DITCHED ON SAIPAN IN 1859

The seaman was dumped on a lonely Saipan beach, 

probably to avoid Spanish authorities

Having a sick crew member on a ship in the old days was a matter of grave concern. There is no place to escape on a ship while it is on the high seas. Although they could quarantine a sick crew member or passenger, this didn't always prevent the disease from spreading to others.

If many crew members were sick in bed, who would run the ship? If the ship were a whaling ship, who would do the work of catching whales? Sick crew members meant a loss of income.

So there was always the possibility that, if you were sick, your captain would let you stay on the next island, if they would take you, and hopefully another ship would pick you up later.

Then there were times that a captain might dump you somewhere no matter what and, if getting permission from the local government was in question, a captain might let you down on an isolated beach and move on quickly.

In 1859, this is just what happened to an American whaler named Elias Young at the island of Saipan.

Young was sailing on the Arctic, commanded by Captain William Phillips. The Arctic sailed out of Honolulu and headed west. When the ship got close to the Marianas, Young took sick, but not, he claimed, in a way that posed a danger to anyone else, not even himself. Yet, he states, Phillips threw him off the ship at a beach in Saipan, far from the town and without allowing Young to take his personal possessions.

Young did not speak Spanish or Chamorro or anything other than English and had to walk to town and seek help. For a whole year, Young remained on Saipan with much hardship. He complained later that Saipan didn't get many visiting ships, but finally a passing ship took him on board. Returning to Hawaii, Young filed suit against Captain Phillips. The Hawaii court decided not to rule on it, citing a lack of jurisdiction. The ship was American and the two parties involved were American citizens, while Hawaii was still at that time an independent kingdom.

If only Young had written a diary, or taken photos of Saipan in 1859. But cameras were not common in those days, except for professional photographers.