High Seas Series : The Mary Joyce

Something attracted his attention, he was not sure just what it was he heard. He went looking for the sound and, as he rounded the deckhouse, there was a teen boy, his arms wrapped around a small girl child. He was waving a stick and screaming. Chief Bennegan did not speak the local Tagalog language, but he was fluent in Spanish. He tried his Spanish on the boy and he got no response, so he tried English, hoping the boy might speak that also.

He did!

Chief Bennagan defused the situation by sitting on the deck, he figured he had a little time before the pirate ship sank and he had to swim ashore. He said to the boy in slow, very careful English as he had heard the boys do, "I am an American and I will not hurt you or your sister. We have food and fresh water for washing yourself on that ship over there. Will you come with me so you may wash yourself and your sister, then you may eat all the food you care to?"

The boy replied, "Who you name, me no you know?"

The Chief said gently, "You may call me Adam. Let me carry your sister and I will take you to get cleaned up and some new clothes for both of you."

The boy was undecided, but he and the girl child were desperately hungry and thirsty, so he timidly handed the child to this strange man and the man helped him cross from the deck of the sinking pirate ship to the large, blue and white ship alongside. He saw boys and girls sitting on the deck in clean clothes and a whole tray of food just for one person!

The little girl broke away from his grasp and ran to a boy eating from his tray. She just stared at him eating that food, so he smiled and held out half of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich to her.

She had never seen or tasted anything like it, but she timidly licked the jelly oozing out from between the two pieces of soft, white bread. Her eyes flew open and devoured the half sandwich, practically in one gulp!

Pat was watching, so he stuck his head in the porthole and asked Cookie for two sandwiches "to go". He handed them to the Chief, so he could give them to the children and then asked for two large glasses of milk. He handed them, also, to Chief Bennagan, who was, by now, seated on the deck beside the boy.

By the time the children's hunger had been satisfied, "carry out" style, they had eaten three whole sandwiches and two glasses of milk each. When they saw Pat carrying a handful of cookies, they looked at Chief with pleading eyes. Chief Bennagan chuckled and said to Pat, "I guess we got us two more kids, Captain!"

Pat thought to himself, "I'll bet YOU have two more kids, Master Chief Adam Bennagan!"

The Chief then took the two youngsters down below and helped them use the showers to clean up. He rumbled through the box of children's clothes to find something they could wear and then all three of them headed to Doc Ben to get them checked out.

Ben laughed, "Adam, has the kid bug bitten you?"

The Chief's face turned bright red, but he couldn't deny it, it felt good, those two children hanging onto his hands and putting their trust in him! That evening's report to ONI included a request for adoption papers that Adam Frank Bennagan be allowed immediate custody of Alfredo and Maria, last names unknown! Pat added his recommendation to the message before the Radio Operator sent it out.

Adam asked permission for the two children to share his cabin, Pat was only too happy to allow it, most of the staterooms already had children living in them and prospective fathers guarding them with a shield of love.

The Indonesian Navy arrived to take charge of the pirates and Lt. Singh 'Go went aboard to report. Instead of listening to his report, the Navy Captain berated him for an hour for not being in proper uniform and "going native"!

'Go came back fuming, Trong spotted his brother and knew "something was up". He went over to his brother and put his arm around him, "'Go, Brother, what is wrong, how may I help you?"

'Go looked at his younger brother, his face flushed with anger and his eyes verging on tears. He asked, "'Tro, would these Americans take me in as they did you?"

Trong replied, "It was that bad, huh?"

'Go said, "Yes, Brother, that bad and worse. I can see now that my career in the Indonesian Navy is over. When that Captain's report hits headquarters, I will be lucky if they do not arrest me!"

Trong said, "Lets go talk with Cap'n Wil, he will know what to do."

Wil was on the Wil, having lunch with Oscar and Pat, when Trong knocked on the door. Wil invited them in and for them to join them for lunch. Over lunch, 'Go told them what had happened.

He asked, "Captain O'Toole, could you fix it so I can come to America with you and be with my brother, 'Tro?"

Wil thought for a while and then said, "'Go, I think we can arrange for you to come with us to the United States, but Trong is a Cadet at the Merchant Marine Academy, I don't think you want to be a cadet again."

