By Nancy Grant Adams

"My Sea-Faring Family"

By Nancy Grant Adams

In this issue of Historic Nantucket we continue the story of Mrs. Nancy Adams' "Sea-Faring Family", a remarkable story of a remarkable family, by a remarkable lady.

MY SEA-FARING FAMILY: A true account of the whalemen:

Charles Grant Nancy J. Grant Charles W. Grant George A. Grant 1814-1906 1823-1905 1850-1882 1857-1942

by

Nancy Grant Adams 1887-1968 daughter of George A. Grant

Dedicated to all the Descendants of Charles and Nancy Grant who were Sea-fares CHAPTER III

CABIN BOY ON THE SHIP JOHN JAY BEFORE THE MAST ON THE SHIP MARIA

"0, to sail to sea in a ship To leave this steady, unendurable land, To leave the tiresome sameness of the Streets, the sidewalks and the houses; To leave you, 0 solid motionless land, To sail, and sail, and sail." From "Leaves of Grass", by Walt Whitman

THE 365 - TON SHIP MARIA was built at Haddam, Conn., in 1822. Her maiden voyage was made in 1822 with Captain George W. Gardner as Master. Returning in 1825, he took her out again from 1825 -1828. Her next voyage was in 1828 - 1832 with Captain Benjamin Ray and it was then that Charles Grant made his second voyage.

From 1832 -1836, Captain Alexander Ray was Master, followed by two voyages ending in 1842 with Captain Elisha Fisher, his second voyage being the biggest the ship ever made, bringing in 2413 bbls. of sperm and 21 bbls. of whale oil.

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On this voyage his agents, C. Mitchell & C., wrote a letter to Joseph Balch, Esq., Merchant's Ins. office, Boston, as follows: Sir: We have just received a letter from Captain Fisher, of the ship MARIA, dated Valparaiso, end of December, 1837, informing us that on the 25th of November, while cruising off the island of Juan Fernandes, he sent a boat ashore for the purpose of procuring some recruits. The boat was taken possession of by some armed men on shore, who obliged them to go on board the ship, when they took possession of her and obliged Captain Fisher to carry them to Valparaiso, alleging as an excuse for their piratical acts that they had been robbed by Peruvians a few days previous of everything and that they were in distress. Captain Fisher, finding remonstrance in vain, made the best of his way for the port, and succeeded in escaping the vigilance of the Peruvian Squadron, which was blockading the port, and, when within reach of the batteries, they commenced firing upon the ship. One shot only took effect, which stove one of his boats. Captain Fisher then went ashore and entered his protest against such piratical conduct and with the assistance of the American Consul succeeded in obtaining his release and a compensation of five hundred dollars, which was all he could obtain, together with liberty to proceed to sea immediately, which he would do on the day his letter was dated, and proceed to cruise for whales, of which he had procured 700 bbls. oil. The Governor's excuse for firing on the ship was that it was done by a subordinate officer in the absence of his superior. We shall communicate the above information to our government and urge it as reason for looking to them for more efficient protection.

Very respectfully, Your obedient servants.

From 1842 -1846 Captain Edward Jennings was Master and the next, from 1846 to 1850 was with Captain George A. Coffin in charge.

On this voyage the crew all deserted in California; doubtless the "gold fever" was in their blood.

In 1849 the Captain left the ship in Talcahuano, where he had become very sick. The ship was brought home by the 2nd Mate, Mr. Alley. She had taken only 898 bbls. of oil.

On the 15th of Sept., 1850, she sailed again with Captain David Baker

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as Master. He returned home early in the voyage, a very sick man, and the Mate, Mr. Perry, continued the voyage. She headed homeward but started to leak and he was obliged to put in at Rio de Janeiro, where she was finally condemned in Sept., 1854.

In a Nantucket paper there appeared an article about the old ship as follows: "The ribs of the old ship MARIA lie in the port of Rio de Janeiro. When she went on her last voyage Captain Baker of Nantucket was Master of her and Captain William H. Perry went as his Mate. Captain Baker was taken ill and left the ship at Payta and Captain Perry took command and sailed her the rest of the voyage. On her homeward trip she sprang a leak and, as Rio was the nearest port, he ran her in there. When she started leaking there were seven men down with the smallpox, the cook was dead, and the rest of the crew at work at the pumps night and day. Captain Perry condemned her and sent the oil home. We cannot find that she was ever raised."

