so they must exert themselves to save as much as possible;* and although they were not in the King’s pay, yet as a magistrate acting within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty, I would punish all deviations from obedience and good conduct in them, the same as amongst our own seamen.  I ordered the Cato’s men, who had saved nothing, to be quartered in the messes of our people, in the proportion of one to three; and directed lieutenant Fowler, who had charge of the provisions, to victual all alike.  The surgeon of the Porpoise was ordered to examine the wounded, and give in a list of those really incapable of duty; and a large party, consisting of as many men as the two cutters could contain, went off to the wreck under the command of Mr. Fowler, to disembark provisions and stores.

[* When a merchant ship is lost, the seamen not only cease to be in pay, but lose all wages due to them after the last delivery of the cargo; and the sole interest they have to save the stores, even of their own ship, is for the preservation of themselves, or the prospect of being rewarded by the owners or insurers.]

A top-sail yard was set up and secured as a flag staff on the highest part of the bank, and a large blue ensign hoisted to it with the union downward, as a signal to the Bridgewater.  We expected, if no accident had happened, that she would come to relieve us from our critical situation so soon as the wind should be perfectly moderate; but I judged it most prudent to act as if we had no such resource, and this was justified by the event.  Captain Palmer had even then abandoned us to our fate, and was, at the moment, steering away for Batavia, without having made any effort to give us assistance.  He saw the wrecks, as also the sand bank, on the morning after our disaster, and must have known that the reef was not all connected, since it is spoken of by him as lying in patches; but he did not seek to ascertain whether any of the openings were passable for the Bridgewater, and might enable him to take those on board who had escaped drowning.  He bore away round all; and whilst the two hapless vessels were still visible from the mast head, passed the leeward extremity of the reef, and hove to for the night.  The apprehension of danger to himself must then have ceased; but he neither attempted to work up in the smooth water, nor sent any of his boats to see whether some unfortunate individuals were not clinging to the wrecks, whom he might snatch from the sharks or save from a more lingering death; it was safer, in his estimation, to continue on his voyage and publish that we were all lost, as he did not fail to do on his arrival in India.*

[* Against a British seaman filling a respectable situation, these are heavy charges; but Mr. Palmer is himself the authority.  The following extracts from his account are taken from a Calcutta paper, the Orphan of Feb. 3, 1804.