square the yards on tolerably easy terms. I was obliged, however, to dispose of nearly all my personal effects, before I could satisfy the private demands upon me, retaining only a very limited stock of indispensable articles for my voyage, and one genteel suit of clothes for the purpose of attiring myself on quitting the ship, together with an English half-guinea to bear my expenses from Portsmouth to London. Having taken these measures, I embarked with my chest and bedding on the 5th of February, Governor King and Mr. Marsden with their respective families, being already on board. His Excellency hearing of my arrival, sent for me to his cabin, and questioned me on the subject of my debts. I informed him, that I had discharged every claim upon me, except the sum I owed to the Crown, and confessed my inability to liquidate that account, without some extension of his Excellency’s kind assistance. The Governor after some moments’ reflection, wrote a short memorandum, which he ordered me to take to Mr. Commissary Palmer, to whom it was addressed. I accordingly went on shore, and proceeding to the Commissary’s office, delivered the note, which Mr. Palmer having read, handed to one of his clerks, directing him to comply with the tenor of it, which was to the following effect:—“James Vaux (the bearer) having behaved well in the different situations of store-keeper’s, secretary’s, and magistrate’s clerk, I think the small sum he stands indebted to Government ought to be remitted him.” (Signed) “P. G. K.” The clerk having turned to my account in the ledger, gave me credit therein, to the amount of my debt, by an item worded as follows:—“By remuneration for services as clerk, &c.” This point being adjusted, I now found myself perfectly disembarrassed, and free to depart the country. With a joyful heart, I took leave of my old acquaintances and fellow-clerks, with some of whom I spent a convivial evening, and the next day I finally embarked, all things being now in readiness, and the ship only waiting the auspicious breeze. On the 10th of February, 1807, was the happy day. At an early hour the ship was crowded with visiters, comprising most of the principal officers of the colony, with their ladies and friends, as well as many respectable inhabitants, all anxious to testify their heartfelt respect towards a departing Governor, whose general conduct had gained him universal esteem, and who had, during a government of six years, united the tenderness of a parent with the authority of a chief. The vessel was surrounded with boats, some of which brought various friends of the ship’s company, passengers, &c., who came to take a last farewell; others contained spectators of both sexes, attracted by curiosity to witness the interesting scene, as well as to shew their loyalty and good wishes by joining in the parting cheers, with which the air resounded as we cleared the heads of the harbour, to which distance most of the boats accompanied us. About three o’clock P. M. the breeze freshening, we quickly gained a good offing, and by half past four a sudden squall, attended with rain and mist, obscured from us all view of the land, which we beheld no more.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Receive a free Pardon from the hands of Captain (late Governor) King.—Account of our Passage Home.—Suffer a great deal from the want of Provisions.—Leaky State of the Ship.—Double Cape Horn.—Fall in with an English Frigate, bound to the River Plate.—Arrive at Rio de Janeiro.
The morning after our sailing, Captain King, (as I shall in future style him,) called me into his cabin, and presented me with a free pardon, which, as he rightly observed, was merely a matter of form, as it was probable we should not arrive in England before the expiration of my time. This instrument, though only made out a few days before, was ante-dated the 12th of August, 1806, being the day before Governor Bligh assumed the command, and was consequently the last official document, to which Governor King had affixed his signature, and the last public act of his government.
In about a week, we made the island of New Zealand, at which it was captain King’s intention to have touched, having some live pigs, brought from Port Jackson, for the purpose of presenting to the native chiefs, two of whom had lately visited, and resided for some months in New South Wales; but this kind idea was frustrated by a squall of wind, which took us aback while in sight of the island, and night coming on, it was not considered prudent to approach the land; we therefore hauled our wind, and shaped our course to the southward.
