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Griffith submitted, and with the Mate, Steward, and 2 crew-members were secured in the focscle. The Captains request a boat for the female passengers and loyal crew was refused, but it was promised that they would be put ashore at the first land they reached. New Zealand was sighted on Dec 7, but due to a storm and damage to the ship, it was Dec 19 before they were finally able to land. The Captain and passengers were put ashore with flour & sugar. The 2 seamen Roberts and Ramsay were forced to stay on board to help man the ship.
Soon afterwards 2 ships, the whaler "Eliza" and the "Sabine" bound for San Francisco put into the same Bay, and were made aware of the piracy. "Sabine continued her journey while "Eliza" took the party to the nearest settlement at Monganui where they were received by Captain Butler and Magistrate White before whom depositions were made. The Gregory girls remained in Captain Butlers charge until they could be returned to family in Sydney.
(I have a photo of the Butler house, courtesy the Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand, to whom I am indebted for the N.Z. end of the story).
The "Eliza" then took the girls to Auckland on December, 27th, and they were returned to Sydney aboard the "Moa" which arrived 17th February, 1850. One link in the story is still missing - the name of the ship which finally returned the girls to their family in Maryborough. They lived out their lives here, and we know Margaret made at least one more trip to Sydney, as she was there when her husband George Irwin died suddenly March, 1863. He is buried behind the hotel "Royal Oak" on the old Gayndah Rd, which they had opened in 1862. Margaret and George had married in 1856, but there were no children. She ran the hotel on her own for another 13 years then returned to Maryborough where she built shops in Adelaide Street, then purchased and ran the Australian Hotel (rebuilding it after the original building was destroyed by fire). She died after surgery in 1896. Mary Ann Maria was also involved in the hotel business and was licencee of the "Queens" Hotel (built and owned by the Goodwin's) for 6 years before her marriage to widower Henry Philip Mills in 1871. Both died 1882.
But to return to our "Pirates". Thanks to information passed on by the ship "Sabine", they were arrested and the ship confiscated when they put into Upolo, in the Western Samoa group of islands. They had painted out its name and substituted that of "Pilot" out of Adelaide. The "Pilot" had recently been wrecked at "Nobby's", but operated out of Newcastle - that mistake and the incorrect spelling of Adelaide plus the information brought by "Sabine", was sufficient evidence for the authorities. The ship was returned to Sydney and the pirates imprisoned and tried.
A full description of the pirates was given on March 16 1850, in the publication mentioned above. James WILSON, the ringleader (and former Captain of the "Helen") was described as about 5ft 9in, fresh complexion, light brown hair, very white teeth, supposed to be a native of Salem (USA). Formerly belonged to the American brig "Tim Pickering". Afterwards mate of the cutter "James and "Amelia" from Sydney to Tahiti. He was afterwards mate of the schooner "Castlereagh" which was wrecked at the Sandalwood Islands, the mate and skipper of the barge "Louisa", and from thence Master of the brig "Helen". He generally carries his head a little on one side when walking, also so when speaking. Aged about 28 years. Certainly a full description! It seems his main grudge was against the owners of the "Helen", a Messes Tebbutt and Inder, who had replaced him as Captain with Capt. Griffith's some time prior to sailing, and he had come on board as a passenger.
The others involved were also described. They were - Joseph LUCAS, James Thomas GREGORY (no relation to the Gregory sisters), Henry ATKINS (alias AUSTIN), John JOHNSON, Thomas ROSS, John RYAN, and Isaac PAINTER (Paynter*). John ROBERTS (Robson*) and Andrew RAMSEY, the 2 sea-men forced to stay aboard the "Helen" were also briefly described. Thomas Ross, one of the men stowed away in the hold, had previously been employed by Tebbutt and Inder and may have had some personal grudge. John Ryan is named as the other one. Michael CRAWLEY was at first thought to have also stowed away, hut Mrs Crawley was able to produce a receipt which showed he had paid 30 shillings for his passage. He kept a sailors boarding house in King St, Sydney.
* Variations of names in different reports.
If anyone is interested in further information of any of the above please contact Jan Downman, c/o MDFHS, 1st floor, Maryborough Heritage Centre, cnr Wharf & Richmond Sts, Maryborough 4650. My grateful thanks to the John Oxley Library, Brisbane and the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington for their expert assistance. Both have provided references to other documents held at other Libraries which may be of interest to other researchers.
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