This ship is not to be confused with the old ship MARIA, which was built at Scituate, Mass., in 1782. Her owners also owned the ship BEDFORD. Under command of Captain William Mooers this ship made many successful voyages. She had a remarkable career and was finally lost on Vancouver's Island in 1872, being then 90 years old.

When a ship is about to sail on a voyage the owners generally write their instructions to the Captain. The following letter is one that was written to another Captain of the MARIA, but was no doubt a repetition of what was written to Captain Benjamin Ray.

Captain —

Sir: Having appointed you to take command of the ship MARIA, we wish you to proceed to sea with all dispatch, and as the ship is furnished with everything necessary for you to proceed to the Pacific Ocean, we do not think it necessary for you to touch at any port this side of Cape Horn, unless you should be so fortunate as to get oil on your passage before passing the Western or Cape Verde islands, in which case you can touch at most convenient port of the islands which you are nearest to, and ship it home.

Our friends in Boston are Josiah Bradlee & Son; in New York Josiah Macy & Son; to whom you will consign the oil which you may ship.

On your arrival in the Pacific Ocean, you will consider to be at liberty to cruise wherever you may think the prospect best for a cargo of oil. You are at liberty to go into port as often as it becomes necessary to recruit & refit your ship, but will not prolong your stay for social purposes; and while cruising at sea you will suffer no visiting to interfere with the interests of the voyage.

We have had much cause heretofore to complain of visiting and carousing, and expect it will be avoided by you.

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When in port, do not suffer your men to sell their clothes to buy fruit and liquor, but rather give them fruit to be brought on board, at the ship's expense, where it is plenty, and at no rate suffer liquor to be brought on board, except in a very small quantity, and that for medicinal purposes only.

Serious losses have occurred by suffering the officers to neglect a part of their duty, which you must not allow; we mean the practice of leaving the deck in care of boatsteerers, who are not paid for that service. And that you may not misunderstand us in this respect, we repeat that it is our desire that you require the mates to take their daily watch in the night-time while at sea, through the whole voyage. It will be no justification for them to omit part of their duty because it is not practised on board some other ship.

We wish you to bear in mind that perfect order is to be maintained on board ship by you and that no quarrelling is to be allowed among your officers, nor between them and the crew, as the success of the voyage depends very much on the harmony and united exertion.

If the means for recruiting the ship with which you are furnished should not be sufficient, you are at liberty to draw on the owners to supply the deficiency.

You will remember to write the owners by every opportunity and keep them informed of the state of the ship and the progress of the voyage, and when you go into port and no direct opportunity offers to send letters home, write and leave them in the care of the Consul or some other person who will take care to forward letters home, by the first conveyance.

You have on board now, twenty-two men, including officers. You are at liberty, after getting round Cape Horn, to ship such men on fair and reasonable terms as will enable you to man the boats, provided you think it will be for the advancement of the voyage, always bearing in mind to discharge them as soon as the interests of the voyage do not require their further service.

We have much cause of complaint that a ship's tools have not been properly cared for; we wish you, on your return to have a correct inventory made of them and such as are not wanted properly packed in a cask and headed up. We also wish, immediately after sailing, to have the ship's spars branded. The bra; i for this purpose is now in the tool chest.

On your return we wish a full inventory of the state of the spars, sails and rigging, belonging to the ship, as also all the craft and appurtenances.

We also wish you to keep a record of all trading for, or on account of, the ship or owners. We have named no particular ground where we desire the ship to cruise. Our desire is to have you steer by your own

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compass, and after making up your judgement as to what is best, follow no man's lead because he is going on this or that grounds. You have our warmest wishes that your voyage may be prosperous and happy. George B. Upton For Owners of the ship MARIA

Captain Benjamin Ray set his course on the MARIA for the Azores, after crossing the Gulf-Stream, which takes a day or two. In this case the owners had given him permission to stop to recruit fresh vegetables etc. as the ship sailed in a bad season for obtaining same from home. There are nine islands in the Azores group.

The watch at the mast-head called out "land-ho" and there they were near Fayal. The health officers of the island inquired Where are you from?" and "How many days out?" If all is well the Captain is permitted to send boats ashore.

Here they obtained oranges, apples, wine, fowl and eggs for much cheaper prices than they could be purchased at home, so they stocked up.

