Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-11-09
WRECKED IN NIID-PACIFIC.
The Romantic Adventure of Some Cast
away Sailors on Tanning Island.

! The Romantic Adventure of SOme Cast
away Sailors on Tanning Island.
A representative of the San Francisco
Alta gained information that the schooner
Malolo had arrived at this port with the
1 Captain, second mate, steward and four
of the crew of the schooner Premier, long
! since supposed to be lost. The reporter
/ found the second mate of the Premier
| who said: $50 YOu want to know some
thing of the Premier and her crew, eh
The Premier left Eureka, Humboldt coun-
ty, some time in 1888, with a cargo of
| redwood which she discharged at
| Sydney. On Jan. % of the present
| year she sailed from Newcas-
/ tie, n. s. W., loaded with $50 tons of
! coal, to be landed at Eureka. On March
IL it wa discovered that she had sprung
1 aleak. For % days we worked like mad
men, scarcely taking time to eat of our
/ poor and meagre rations. One day, while
! drifting about, we sighted what we sup
! posed to be an island, but upon coming
nearer we discovered that it was nothing
but barren rock. With saddened hearts
we tackled about in another direction.
On the twenty-secOnd day after we dis
covered the leak wesaW ahead of us what
looked to be quite large piece of land.
When about entering harbOr we struck
upon a coral reef.
of the island, and upon making inquiry
were told that we were in English Har-
Dor, a little inlet in Tanning Island. This
island is good many miles south of the
Hawaiian Islands, and is owned by a
ScOtchman named Gregg, who was ship
wrecked about twenty-three years ago,
and who found his way to that place. He
married a native woman and has had
seven children by her. One is a beautiful
girl of II years. She was educated at the
Sandwich Islands, and has Travelled eX-
tensively in Europe and the United States.
She seems to like her island home. In fact,
she has often told me that she would not
exchange it for any other in the world.
One day whilst Capt. Gregg was on his
way to Honolulu the first mate of the
Premier, who had been makiCg love in a
surreptitiouS fashion 10 this daughter of
the sea, proposed to her, was accepted, |
and, in the presence Of all the Inhabitants
Of the island, they consented to take each |
other as husband and wife, with pro-
yIsO On the part Of the young woman that |
the mate never return to his native |
country to live.
"Fanning's Island is nearly seven miles |
long and about four in WIDTH. There is |
much guanO upon it, and cocOanuts and |
bananas are also abundant. Capt. Gregg |
is the pOssesSOr of considerable wealth, |
acquired through the sale OF cobra and |
guano. There are number of chickens !
upon the island, as We'll as goats and |
mich COWS. Capt. Gregg is the owner of |
nice bark. which he uses to ply between |
his place and the Sandwich Islands. He
was extremely Kind to us and, must say,
has but one fault, and that is the appetite
for alcoholic liquors. He thinks nothing
of drinking half gallon a day. After
we ran upon the reef it was necessary to
ge5 rid of our cargo, which we did with
the assistance of the natives, and that's
saved at any rate.
ave remained upon FanninG's Island
for about six months. On Sept. IL the
MalOlo stopped there for a cargo of cobra.
On the 18th she went to Washington
Island, returned TO Fanning's Island and
left there with the crew of the Premier on
the 25th-that is, all save the first mate,
who remained to pursue his honeymoon
and look after the damaged schooner"