Saturday 14th February, Langkawi

A quick boat trip over to Langkawi, to buy some fruit. Felt like culture shock, to be in the hubbubbubbubbubb of ordinary Malaysian life after a few days of laaaaazing about on Pulau Tuba!

Today's happy surprise came after my brother Phil mentioned - just yesterday afternoon - that in case we were thinking of going to Singapore he could try to re-contact someone there, a relation. Whaaat? Okay, so we all are related to many people with many different names and all, about whom we know nothing whatsoever unless we go up and down and round-about our family tree to seek them out ... but this lady is apparently Singapore born and bred, probably 5th or 6th generation Chinese/Malay Singaporean, with the one Brit in the family history, whom we 'have' in common. I had already heard of this Captain Mark Moss, 1811-1872, and his incredible personal drama; I can say more about him in a mo.

In my case the relationship with Mark Moss is through the maternal line: mother (Rosemary née Maclaren), and grandmother (Ethel Mary née Sadler), her mother (Rosa Mary née Emmerson) and her mother (Mary née Moss). In Christine's case it must be through the male line all the way as she was born 'Moss'. Phil had done some research about the family lines several years ago and exchanged emails with Christine, after discovering an online report of an exhibition of Singapore family histories to which she had contributed. Then their contact had lapsed. But Phil did some good sleuthing, right?

Within 24 hours Phil had received a reply from her, full of delight at the renewed contact and excited at the prospect of meeting me. And within another half hour I was on the phone with her, exchanging stories and having that first 'get to know' sort of chat, a little awkward perhaps but both really wanting to get it right by the other!

So of course of course I will do what I can to 'pop by' Singapore, to meet my long-lost ?fourth cousin ?once-or-twice-removed before I leave the country. I promise to get the maths right by the time I leave.

Now to the drama. Remember, this is the era of the opium wars.
On 24th August 1839 a small schooner (Black Joke) was boarded by Chinese whilst en route to Hong Kong from Macau. The evidence of the survivors and the ferocity of the attack suggest this was an act of piracy but the culprits remain to be identified. The Chinese Repository has the following information on the attack:

Evidence of the passenger Mark Moss

“I was taking my personal and household property from Macau to Hong Kong on 23rd August. There was no merchandise on board except some books belonging to Just and myself. We anchored south of Lantau, dined and rested. At about 9pm I heard the Lascars crying their alarm call “wy lo”. I ran to the skylight and saw three guns loaded with burning charcoals fired at us. By the time I reached the deck three of the Lascars had been cut down. I was struck on the cheek and retreated below. I could hear the Chinese shouting “Da .. Da .. (strike!)” and on putting-out my head, I received a pike wound. The attackers got hold of me. My arm was cut three times as I tried to protect my head. They stripped off my clothes and plundered everywhere. They brought lights into the cabin and saw my finger ring. I gave it to them fearing they would cut off the digit. Another took my watch and called his friends to hold me down while he cut off my left ear... They knocked me about a bit and then brought a barrel of gunpowder into the cabin and lit it but it did not destroy the boat. I was made unconscious by the explosion and smoke. I crawled up to the deck and found no-one there. I called for the Lascars but no-one responded. Then I saw a rope moving at the stern and found the tindal had saved himself by hiding under the rudder. He came back aboard and later the Harriet (Capt Hall) arrived and rescued us.”

Whaddaya say to that?

Mark married a local woman, Maria, and together they had one son and four daughters. And so we return to my family's story. More another day.

Source: https://houghton.hk/china-1793-1844-part-9/#sdf…Read more