The Portuguese from these Islands make good sailors for the ship and many come to the United States and settle down and make exceptionally good citizens. This is providing the young man, of this time, can escape military duty.

The Master of the ship has absolute power, the officers having secondary power. The Captain stands no watch. He takes daily observations and sets the course of the ship. He takes the sun at noon and works up the latitude by observations.

He is the only one who finds the longitude by chronometer. The Mate keeps the dead reckoning and compares it with the Captain's observations, sometimes every day and sometimes once a week.

The first Mate has the most arduous duty. He keeps the log, oversees the storing of supplies. When all hands are called he is at the fo'castle and with his watch sees that everything is ship-shape above the decks.

The second Mate has the charge of the starboard watch which is stationed in the waist of the ship. The third Mate's duties are the same.

The next rank is the boatsteerers, one for each boat. It is their duty to keep the boats clean and ready for action. Then the Cooper, Carpenter, Blacksmith, Cook and Steward. The Steward takes care of the ship's stores and distributes the provisions according to the orders from the Captain.

"And so off-shore let the good ship fly, Little care I how the gusts may blow. In my fo'castle bunk in a jacket dryEight bells have struck, and my watch is below."

At eight bells, which is eight o'clock, in the evening, all hands must disperse from gatherings and sky-larking. Some go to bed and some to deck duty.

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The watches are set for four hours at a time. At four bells the wheel and look-outs are relieved and, at eight bells, one half of the watch is through, the other half is called on deck.

The watch is called from below with a call like this: "Starbo-o-ard watch ahoy!" or "Larbo-o-ard watch", whichever is to be called. The masthead is manned at daylight, the decks are scrubbed, and things made ship-shape.

When the ship is cruising on the whaling grounds, there are six men at the masthead on the lookout for whales, from sun-up to sun-down, in two-hour shifts. In all kinds of weather the masthead must be manned. The watch at the top gallant masthead stands on two thin parallel boards, on the top gallant crosstrees, leaning against rings to hold him up.

It is not a cozy duty at any time, especially when' it is cold and stormy. Their peajackets are never warm enough to keep out the biting cold winds. The ship sometimes rolling and pitching so that maintaining a foothold on the crosstrees is almost impossible. When the two hour watch is over, the man is only too glad to come down from his lofty perch and give over the watch to the next man.

The watch is ordered "to keep your weather eye peeled and sing out every time you see a whale." The Captain often offers a bounty to give a little more incentive to keep looking. This would sometimes be an extra lot of tobacco, a gold piece or some special inducement to keep the look-out alert.

When a man raises a whale he gives the cry, "Tha-a-a-a-a-blo-ows" in a long drawn-out cry. The Captain or Mate immediately replies, "Where away?" The direction is then called down from aloft, "two points off the lee bow", or "dead ahead". Action on deck begins at once. All hands are called to man the boats and they are off to harpoon the whale, if possible.

Breakfast is at seven-thirty. After breakfast the carpenter, cooper and blacksmith all get to work on deck. The men on watch are kept busy - no idleness is allowed. The life on board, between catching whales, can be very dull. After all, four years in close proximity can be very monotonous. The same routine day in and day out. Sometimes the men get quarrelsome and sometimes get to hate each other.

There are generally about 25 to 30 men on board, who are all shipped on the share basis. Every member of the ship's crew, from the Captain down to the "boy" receives his "lay", as it is called. In many cases a member of the crew uses up his entire lay before the voyage is over. He would buy clothing from the ship's "slop-chest" for which he was charged exhorbitant prices, and also tobacco and whatever else was available was purchased from the ship's stores.

We have been told that outfitters supply a "greenie" with chest and contents for a four-year voyage. It is common knowledge that the out-

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fit, so called, is "made of bull's wool and dog's hair woven together by thunder and lightning". The supply might consist of two red or blue woolen shirts, two under-shirts, two pairs of drawers, one pair woolen pants, one round jacket, two pairs of thin pants, two "hickory" shirts, a sou'wester, two pairs of stockings and one pair of shoes. Also a jackknife, comb, looking-glass, paper of needles, one quarter pound of thread, five pounds of tobacco, a keg of oil soap, tin cup, pan and spoon, mattress and pillow and blankets. Seventy-five dollars for the lot. There is a story of one sailor being charged as follows, on the ship's records. "Flannell shirt. One you had, $2.50. One you didn't get, $2.50. One you are going to get, $2.50."

