Historical Collections of The Hawaiian Islands - Kamehameha l (Part 10) The US GenWeb Archives provide genealogical and historical data to the general public without fee or charge of any kind. It is intended that this material not be used in a commercial manner. All submissions become part of the permanent collection. Historical Collections of The Hawaiian Islands " Keepers of the Culture " A study in time of the Hawaiian Islands Kamehameha l and stories told by the ancients -- part 10 Accounts told of; John Young Isaac Davis by Darlene E. Kelley November 12, 2000 http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00026.html#0006374 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ As told by the ancients; -- part 10. Before we go any farther in the story of Kamehameha l the stories related to me by the ancients, it is fitting that we go back and review the story of John Young and Isaac Davis. It is a story which should be told of most truest and loyal friends of Kamehameha l. Some of the studies reflect from John Youngs diaries, and others as told. " If honesty is the best policy, gratitude for past favors should never be obliterated from the mind." ------ John Young Little is known about the life of John Young before he came to the Hawaiian Islands. The logs of ships and recorded voyages of sea captains tell little of the life of common sailors, except that he was referred to as an ignorant seaman. He was certainly not ignorant, although, like many men of his time who walked the higher roads of society, he was unlettered. He was a gentleman, well bred man of fine feeling. Captain Vancouver in his accounts says that John Young was born in Liverpool. In an old letter it tells that he had two brothers, Peter and James, who were pilots in Liverpool. Reared in a family of seafaring men, John was versed in the lore of the sea, and it may be assumed that he had the love of adventure in his heart from the time he was born. His childhood being where and what it was, little could be have been imagined that he would be the personal friend and advisor of the King of the Sandwich Islands, thousands of miles away from England. Near the close of the American Revoluntionary War there were two ships-- The Eleanora, an American snow square-rigged vessel, under the command of Captain Simon Metcalf, a fur trader, and the Fair American, a small schooner which the Captain had purchased to act as a tender to the larger vessel. He had placed five or six men on the schooner as crew, and his young son, a boy of eighteen or twenty, he put in command. Captain Metcalf, in carrying on his fur trade, voyaged between the northwest coast of America and the Orient. In making his passage one way or the other, he sometimes stopped over at the Sandwich Islands for supplies. he made arrangement with his son that, should the two ships become separated at sea, they were to meet at Kealakekua Bay in Hawaii. The boat first reaching the Bay was to wait there for the other vessel. John Young was the boatswain on the Eleanora. On the way to Hawaii, Captain Metcalf stopped at the island of Maui. One night a small boat, in which a sailor was sleeping, was stolen from the stern of the ship. When the Captain learned about this, he demanded that the man and the boat be returned at once. He was told that the boat had been broken to pieces for its nails and that the man had been killed. He then offered a reward for the return of the bones of the dead seaman and for what was left of the boat. [ Since this was not the Captain's first visit to the islands, he probably knew of the Hawaiian custom of preserving the bones of the dead.] In the meantime, the natives had been permitted to contnue their trading with the men on the vessel. Three days later, the bones of the dead sailor and the stem and stern posts of the small boat were brought to the ship. The Hawaiians, believing the Captain was entiely satisfied asked when he would give them the reward. He replied that they should have it at once. He then ordered the guns of the ship to be loaded with musket balls and nails, and having tabooed one side of the vessel in order to get all of the Hawaiians with their canoes on starboard side next to the shore, the ports were hauled up and the guns fired amongst the canoes. Nearly one hundred natives were killed and many wounded. After taking this revenge, the Captain sailed for the island of Hawaii. Reaching Kealakekua Bay ahead of the schooner, Captain Metcalf waited there for his son. It was during this time that John Young went ashore. As told in John Young's diaries he was tired of being on ship and obtained permission to go ashore. The year was 1790. Leaving the ship of the Eleanora, he took a musket with him, thinking that he might get a few birds. He then went hunting. It was late in the afternoon when he returned, expecting to go aboard the ship which was anchored some distance out. To his dismay, the small boat, in which he had come ashore, was gone. Looking about, he saw that the native canoes were all hauled high on the beach. The grass houses were closed and not a person was to be seen. He waited some time, thinking a boat would surely come for him, but no boat came. When night set in he was still pacing the beach. In the story he told to Captain Barnard, he told that he felt a strange fear creeping over him as all was gloomy as death. He then decided to knock at one of the closed houses. He knocked, but there was no reply. He said that his own knock startled him, so great the silence. He was almost afraid to knock a second time, not knowing what he would encounter. But realizing that he might be in danger outside, alone in the darkness, he ventured to knock again and, much to his relief, the door was opened and he was invited in. The people in the house semed friendly. They offered him something to eat. But the expressions on their faces and their strange manner told him somthing dreadful had happened or was about to happen. Since he did not understand the Hawaiian language, he did not know what they were saying. He was given a place to sleep, but he was so worried that he could not close his eyes. He said later that the shadows that night were as specters, and he was afraid for his life. As soon as it began to get light, he crept from the hut and hurried down the beach hoping for a boat, but no boat came. The canoes, which he dared not touch, were still high and dry on the shore. He returned to the hut. There was great concern on every countenance. The narrative does not tell, but John Young probably wondered if the people had not heard of what had taken place on Maui. They knew that he had come from the ship, which they could see standing off shore. John Young may also have known of another incident; when Captain Metcalf had ordered a high chief to be flogged with knotted ropes, the chief had declared that he would take his revenge upon the first white man who came his way. So, it was not without reason that John Young was afraid. All day the natives remained in their closed houses. The second night was a repeat of the first, filled with apprehension and fear. Morning found him again on the beach looking for a boat. Then suddenly he saw that the ship was moving. All the forenoon, like a preying vulture oblivious to her nestlings, she stood in and out of the bay. John later told Captain Barnard of his feelings when he saw the ship wear off and rig out her sail booms, it almost overpowered him. He imagined the hour of death had arrived.