'Go laughed and replied, "No sir, but I just gotta get out of Indonesia!" He told them what had happened and Wil's and both Pat's and Oscar's tempers flared.

Oscar said, "Let's send off a message to Captain Tollender and ask him if he can do something for 'Go."

Pat added, "How about we contact the Captain on the SSB (Single Side Band Radio), we had good voice reception this morning?" So Pat, Wil and 'Go went up to the radio shack and had the radio operator set up a call to Captain Tollender in Washington, DC.

Even though it was very late at night there, the Captain answered immediately. When he had been appraised of what was taking place, he told them he would get right on it, that he was sure he could get the Department of State to issue a visa for Singh 'Go on the basis of religious and racial persecution. Once in the United States, they could work on permanent residency for him.

The two brothers walked on the deck, talking, their arms over each other's shoulder. Trong said, "'Go, you have a degree in Mechanical Engineering, you can do anything, be anything you want in the United States. I know that Uncle Wil would hire you in a minute and I know also that Andy Causey would snap you up so fast that you would lose your hat! He is building living quarters for all these children we rescue. He built a three hundred room hotel for them and now, he is building a second one because the first is nearly full!"

'Go replied, "But, I like going to sea."

Trong laughed, "We are talking about the United States, not Indonesia! You could do BOTH! Work with the hotel AND go to sea with our fleet. In fact, I'll bet that you could sit for your Engineer's ticket and sail with our ships as Chief Engineer!"

'Go laughed and replied, "That sounds like the best of two worlds, I will shoot for it!"

Wil refused to give over the rescued children to the Indonesian Naval Vessel and the Captain blew smoke and started to stamp his feet. He told the Naval Officer that he was on an American Ship, flying the American flag, that made his ship and all the other ships American Territory and that he was no longer welcome on the Mary Joyce!

Wil turned to the rest and said loudly, "Our task here is finished. We will report to the Admiral in Jakarta and then return home."

The Navy Officer hurried back to his own ship to fire off a message to Navy Headquarters in Jakarta to cover his own butt, he worried about how much trouble these upstart Americans could cause him.

As it turned out, they caused him a lot of trouble! He lost his job and his ship!

They made ready to sail, the Mary Joyce leading the way as they headed for Jakarta to make their report to the Admiral. When they arrived, Admiral Yachi had given orders that the small fleet was to be docked at the Naval Pier and all courtesies were to be extended to the Americans.

Wil took Pat and 'Go, who had cleaned up and was in correct Navy uniform.

Admiral Yachi had dealt with these Americans before and he respected them greatly. He knew they could do things that his own Navy could not. When he ushered them into his office, he told his Yeoman they were not to be disturbed for any reason. He ordered coffee to be brought and they all sat around the conference table.

He started the conference by saying, "Lieutenant Singh 'Go, I understand you have had some difficulties in our Navy and that you have located your long lost brother. Is it your desire to join your brother in America or do you wish to remain in our Navy?"

'Go was astounded, he was sure he was going to need to go to war to be able to go to America with these Americans.

He replied, "Sir, there is nothing left for me here, our parents were murdered long ago and I have only my brother, Trong Robbins, remaining to me. Captain Wilson O'Toole has offered me a position in his organization, saving children from the slavers, and I wish to accept his kind offer."

The old Admiral smiled and said, "I thought that would be your reply, young man, so I went ahead and obtained your release from our Navy and obtained a Permanent American Visa for you to enter the United States." He continued, "I am sad to see such a talented young officer as yourself, leave us, but I do understand, perhaps more than you realize. Go with your new friends with my blessings, Singh 'Go, and make us proud to have had you among us."

Singh 'Go sat in his chair, his eyes betraying his amazement at what had just taken place. He realized that he had not given credit to the intelligence of the old Admiral, he stood and bowed to the man, "Sir, Admiral Yachi, I am indeed grateful for your assistance and for the education I have received here. I will go to America to be with my brother, but I will retain fond memories of yourself and what you have done for us. Should you ever have need, please feel that you may call upon myself or my brother for assistance."