Also the Captain would lend them some money on account when going ashore. The sailor's return home after a voyage would net him little or nothing and he would then have to promptly ship out again in order to live.

If at any time the ship becomes short-handed, through death, desertion or accident, the Captain may ship men from any place where they might stop. Many times it would be Kanakas from the South Sea Islands.

There is no log available for this voyage so we have to consider it was like any other voyage on any other ship. We have notes from a journal kept by the ship's carpenter of the ship MARIA on the next voyage, 183236, with Captain Alexander Macy.

"Sailed from Tarpaulin Cove Oct. 18, 1832"

Built a hog house. I am twenty-one years old today. At Charles Island went to see the famous Governor who lives about three miles from the landing at a place called the lower spring. We walked up and stayed until sun-set, walked back and came aboard. We went after tortoises and got 40. Black Beach is a settlement nine miles from the landing, 40 or 50 houses built, about 100 inhabitants, houses built of sticks covered with straw, without doors or windows. The ground is very fertile. They raise corn, potatoes, pumpkins, watermelons in abundance. Acres and acres nothing but rock and thorns.

Eleven months out they spoke the ship MARY, 22 out, 900 bbls. On her came Frederick Myrick, an old friend of mine. I gave him letters and papers. Her skipper was Captain David Paddock. In June 1833 they spoke the ship SWIFT, Captain Barzillai Coffin, and the BALTIC, Captain William Chadwick. Both Captains were about sixty and quite too old to be going Round the Horn a whaling. "Oh, my stars, if we had seen as many whales as ships we should have been filled now and bound home." He was sick in heart and sick at the stomach.

In November spoke the OMEGA, Captain Phelan, 4% out, 100 bbls. Got letters from home. Anchored at Tumbez and shipped three Spaniards and a monkey, also a boy John that had been to Nantucket in the LOPER. At Paita in Sept. 1835 found the GEORGE & SUSAN, Captain Edward

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Gardner, 25 out; and the CHARLES & HENRY, Captain George Joy, 34 out. In November shipped Charles Chapman, about 16 years old, belonged in Connecticut, came out in the ISAAC HOWLAND, ran away, but afterward taken, but not until Captain Swain had shipped another man to supply his place. He was given his choice of three evils: to go on board the HOWLAND and take a flogging or work six months on the roads at Talcahuana, or go on board the MARIA and go home. He, like a wise youth, chose the latter."

There is no doubt but that the voyage of the MARIA on which Charles Grant was a member of the crew, had the same experiences as this carpenter of a subsequent voyage. It was to this sort of life that he was being educated. He found "fore the mast" not too simple or easy.

He could climb the ratlines like a monkey and was learning to be a good man aloft, but the life on board was very hard and he wished many times that he was home in a nice cozy chair by the fire.

He had by this time nearly forgotten his very horrible experience on the JOHN JAY but he was not having it too easy with Captain Ray, as he, too, was a hard task master and one of the experiences Charles was to witness was pretty bad. It was a Sunday afternoon and one of the sailors was whistling. The Captain heard him and told him to tie up his whistle, and the Mate heard the sailor give a saucy answer under his breath.

The Mate promptly reported this to the Captain, who promptly had the offender tied up to the pumps for flogging. He was struck once and the crew interfered and released the man. Then followed a big row. Captain Ray feared there would be violence, so he grabbed a cutting spade to defend himself.

Joseph Porter, one of the sailors, rushed up to take the spade away from the Captain and scuffled for it, Porter at length getting a finger cut off by the sharp edge of the spade. This so enraged him that he wrestled with the Captain and took the spade away and threw him in the scuppers.

All this time Charles was a silent spectator of the fray, taking no part in it. Ambrose Jordan, another seaman, now came up, seized the spade and was going to beat the Captain with it. John Williams, a darkey, who was regarded by all as a man of mean, ugly nature, did a good deed at this juncture. He stepped in and taking the spade away, hove it overboard. The up-shot of the whole row was that they made the Captain promise not to flog the offending sailor and quiet was restored.

Charles was not too happy over this occurrence, but it was a good thing it happened because it cleared the atmosphere for the remainder of the voyage all worked with a will, making a good catch. In later years Charles said this was the nearest to being a mutiny of any time he ever saw.