The Adventure Of Elizabeth Morey, of New York by George Lewis Becke (short novels in english TXT) 📕

old _matabuli_,{*}... Oh, for God's sake, sir, do not delay! The natives have been planning to capture this ship and murder her people for the past three days."

Then as she became more collected she satisfied him that all of Captain Pendleton's party had been cruelly and treacherously murdered, and also told him her own terrible story previous to the arrival of the _Union_.

The destruction of poor Pendleton and Mr. Boston had been planned, she said, by the Malay; and when he and his native friends found that they could not induce Mr. Wright to further weaken his ship's company by sending another boat's crew on shore, so that the _Union_ might the more easily be captured, she was ordered under the most awful threats to act as decoy. Resolved to upset their diabolical plan, or die in the attempt, she gave an apparently cheerful assent to the meditated scheme of murder, and hence her appearance in the canoe with the treacherous Malay.

Under the kindly care of Mr. (now Captain) Wright, the young woman soon regained her health and strength in a great measure and her delight knew no bounds when he announced to her his intention of returning to Sydney Cove to refit before proceeding home to America. The _Union_, as we have before stated, entered Sydney harbour in October, 1804, and before that time the simple gratitude of the rescued girl to her rescuer had changed into a deeper and tenderer feeling. But we must not anticipate.

As soon as Captain Wright had made his report to the New South Wales authorities, Miss Morey went on shore, where she was treated most hospitably by the wives of some of the military officers, whilst Wright was refitting his ship.

A few days afterwards there arrived in Sydney Harbour an East India ship, the captain of which gave Wright some interesting particulars concerning the _Portland_ and Captain Melton. The latter had had a peculiar history. At the end of the year 1800 he appeared in Manila, where he was entrusted with the command of a brig belonging to a Mr. John Stewart Kerr, the American Consul of that city. His orders were to proceed to Batavia, and there dispose of his cargo, bringing in return saleable goods for the Manila market He was given also a letter of credit for $20,000 the better to load the vessel. On arrival at Batavia he sold the cargo and the brig into the bargain, and purchased in her place the _Portland_, a ship of about 400 tons. From Batavia he wrote to Kerr--he seemed to have been the Captain "Bully" Hayes of his time--informed him of what he had done and mentioned that as he intended to make "a long pleasure cruise" among the islands of the South Pacific, he did not expect to return to Manila for some considerable time!

He also, it is needless to say, duly cashed his letter of credit for $20,000, which six months afterwards was duly presented and taken up by Mr. Kerr.

The _Portland_ was then chartered by a firm of Dutch merchants at Batavia to proceed to Serra Bay to load rice and return to Batavia. Melton sailed to Serra Bay, loaded his cargo of rice, and instead of returning to Batavia, went to the Isle of France and there cheerfully sold it. The next account of him received at Manila was that he was having a "real good time" at the Cape of Good Hope, where his fascinating manners and command of money (Kerr's money) made him many friends. Suddenly, however, he and the _Portland_ disappeared, and Elizabeth Morey, as we have mentioned, accompanied him. He had given out that he was bound for the North-west coast of America, to enter into the fur trade, but, beyond that rumour, nothing more was heard of him until the _Union_ arrived at Port Jackson, and Elizabeth Morey told the tale of his dreadful end.

*****


No further mention of the names of Captain Daniel Wright, Elizabeth Morey, or the good ship _Union_ appear in the early Sydney records after 1806; but that the girl's rescue by the gallant mate of the whaleship led to her ultimate happiness we can safely assume, for in the year 1836 there were married in Honolulu, Sandwich Islands, one "Marie Kaiulani Shepherd, daughter of John Shepherd, to Daniel Morey Wright, master of the ship _Patience_, of New Bedford, and son of Daniel and Elizabeth Wright, of Salem, U.S.A."
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Publication Date: 08-10-2010

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