The Indonesians refueled the ships and delivered food to replenish their supplies for their trip home. They had nearly two hundred children with them, representing all the races living in the South Pacific and a few they had yet to discover where they had come from!

The children had stayed away from the hatches and portholes while they were in port, but, as soon as the ships began to get underway, they appeared and sought out their new American friends.

When the meeting adjourned, Wil led them all back to their ships and he asked 'Go to meet with him for a few moments. They went down to Wil's stateroom and Wil shut the door.

He said, "'Go, Admiral Yachi is an old friend, the Japanese murdered his parents and baby sister before his very eyes and tortured the young teenager, trying to find the location of the family's fortune. When our Army conquered the Japanese in 1945, they found young Jin Yachi in a prison cell, more dead than alive. The medics cared for him and sent him to Honolulu, where surgeons did their best to restore the young man to health. They were only partially successful, they could not restore his ability to father children."

Wil looked down at the deck for a few moments before continuing, "'Go, the Admiral has given me this draft for you and Trong, it is a draft for one million American dollars. It is funded entirely by his personal fortune and he wants you to have it to get you both started in a new life. He is not a bad man, but he is constrained by the customs of his country. He has sent many children to us over the years and he partially funded this most recent voyage to rescue children from the slavers. With this money, I hope you and Trong can do whatever you want with your lives, I want you to know that we consider both of you as members of our own family and that you will always be welcome among us."

Trong stepped into the room and knelt by his brother, who was sobbing his eyes out.

Trong said, "Bro, I want to stay with this Family, between Captain O'Toole and Papa Oscar, I am happy here and I am doing the very thing I have always dreamed about, Engineer of a ship and saving children from what I had to endure. This is my home for so long as I live."

Singh 'Go stood up and faced Wil, "Captain O'Toole, Sir, I request permission to join you and all these men in what you do. With your permission, Sir, I will fill any position on any of your ships, do any job you ask of me and perform any task that will protect these and any other children from the slavers that prey upon them! As soon as possible, Sir, I plan to request from the proper American authorities, permission to change my name to 'Go Wilson O'Toole' sir!"

The three ships departed from Jakarta for the long voyage home. They headed north, up through the South China Sea and through the Babuyan Channel into the Philippine Sea. The weather held and the Mary Joyce was speeding along at a bit over thirteen knots. The boys had spread the spinnaker and all sails were drawing fully.

Once into the Philippine Sea, they headed straight for Guam. Several days out from Guam, they received a message from ONI to call at Apra Harbor on Guam that they were to be met there by Captain Tollander.

They had been debating to skip Guam completely, but that changed their mind for them. Everyone wondered what was up. The ships were not full up, there were a few open berths still yet, but no one believed there were slaves or abandoned children on Guam.

When they arrived, two Navy Doctors and six Medics were waiting for them. The Somoan Government had requested assistance, there had been a terrible fire and a commercial fishing boat had been destroyed. The crew suffered burns and were requesting medical assistance.

Pat put them all up on The Patrick and, when he saw a Master Chief acting as a Medic, he was sure something was up. As they left Guam, headed for Samoa, Pat cornered the Master Chief and asked, "What's goin' on Chief, it's not burned fishermen, is it?"

The Chief looked guilty as hell and finally he said, "Sir, the Heir to the Tonga Throne was shot and his family got him as far as Samoa. Prince Tahuliomei is thirteen years old and we are going to bring him on board one of your ships, along with his older sister, Princess, Caomileana. We have been asked to keep them safe until things settle down in their home island. We will need a space to perform surgery on the boy, they were unable to extract the bullet on Tonga."

Pat said, "OK, that makes more sense. I am going to let the other ships know and then gallop this ship up to flank and get you guys there faster! The rest can follow at a slower pace."

He got on the ship to ship and explained to Wil in guarded language, in case those who had shot the boy were listening in. Wil agreed with the Patrick shooting on ahead, and Pat ran his engines up to the throttle stops. The English Cooper engines were heavy duty, powerful engines and they were in good repair, so he felt no danger in stressing them out to full load. The exhaust could be heard screaming all over the ship and the whole ship was vibrating in the urgent power being applied to the screws.

