San Francisco, April 25th, 1856.Dear Brother Cannon: —

It is with feelings of thanks to the author of all good that I communicate to you, and my friends at large, through the medium of your Standard, a short account of the privations and trials endured by the passengers and crew of the American bark Julia Ann, Captain B. F. Pond, master, bound from Sydney, N. S. Wales, to San Francisco, Upper California, with fifty-six souls on board, the chief part of whom were Mormons, on their way to Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory.

We left the Sydney Heads at 2 o'clock p.m. on the 7th of September, 1855, with the wind blowing from the northeast, and uninterruptedly pursued our course without anything of any consequence occurring until the 4th of October, when Captain Pond, expecting to pass between Mopea and the Scilly Isles, set the watch in the fore-top. The log was hove about 8 o'clock p.m. and the bark was found to be making 11 knots per hour; shortly afterwards the sea became broken, and in about an hour the vessel, with a tremendous crash, dashed head onto a coral reef. She immediately swung round with her broadside to the reef, and the sea made a complete breach over her at every swell.

Directly after she struck Captain Pond ordered all the passengers into the after-cabin, and upon the females inquiring of him and his officers what they should do, they were told to cling to what they could until some plan could be devised to convey them from the vessel to the reef. In a short time one of crew succeeded in carrying a line and making it fast high upon the reef, by means of which many succeeded in making their escape in comparative safety from the vessel. I have seen mothers nursing their babes in the midst of falling masts and broken spars while the breakers were rolling twenty feet high over the wreck. One lady - Sister Harris - preparatory to leaving the ship with her two children, the oldest of which was two years old, tied the youngest, a babe of six weeks old, to her breast; the vessel immediately afterwards broke in two across the main hatch, and the waters rushing in, engulfed herself and child amid the struggling waves and timbers of the wreck.

There was another lady - Sister Humphrey - who had three children; when the vessel struck she told her friends to protect her children and convey them safely to Great Salt Lake City, for her earthly career was run. Shortly after, she, with one of her children, was swept by a sea into the foaming surf, and they were seen no more. There was also a young mother of seventeen, who manifested true courage during the dreadful scene; - her husband took their child and lashed it to his back, and struggled to the reef on a rope, with his wife close behind him and the three were saved [-]. I must here remark that amid all these awful and appalling scenes, not a shriek of despair was heard from one of these mothers and children.

By about midnight the principal part of the passengers had reached the reef with the exception of Elder James Graham, and some of the brethren. Soon afterwards the vessel broke to pieces, and the part they were on was providentially carried high upon the rocks and they were landed in safety.

All [-] had reached the reef excepting two women and three children who were drowned.

With our bodies much lacerated by the sharp coral reef, and with a dreary waste of water without land in sight, our situation was pitiable but when the light burst forth from the eastern horizon, we discovered at the distance of about twelve miles, the outline of the Scilly Isles. It was then ascertained that the vessel had struck on the southwest reef of these Isles; and by a subsequent observation it was ascertained that the true position of the Scilly Isles was sixteen miles from the place indicated by the chart.

At sunrise all hands commenced to make a raft with the fragments of the wreck to convey us to the Islands. By about noon the remains of a quarter boat was also fixed up with canvas and copper, to convey the women and children to the land; still the men were compelled to remain on the reef two days and two nights, without anything to eat or drink, and this under a burning tropical sun. The third day we succeeded, in reaching the Island upon the raft, and found that its only inhabitants were rats and sea-fowl; there was no fresh water to be seen in any direction. By scraping holes, however, in the sand, near the water's edge, with a pearl shell, we were enabled to obtain water, which by filtration through the sand, was rendered comparatively fresh and palatable. We kindled a fire by the aid of a sun glass, and roasted some shell-fish, and made a very light repast.

After we were all landed on the island, Captain Pond called all hands to order, and delivered a short address [-] that as we were [-] away upon a desolate island, that a common brotherhood should be maintained, and that every man should hunt birds and fish for our common sustenance, to which proposition all assented. The next morning we found a turtle upon the beach that weighed about three hundred pounds, this gave us strength and confidence, to exert ourselves with energy; and we placed sentinels around the island to watch for turtle and wild fowl.

Too much cannot be said in commendation of the Saints in this trying situation. I have seen an old lady upwards of sixty years of age out at night hunting turtle. In this situation we remained seven weeks; by that time the ship's carpenter had repaired the quarter boat so that it was thought that she might possibly land. This after great difficulty was launched over the reef, and the captain and nine men, including myself, embarked. Our provisions were a little salt pork and jerked turtle, with two casks of water; there was great danger of being swamped in crossing the reef, with our small boat, but we providentially succeeded in getting sagely outside, and were heartily cheered by those on shore; we returned their cheers and took our departure.

Our boat was almost level with the water; but after four days hard pulling through squalls and calms, we succeeded in reaching Borabord, one of the Society Islands, a distance of about two hundred miles. The inhabitants treated us with much kindness and fed us upon poi and breadfruit.

From thence I went with the mate and one of the crew to the island of Mopiti, and petitioned King Tapoa for relief. We were received with kindness, and obtained two small schooners with which to return and rescue the passengers. In these we returned to the Scilly Isles.

In the meantime Captain Pond had chartered the "Emma Packer" at [-], and had sailed for the Scilly Isles, and reached there twelve hours before us. She took the passengers from the Island and went to Tahiti, consequently when I found they had been taken off, I returned in the schooner to Mopiti. I would here state that while on this uninhabited island we held our regular meetings, dividing the time between worship and labor, as we would have done had we been at our ordinary occupations.

Being now separated from the ship's company, and alone as it were, I turned my attention to the discrimination of our principles. The Lord gave me favor in the eyes of King Tapoa, and I soon had the satisfaction of seeing his interpreter, Captain Delano, a Malteso by birth, and who speaks seven languages, obey the commands of God, and enter by baptism into the new and everlasting covenant. I ordained him an elder, and through him I was enabled to preach to the natives, who received my testimony with much favor.

After remaining here about three weeks, I left Mopiti and sailed for the island of Riatea, where I soon became acquainted with a Mr. Shaw, a native of Spain. To him I unfolded the principles of truth, and had the satisfaction of introducing him and a Mr. Showtas into the waters of baptism. After remaining here two weeks, and ordaining Mr. Shaw an elder, obtained a passage for Tahiti in a French sloop, and from thence I obtained a passage to this port.

With sentiments of esteem, I remain
Your brother in the light of the covenant,

John McCarthy [p.130]

BIB: McCarthy, John. [Letter] IN Deseret News (July 2, 1855) vol. 6, no. 17. p. 130. (CHL)
(source abbreviations)