["Old Time Memories", The Northern Standard (Darwin, NT), Friday 30 October 1931, page 4]
OLD TIME MEMORIES
THE PIONEER PEARLERS OF BROOME
(Contributed by C. E. Gaunt, Fine Creek).
Should this article by chance meet the eyes of some of old timers of the pearling grounds of Broome they will be surprised that Gaunt of the "Mona" is still in the land of the living, existing on a bounty of seventeen and sixpence a week granted to him by a generous (?) government for pioneering work in the North.
I commenced pearling with a partner, S. C. Piggot, master pearler of Broome, one of the whitest men in N.W. Australia. Stanley Piggott and big Jimmy James, who were our two clerks at that time, are now in business as wine and spirit merchants, of Broome. Pearling was in full swing, prices good. shell from one hundred and forty to two hundred and sixty pounds per ton, Barroque and pearls top prices. The fleets were small but numerous. Streeters, gem merchants, of London, had a fleet, also a big store there. Captain Penny had command of the fleet. Later on Penny went down with the S.S. "Catherthun," of the Seal Rocks outside Sydney, on her way to Darwin. Nearly three hundred souls perished. Penny was chief officer and Capt. Neil Shannon in command. (Old time Darwinites will remember her). Captain Godfrey Hemsworth had the schooner "Dove" and a fleet of luggers. Redell, of the ill-fated "Ethel," Biddels, of the "Fanny Thornton," Rodrigues, of the "Sree Pas Sair (Malay for "Belle of the Beach"), Norman Burney, Captain Franks and Blackguard James. The last named years after I met in Rangoon, Burmah, in charge of a pearling fleet at the Mergui Islands, off mouth of the Irawadi River. Gummow, owner of the only hotel in Broome, the Roebuck, and owner of a fleet, and last but not least was Gentleman James, one of the noted characters of the pearling grounds. James had one lugger a South Sea Island crew. Originally he was an officer in the English Navy and drifted out to the pearling grounds of Broome. Wild, daring, and a thorough seaman, would stop at nothing. If you had a lugger that was getting too old, all you had to do was hand her over to James with the remark "Here's fifty pounds for funeral expenses; bury her," and James and his crew would take her out
would meet with the misfortune of being blown ashore or wrecked on a reef, captain and crew barely escaping with their lives, reaching Broome after undergoing hardships and privations and later you collected the insurance, and Gentleman James bought fifty pounds worth of hooch (liquor). I remember a fellow named Hansen, who owned a single lugger. He came up to Broome from the Ninety Mile Beach, bringing the finest pearl that was ever found in the Nor'-West up to that time. I cannot recall just now how many grains it weighed, but it was as big as a large marble, perfect in shape and lustre. We placed it on We placed it on a piece black velvet and photographed it. It was a beauty, looking a gem of gems on that black background. Shortly afterwards Hansen went down ot Lagrainge Bay and on his way down the coast was caught in a "Willy Willy" and he and his lugger went to the bottom. And the pearl, did it go down with him or was it locked safely up in Broome to descend later on the gem markets of Europe? "Quien Sabe," (who knows)? Anyhow
a master pearler of Broome shortly afterwards had an Aunt, very wealthy, who died in England and instead of leaving her wealth to the Home for Orphan Cats, left to her beloved nephew, of Broome. Cygnet Bay, King's Sound, was th "graveyard of divers"; deep water, foul bottom and strong currents running and the home of barbarians of the sea, and withal big, poor shell, containing only barroque (misshapen pearls, worth twelve pound per ounce, ground up and used for eye powder by Chinese) no good stones were hardly ever found in them. The "Southern Cross," found by Tommy Clark (who died the other day in Broome) at Sharks Bay, whilst beachcombing, was a remarkable freak. It was sold later to Streeters, of Broome, the gun merchants and pearlers, for one hundred and forty pounds and shipped to London. On the upright bar were eight pearls, each stone being about sixty grains, more or less, and the cross bar three stones on the left side and two stones on the right side, being short of one stone made it an imperfect cross. On it reaching London, Streeters cunningly added another stone making it a true cross. They soon found a ready buyer in the Vatican and the Pope of Rome, for eight thousand pounds. The Pope on receiving the cross had it examined by experts. After a thorough examination they detected the added stone and proclaimed it fraud. The Pope then threatened an action against Streeters, but it was hushed up, Streeters taking the cross back and refunding the money paid. Visiting the Glasgow Exhibition in 1902, I visited tha Australian Exhibits in the building and a pearl cross under a glass case attracted my attention. Walking over to it, to examine it, low and behold,
was looking at Tommy Clarke's Cross. The card at the foot of the Cross read, "The Southern Cross, found in North West Australia, valued at six thousand five hundred pounds, the property of the Earl of -(I cannot recall the name). The cross really was mere barroque as every stone, if separated, would have shown a flaw in the joining and separate would have been of little value, but being a natural cross enhanced its value. Almost every inhabitant of Broome in those days were I.P.B's (illicit pearl buyers) from the Government Resident to Tommy Clark who, at the time I speak of, was running a soft drink shop for Piggot, who had an aerated waters factory. Later Tommhy got a lugger and became a master pearler. Cash on the nail, and gold at that, was the crews' of the luggers' slogan. A hundred pound stone was often bought for ten pounds, stolen off the luggers. Divers, Japanese, and crews stole at every opportunity. Owners of luggers bought off theil neighbours' crews and divers. It was a case of in stockman parlance, "If you want a feed of your own beef go to your neighbour. Sydney C. Piggot, later threw up pearling went to London and became one of the leading pearl experts of Europe, and to the best of my belief died there. Gentleman James went nearly blind and in a fit of despondency blew his brains out. Pa Norman is still in Broome. Captain Franks was massacred by natives in the islands. Godfrey Hemsworth made his pile and is now lying back in his old age in Sydney enjoying his wealth. When the Boer War broke out I sold out to Piggot, rolled up my swag, and armed with a letter of introduction from Wharton, Government Resident, to Colonel Warren, of Singapore, I left Broome. Colonel Warren was getting up a contingent composed of planters and overseers but the contingent was too small and the British Government would not accept it. I was a Contingent of one from. N.W. Australia. The Malay States Guides, as it was named, having fallen through, I took boat for Port Elizabeth, S.A., took the train from there for Buluwayo, Matabeleland and joined Johannesburg's Crack regiment, "The First Imperial Light Horse," a Colonial regiment got up by the Johannesburg mining millionaires. Three months after joining I got the rank as Rough Riding Sergeant and stayed with them until the cessation of hostilities, being disbanded at Johannesburg.
