Romance Of The Sea – A 1857 Article
ROMANCE OF THE SEA – A 1857 ARTICLE
Newspaper article from 1857
The following article appeared in the Edinburgh Herald on 1 August 1857 and could well have first appeared in the Liverpool Daily Post. It was subsequently reproduced in the Sydney Morning Herald on 24 October 1857, the Hobart Town Mercury (Tasmania) on 30 October 1857 and in the Otago Daily Times on 28 November 1857.
ROMANCE OF THE SEA. – An adventurous Leith family
In the Birkenhead Dock there is now lying as pretty a little craft as ever hoisted a sail, the brigantine Union, Captain James Mucklejohn. Connected with this little “plougher of the deep” is a small romance which will doubtless be interesting not only to the nautical, but to the general reader. The Union is a model craft, and her commander is a ditto a seaman. The peculiarity of this case is this, that the vessel was built, is commanded, and crewed all by one family; and, moreover, sea service has been rendered by the wife of the master and mother of the crew.
Captain James Mucklejohn is a native of Leith, a hardy Scot. Having in his youth to encounter obstacles which ever beset those who aspire to make their way in the world, he resolved to fight with them like a man; and with that determination of action for which his country is so distinguishable he set himself to work to follow out to success one given course of life. Like all sensible men, the first want he found to the accomplishment of the object he had determined upon was a wife, a good one, and he happened to be fortunate in his choice. He engaged and consummated with a bonny lass from Inverness. His domestic position now being settled, he emigrated with her to Prince Edward’s Island about 26 years ago. A virtuous marriage is generally followed by a beneficial result. Natural contingencies resulted in this case; the family grew up all sons, and no one family appeared to live more happily, not even that of Noah’s ark, the beasts, of course, accepted. They settled down in the colony of Prince Edward’s Island as farmers, and were prospering.
As early aspirations in love lead to disquietude, so does early occupation oftentimes to discontent in position. The father had been brought up as a shipwright, and the sons had been originally taught the same trade. Notwithstanding the beauties of the broadfields, and the charms of rural life, a ship to them was more attractive than a farm. “They took counsel together,” and determined upon entering upon the ship-building trade. Prince Edward’s Island swarms with trees. Their axes went to work, and they hewed them down.
A determined course of proceeding had now been come to. In process of time they constructed some vessels entirely with their own hands, except the smith’s work, and brought them for sale to Liverpool, These vessels were sold by Messrs. Wilson & Co, of this port; the first one, the Isabel, of 140 tons, in 1852: in 1853, the Bee, of 97 tons, and in 1854, the Success, of 230 tons ; and, in addition to the occupation of farming and the act of shipbuilding, the family acquired the art of seamanship and navigation. Genius, however is always restless, always endeavouring, and ever accomplishing.
This family of unison had long had a desire to try their fortunes at the antipodes as farmers, or, perhaps, the temptations of the goldfields of Australia or New Zealand offered more inducements to the creation of wealth. They therefore came to the determination of leaving Prince Edward’s Island. How was this to be accomplished in a compact? After a family consultation, the father urged that the only way was to build a ship; the sons agreed with him, and they set to work, and built, entirely with their own hands, the brigantine Union, and fitted her out expressly to convey them to New Zealand. They launched her at Prince Edward’s Island on the 22nd of May, 1856, and sailed on the 24th of the next month with a cargo of timber for Belfast, where she arrived in 23 days – the Union being manned exclusively (save that Mrs. Mucklejohn invariably sails with the lot) by one family, Captain Mucklejohn, and his sons, James, John, Alexander, William, Robert and Lemuel. The second son Septimus, “had married a wife,” and therefore “could not come,” or, rather, “go”.
In Belfast they “coppered their good and trusty ship” and otherwise fitted her for a long voyage (matters which could not well be done on the island), and then left in ballast for Cardiff, where they took in coals for Alicante, in Spain, arriving there in eighteen days. They next proceeded south, taking a cargo of wine to Rio Janeiro, making the run in 90 days: thence to Montevideo, with salt taken from the cargo, of an American ship, in 14 days. By these means, that is, by a trading voyage, they were gradually approaching their destination, and making the speculation lucrative. But here, from some unexplained cause – probably the temptation of a good freight-the course was altered, and Captain Mucklejohn was induced to take in a cargo of bones and bone-ash at Pysondu for this port, leaving the River Plate on the 31st March. When out a short time they encountered a terrific gale, “the little ship trembled but never shrank” she battled with the waves “as would a mother for her child,” and being nearly overwhelmed, was, providentially saved by a sudden change of wind. The adventurers and their own built craft arrived here on the 17th June, and are now fitting out once more for the Antipodes. After leaving the Cape, she may, probably, call at the Mauritius, thence Australia or New Zealand.
Such is the history of a ship built, manned, and navigated by a single family.
