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Updated: June 12, 2025
When Captain Murray heard that her machinery was out of order, he felt satisfied that she had gone on to Hong-kong, and as she would certainly be detained there for some time, she would not even yet be able to get back to the Bonins. "Perhaps," observed Tom, "Commander Rawson fancies we are lost, and if so he is not likely to come and look for us."
In those times the native labour for the Hawaiian sugar plantations was recruited from the islands of the Mid-Pacific, and from the chains of sandy atolls lying between the Bonins and the Radack Archipelago of the Marshall Group.
And then with a new ship, a new crew many of whom were Hayes's and Peese's former Chinese naval service pirates the partners sailed for the Bonin Islands, where Peese was well known, and had lived before. Two days ere making the Bonins a ship was sighted ashore on a reef.
It is colonized by Japs from the kingdom so easily reached to the westward, and the busy little people, after their manner, make a short stay very agreeable. Once clear of the southern end of Formosa we had quite a rapid run to the Bonins, carrying a press of sail day and night, as the skipper was anxious to arrive there on account of his recent injuries.
Their opinion was that, as her machinery was damaged, she would have run to Hong-kong, the nearest place at which it could be repaired; and that it would take several weeks before she could get back to the Bonins to look for them. That their captain would return they felt sure, unless he was convinced that they were lost.
"We have an important work to perform," said he. "Before we go we will obliterate our former directions and write fresh ones, saying where we are now going." I saw the wisdom of this precaution in case the Triton might visit the place; and, accordingly, with our knives we carved in a few brief words a notice that we were well and bound for the Bonins.
As we had now been some months without obtaining fresh provisions, we first directed our course for the Bonins, some degrees to the eastward of the coast of Japan. We understood that there were wild pigs, if not goats and sheep, on them. At all events, that fish could be caught in abundance off the shore. In a few days we sighted them, and ran under the lee of one of the group called South Island.
"You remember the day at the Bonins when the hurricane suddenly sprang up. We had just got on board and were looking out for you, when the commander, considering that we should to a certainty be driven on shore if we remained where we were, ordered the steam to be got up, intending to run round and take you on board.
"I wonder how the deuce he got to the Bonins and where he came from. He's not a runaway convict, anyway you can see that by the look in his eye. Seems a decent, quiet sort of a man, too. What d'ye think he is yourself?" "Runaway man-o'war's man," said Matthews, looking up aloft.
We had not got far, however, when one of our boilers burst, killing half a dozen men and committing other damage. We had now to depend upon our canvas, while the hurricane was every instant increasing in strength. The ship, however, behaved very well. We ran on before the gale for four and twenty hours, when a lull coming on, the commander, wishing to get back to the Bonins, hauled the ship up.
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