The Hampshire Family Historian | Vol.49 No.1 | June 2022

Member’s article

reported having discovered on Warson Island the remains of poor Mrs WATSON, her baby and her Chinese servant Ah Sam. On Thursday afternoon (19th inst. 1882) Captain BREMNER was endeavouring to beat south to No. 4 Howick. But was unable to fetch it and brought up for the night at No. 5 where his native boys caught some seasonable fish and were allowed to land for the purpose of cooking them. One of the boys who had wandered inland in search of eggs returned with a scared face and a rather indistinct story of having seen “um white dead fellow” and under his guidance the party discovered, on the south east beach the body of Ah Sam, Mrs WATSON ’s servant. Continuing their search they found not far distant, in a small lagoon close to the mangrove scrub, the tank, or rather three-quarter tank (used as a beche de mer boiler) missed from the Lizard and half filled with water from recent rains. When emptied it disclosed the missing lady and her baby, together with a chest containing a few articles of clothing for the baby, jewellery, trinkets and money tins of preserved milk, tins of sardines and of preserved meats, a small bag of rice, some groats and close to her side a cup, and a revolver, loaded and at full cock, together with a number of cartridges. STORY IN DETAIL. What happened after that is described graphically in the sad record kept from day to day by poor Mrs. WATSON herself in her diary. This diary was in two parts. The first part was written at the camp on l.izard lsland before she left in the tank, and was not recovered till 1883 - two years after her death - when it was found by chance in the ruins of the hut. The second part was that written during the time - eleven days -

they were drifting about among the waterless islands and sandbanks in the sea in half of a square ships tank in which they had barely sitting room and could not steer in any direction except where the wind and tide forced it to go. The tank measured 125cms x 130cms x 61cms.

The Tank and Paddles © Queensland Museum

THE DIARY. The diary was written with lead pencil, on a few sheets of note paper, and was as follows:- September 27 1881. Blowing gale of wind S.E. Ah Sam saw smoke in S. direction, supposed to be from native camp. Steamer bound north, very close about 6 p.m. – ‘Corea’ I think.

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