Captain William Twizell Wawn
The South Sea Islands Islanders and the Queensland Labour Trade
Mr Morey's Official Report
Here is the report :—
The Police Magistrate, Townsville, to the Colonial Secretary.
Townsville, 1st July, 1884.
Sir,—I have now the honour to submit a report, as directed, with reference to the operations of the labour vessel Ceara, during her cruise for labour in January and part of February last, among the islands of the Louisiade Group, and to furnish the evidence taken before me during the inquiry.
Before commencing any inquiry I carefully read and noted the contents of the respective log-books of the Lizzie and Ceara, kept by the Government agents during their first visit to that group in January and February last.
And in this connection I may say that the entries in the log-books agree in the main with the answers given to my questions respecting the dates when recruiting began, the number of recruits, the islands from which obtained, and the size and population where known.
If, therefore, the answers given to my questions were untrue, or coloured to make out a good case, then the log-books must have been falsified throughout.
The charge is, that, some short time prior to the 18th March, a large three-masted ship had visited Roussel, Sud-Est, and several smaller islands, and taken away nearly all the males by driving them forcibly, or by enticing them into the boats and carrying them away against their will, the islands being nearly depopulated by the people of this three-masted ship.
It appears from all the evidence I obtained that no Queensland labour vessel had visited and recruited boys from the Louisiade Archipelago prior to the visit of the Lizzie on the 4th January, and the Ceara on the 14th of January.
The Lizzie is a schooner having two masts.
The Ceara is a three-masted barquentine.
The charge made can only apply, therefore, to the Ceara.
The Lizzie, Captain Wawn, began recruiting at Mewstone Island on the 4th January, and continued it at various islands up to the 10th February. While she was at the Redlick Group (between the 4th and 12th January), the Lizzie got no recruits, as the natives were scared, and said, " If men go, you make their hands fast."
And on the 13th January, while at Grass Island, natives said that " white man catch-em fish (bèche-de-mer) had fired at them, and taken their women."
Reports of outrages continued to be made to Captain Wawn at various islands, particularly at several points of Sud-Est.
Now, the Ceara began her recruiting at Piron Island, close to Sud-Est, on the 14th January. It is plain, therefore, that the outrages reported to Captain Wawn up to that date (14th January) could not be charged against the Ceara.
And up to the 18th January, we have evidence that the Ceara was obtaining boys by fair means, since a recruit obtained by the Lizzie that day told Captain Wawn that the three-masted ship had obtained a lot of boys at Sud-Est, and had given much more " trade " to them than he (Wawn) was giving. Wawn then had to increase his presents, so as to obtain recruits.
Coming now to the two large islands, Roussel and Sud-Est, said to have been nearly depopulated by a three-masted ship (Ceara ?), I find that the Ceara, between the 15th and 17th January, recruited some twenty-five boys from Sud-Est.
But the Lizzie coming after her, namely, between the 18th January and 3rd February, recruited ninety-three boys, mainly from the same island. If, therefore, the Ceara had used violence or fraud in obtaining her boys, it is hardly likely the Lizzie, coming just after her, could have obtained so many.
I may mention that Sud-Est is a large island—about 140 miles round—is populous and mountainous, and no labour ship could kidnap its people as described in the charge made. Small islands might be outraged in that way, but not populous and large ones.
The story of the three-masted ship (Ceara?) having nearly depopulated Sud-Est is, therefore, not well founded.
At Roussel — the island particularized in the charge—the Ceara obtained seventeen recruits; the Lizzie did not call there. This island also is a large one, but is reported as not populous.
I can find nothing in the evidence given, especially by the Roussel boys themselves, or in the Ceara's log-book, to raise a doubt as to the fair manner in which the boys were recruited. I was most careful to ascertain what each boy received in the way of " trade " or bribe to induce him to recruit, and to ascertain what he did with his " trade."
I may here mention that while the Ceara was recruiting at Roussel, the natives complained of a brig, Captain Pryer, or Prior, having taken people away against their will.
On the 3rd February, while the Lizzie was recruiting at Sud-Est, Captain Wawn was told that a three-masted ship had lately passed through (presumably among the islands), and had several Sud-Est women on board.
On the 25th January the Ceara did obtain two recruits from Sud-Est, but the Government agent, the recruiter, and master all say no women were recruited or on board ; no women were seen, in fact. If any women were kidnapped and brought aboard they must have been got rid of before the ship arrived at Townsville. I may here mention that Captain Inman's wife accompanied him during that voyage of the Ceara.
Another complaint was made against a three-masted ship by the people of Grass Island, on the 8th February, to Captain Wawn. The people told him the "ship had been fighting them."
But on the 14th January the people of the same island told Wawn (on his first visit) that a bèche-de-mer vessel had fired at them.
Now there is no evidence that the Ceara was at Grass Island. If, however, outrages between the 14th January and 8th February were committed, and by a three-masted vessel, then the charge points to the Ceara, for we have no knowledge of any other three-masted ship being in the neighbourhood.
Coming to the evidence I obtained from fourteen of the recruits from Sud-Est, and from eight Roussel islanders, I may say that their statements entirely bear out the evidence given by the Government agent, the recruiter, and master of the Ceara as to the fair manner in which these people were recruited. There is a discrepancy as to the names of some of the boys, and name of island from which they came, but I incline to believe that boys belonging to other islands were found at and recruited from Sud-Est, the native name of which is Eaba.
I spent much time in unravelling the confused statements made in reply to my questions, and committed to paper the substance only of what I gathered.
I noticed that when a boy was being questioned as to what " trade " he received, he would correct the interpreter, or rather would inform him if he had received anything out of the usual trade—such as looking-glasses, leggings, and so on.
Although I had to trust to the very imperfect translation of replies to my questions by Pudow, a Kassaway Island native, my own interpreter being useless in the case of all save the Roussel Island boys, yet I feel confident I caught the true intent and meaning of each boy I questioned.
I could not obtain from any of the boys a definite answer as to the remuneration they were to receive. I therefore confined my questions to the main charge—namely, kidnapping.
That outrages of some kind—if not of kidnapping—had been perpetrated on most of the islands visited by the Lizzie and Ceara there can be no doubt, for both those ships had reports made to them of ill-treatment. In one instance the natives complained of a Captain Pryer, or Prior, master of a bèche-de-mer vessel. This is the same man who took away a woman named Murdie from Eaba (Sud-Est). (See evidence given by Jawille, a native of Eaba.)
There is a Captain Fryer, master of the bèche-de-mer brig Julia M. Avery, sailing out of Cooktown.
I learn further that George Rotumah, who took the news of the outrages to the Rev. Mr. Lawes, is connected with one Nicholas Minister, master of the Eileen, bèche-de-mer cutter, and is interested in her fishing.
And Captain Wawn says that lying reports of the doings and intentions of Queensland labour ships have been spread by bèche-de-mer people for selfish purposes, and that the alleged outrages by a three-masted ship (Ceara) had its origin in that way.
I have thus far commented on the evidence at my command, and now, in conclusion, do myself the honour to report that there is not the slightest evidence to show the Ceara obtained any labourers on that voyage by kidnapping.
Nor is there evidence to show she obtained recruits by any unfair means or representations.—I have, etc.,
EDMUND MOREY, Police Magistrate.