Captain King had given orders to the ship’s steward, that I should receive his (Captain King’s) own ration of provisions, on which I was to subsist as well as I could. This quota (according to the usual allowance of the navy,) would have been amply sufficient, but by some unaccountable want of management, the Buffalo, notwithstanding the length of time occupied in preparation, was at last sent to sea with a very limited supply of provisions; nor was what she really had of the kind or quality invariably allowed in the King’s service; the consequence was, that on the very day of our sailing, all hands were put upon half-allowance of bread, (that is, half a pound per day,) and the other half of rice: this latter grain was also substituted on banyan days for pease and for oatmeal: of cheese and butter we were also destitute; so that we had not a prospect of much good living before us. Of the rice, the crew soon became so much tired, that they ceased to draw any from the purser, leaving it in his hands, to be compensated for at the end of our voyage. The salt-meat was also barely adequate to the computed length of our passage to Rio de Janeiro, the first port at which we could hope for a further supply. The reader will allow that half a pound of bread was little enough for a man’s daily ration, (being just two biscuits) but ere we had been six weeks at sea, it was found necessary to reduce the allowance to one-third of a pound; and, in a few weeks more, it was lowered to one quarter, that is, a biscuit a day! The necessity of these reductions arose from a discovery that the rats, cockroaches, and other vermin, with which the ship was infested, had made a most destructive devastation in the bread-room, besides which, a leak in the side had admitted so much salt-water, that a great many bags of biscuit were totally spoiled, thereby adding to our distress, which was before sufficiently great. Even the small portion of bread we did receive, was scarcely eatable, most of it being very old stores, and full of maggots, and what was baked in the colony being of a very coarse quality, and every biscuit more or less excavated by the vermin before-mentioned. The Buffalo, as I have before shewn, was detained several months, for the purpose of being properly victualled, and after all, the purser had been obliged to take a quantity of wheat in casks, for consumption in some shape or other, as it was found inexpedient to wait longer for a further supply of biscuit. This wheat, when the crew were tired of rice, was boiled in lieu of pease, and served out at dinner-time, but it was so unpalatable a mess, that I, among many others, could never stomach it, being thrown into the coppers, dust and all, boiled in stinking water, and when taken up, it was nearly as hard as when first put in, and much inferior to the food of pigs in England. The ship’s company at length were convinced of their folly, in suffering such a mode of cookery, or rather waste, for very few could eat it; and, there being luckily a steel-mill on board, it was ordered to be put up in the after gun-room, and every mess in the ship, in its turn, ground the next day’s portion of wheat over night, and sifting the meal, produced a bag of tolerable flour, of which the cook composed a certain food for breakfast, known among sailors by the name of skilligolee, being, in plain English, paste, similar to that used by the sons of Crispin, only not quite of so thick a consistence: however, it was much preferable to the hog-wash before-mentioned, and, with a little sugar, served as an apology for a meal.
I have before observed, that I drew Captain King’s ration of provisions, but he withheld the daily allowance of spirits, forming part of the said ration, which he himself received, and deposited in his private liquor-case. It is, however, probable that his lady, who was a rigid economist, was the suggester of this practice. By way of composition, this good lady gave directions that I should receive a dram every day from her own steward. This trifling indulgence by the by, was not ordered me, until the severity of the climate compelled me to give a hint on the subject, and after about three week’s continuance it was put a stop to, on pretence of the stock becoming low. Upon the whole, I suffered a great deal from the scantiness, as well as the quality of my allowance, and the want of certain comforts to which I had been accustomed, particularly during the severe weather which we encountered in our voyage round Cape Horn. It soon appeared that I was not to eat the bread of idleness; I was employed from morning till night in copying and arranging Captain King’s papers, of which he had several large trunks full. I had also the tuition of his daughter Miss King, who was about twelve years of age, and performed the same duty towards Mr. Marsden’s two children, as well as a native boy about fourteen, who had been brought up in the family of Mr. Marsden. This youth had received the rudiments of a good education, and discovered a most susceptible genius. He could read and write tolerably well, was perfectly docile, and well-behaved, and would doubtless have been an object of general admiration, and reflected the highest credit on his humane benefactors had he ever reached England, but unhappily during our stay at Rio Janeiro, he absconded from the house of his protectors, in consequence of some chastisement for misconduct, and, notwithstanding every exertion was used, he could not be recovered before the ship’s departure.