ROMANCE OF THE SEA.

Evening Post, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 84, 6 October 1909, Page 3

ROMANCE OF THE SEA.

A STRANGE SEQUEL. [FJttOM OUR OWN CORRC9PONDENT.] LONDON, 27th August. Writing from Georgetown, British Guiana, Eeuter's correspondent says :—: — Considerable sensation has been caused in Georgetown, British Guiana, by the arrival of a letter addressed to a local firm from a man who it was feared had been lost, together with every other soul, on board the ill-fated coolie ship Moy, which left this port in 1905, and has never been heard of since, being given up by Lloyd's, and all its complement being regarded as lost. Now, after a lapse of rather moro than four years, a letter has been received in Georgetown from Mr. A. K. H. Farquhar, who was formerly employed in one of the loeel newspaper offices, and who shipped on the Moy as an assistant steward. The letter is addressed from "Vancouver General Delivery, 30th June, 1909," and it states : "Did you think I. had forgotten you altogelher? It, is now ahout four years since I left you. We've had great doings. Left the Moy in a boat, and got to Key West after sixteen days. I've been in Texas about two years, doing broncho stunts. How's George? Tell all the chaps 'howdy' from me. Never played football since I left Demerara. Will write later.-.-Yours faithfully." The handwriting has been positively identified by a number of persons who know Mr. Farquhar well. The Moy was one of the fine fleet of clipper ships sailing under the flag of the Moargc Company in the Calcutta and Demerara service. After signing on a crew at Bristol in March, 1904, she went to Calcutta, where she shipped! 523 East Indian coolies for work vn the sugar estates of British Guiana. She arrived in Demerara on 22nd Januarj, 1905, and no little sensation was caused when it became known that forty-six of the coolies had died on the voyage, three moie died while the vessel was in the river, and it was found necessary to send eighty-eight more to the public hospital. A commission was appointed to make strict enquiry, and a lamentable state of affairs was disclosed. In consequence of this the Governor decided to withhold the surgeon's gratuity of £480, to stop the whole of the third officer's gratuity, half of the captain's and the second compounder's. Th; Moy subsequently left Demerara on 16th January, 1905," with 1000 tons ballast in band* and water. She has never been heard of since, nor up to the arrival of the letter from Mr. Faiquhar had there been any indication that there had been any survivor*,.