page_title: Colonist (1861)
section_title: 1889: Murder of Shipmaster William Greenlees
hierarchical_section_title: Colonist (1861) / Ship service history / 1889: Murder of Shipmaster William Greenlees
caption_attribution_description: English: Whaling ship Water Witch, a three-masted barque built in 1871. (From description supplied with photograph.)
context_page_description: Colonist was a general cargo and passenger schooner built in 1861 at Dumbarton Scotland by Denny & Rankine. It spent nearly 30 years plying the Western Pacific-based out of Sydney. It wrecked and later re-floated on the remote Elizabeth Reef 550 km from New South Wales, as well as being involved in the gold rushes. Its master was murdered before it was finally involved in a collision in Sydney Harbour, in which it was sunk.
context_section_description: On 22 May 1889 whilst the Colonist was lying at anchor in Havannah Harbour in the New Hebrides Group the shipmaster William Greenless was shot and killed by the supercargo of the vessel Henry Ernest Weaver.
  HMS Lizard was lying at Havannah Harbour at the time and a boat from her went all to the Colonist upon the report of firearms on board being heard. On boarding the schooner It was found that the captain had been shot while lying in his berth, and the body subsequently carried up and laid on the main hatchway. Weaver, the supercargo, was arrested by the officer from the Lizard with a sheath knife and two revolvers were taken from him, and he was convoyed to the Lizard, where evidence of the mate of the schooner and other eye-witnesses of the murder was taken. Subsequently HMS Opal arrived at Havannah Harbour from Noumea and Captain Bosanquet as senior officer and Deputy-Commissioner for the Western Pacific, assembled a High Commission Court on May 23 the result of the inquiry was that Weaver was committed or trial on a charge of wilful murder, and was remanded to the Court at Fiji and he and the witnesses were to be sent to Suva by the A.U.S. N Company's steamer Gunga. 
  Captain William Greenlees (Greenless) had been running vessels along the east coast of Australia since August 1855. He had worked his way up from smaller vessels and by 1868, he was the master of the 106-ton schooner Native Lass and was involved in blackbirding. From 1873 he was the captain of the Colonist for a number of runs, mainly involved in a Sydney Rockhampton run. 1877 – 1879 he was master of the schooner Heron, again actively impressing labour from the Pacific Islands. While in 1884 he was in command of the Brigantine Water Witch which was wrecked on Masthead island. Upon his death his widow was provided with £100 from the National Shipwreck Relief Society which was £30 above the membership entitlement.
  Henry Ernest Weaver (captain / supercargo), had been married in London in 1873 and then made his way to Brisbane. In March 1875 the master (Goodall) of the Queen May, a regular blackbirding vessel, died whist unloading supplies at Rockhampton. The mate then took over command but was then caught by floods in Rockhampton. So Henry Weaver was appointed as captain but after about a day and a half at sea the crew reported Weaver as insane and had fears for his safety. Alexander Goodall, aged 18, and a son of the just deceased Captain Goodall, was chosen by the crew as master and he proceeded back to Gladstone and handed Weaver over to the authorities.
  By 1876 Weaver was declared insolvent by his own petition due in part "to sickness, want of employment, and pressure on the part of creditors" with a debt of £212 14s. 6d. with no assets. By 1879 he had been appointed sub-lieutenant of the Queensland Government schooner Pearl.
  In May 1884 Weaver was sentenced to 9 months imprisonment for "obtained goods to the value of £6 15s from W. Royle by means of a valueless cheque".
  Prior to the Colonist leaving, Sydney Weaver had endeavoured to induce a friend of his to visit an island with him. Weaver related an extraordinary tale of hidden wealth on the island which was known only to him. The vessel cleared ostensibly for the Christmas Islands with no cargo and only a quantity of spades and firearms on board. The charts on board the schooner showedthe position of Christmas Islands and, as Weaver took all the sights himself, no one on board but he knew where the vessel was going.
  The Colonist put into Havannah Harbour for provisions and afterwards visited several islands. Weaver continually boasted that the clearance of the vessel was fictitious and often repeated to the officers the tale of the hidden wealth.
  Additionally Weaver had told various stories, as that he was on important business for the Imperial Government of a private nature, that he was going to play the part of Rajah Brooke on some island to the north, and that he was going to an island where there was an immense quantity of pearl shells ready collected, and waiting for him.
  In the High Commissio
caption: Water Witch prior to being wrecked on Masthead island under the command of Captain William Greenlees
exif: {}