At twenty-eight knots, it took them only three days to make the passage and Pat brought the Patrick O'Toole into the small harbor, where there was a left over pier from the last world war. His charts told him he had plenty of water under his keel and he brought the Pat alongside, backing down once to kill his speed and walked the ship sideways to tie up to the pier.

There was an old civilian ambulance parked there and several people waiting for the ship to put the gangway over. A huge man came on board and introduced himself as the young Prince's tutor and friend, Teo Agualano. He said, "The boy is in terrible pain, I fear the wound is festered. Please help him, not only is he my student, he is also my nephew."

He looked at the narrow gangway and said, I will carry my nephew on board. He ran down the gangway with amazing speed and grace, especially for someone so large. He brought the young Prince onboard the Patrick, despite his obvious pain, the boy was polite and gracious.

Doc Ben was waiting for them in the First Aid room, he had sterilized everything and the Medics hurried down to assist him.

The boy looked up at Doc Ben and said, "Sir, I must not be made unconscious, our people believe that being unconscious allows the evil spirits to enter our mind and take over. Whether that is true or not, it is what my people believe. If I am put unconscious while you repair my shoulder, I will never be able to be King and there is no one else, I am the last man of my family. SIR, I MUST be King to save my people!"

Doc looked carefully at the wound and said, I can use a local, but you will feel much pain."

The Prince interrupted him and said, "Go ahead, this is the way it must be." The young man grimaced as Doc numbed his shoulder as best he could, before probing for the bullet.

Doc knew he was hurting the boy something terrible, but he never cried out. By the time Doc had the slug out of the Prince's shoulder, both of them were covered in perspiration!

He let the Medics close the wound as he collapsed in a chair. His face was dripping wet and he felt as weak as a kitten from the stress.

The Prince's Uncle, Teo, looked in and asked Doc how the boy was doing. Doc looked at the man and growled, "If someone did that to me, I would kill them! That child is a better man than I am, how he stood to let me probe for that bullet is beyond my ken! The bullet was a huge, 50 caliber slug."

He showed it to the Uncle and he said, "Aha, I KNOW where that bullet came from, there is but one gun on the island that shoots a bullet like that. We have our attacker. May I have that bullet for evidence?"

Doc said, "I would like to take the boy back to Hawaii with us, you also. He is going to need lots of physical therapy so that he does not lose the use of his arm. Besides, I want to see that boy when he is not hurting, he is more of a man than most of the rest of us!"

The young Prince was lying there, being bandaged by the medics. He lifted his head and had a huge smile on his face, "Please, Uncle Teo, lets go with them to Hawaii." He tuned to Doc and asked, "Is my sister, Millie, being taken care of?"

Doc smiled and replied, "Yes, young Prince, she has been down here several times wanting to see you, but I didn't think you would appreciate your sister seeing you with no clothes on."

The Prince laughed a bit and replied, "On Tonga, we wear few clothes and none at all when we swim in the ocean. She has seen me many times and I her, it is of no importance, when she comes again, let her in so that she knows I have survived."

Pat got on the SSB and contacted the Tongan Government, letting them know he was taking the young Prince to Hawaii for physical therapy and his sister was accompanying him, along with his Uncle, Teo. They were not pleased, but Doc convinced them the boy's arm would never heal properly without the therapy and they finally agreed.

It was the beginning of a friendship between the man who would become the King of Tonga and the men who saved children from the slavers and pirates.

They remained at the pier in Samoa for three days, while the young Prince recuperated from the surgery. On the fourth day, Doc felt it safe to continue their journey. The weather remained cooperative and they slid through the waves with little pounding or rolling. Prince "Tahuli" became a favorite on the ship, he never complained and he had a bright smile for everyone. He spoke on the radio to his Family every day and told them of his progress. He was an intelligent young man and understood the science of navigation, he told Pat that his people had been navigating across the oceans for thousands of years, using the stars to find their way.

As they approached Nawiliwili Harbor, they saw a huge crowd of boats and people and a sign was draped between two boats, "WELCOME PRINCE OF TONGA, THE LAST OF THE POLYNESIAN PRINCES"

Pat moored the Patrick at the floating pier and he saw the other ships tied up to the pier in their inner harbor.

He saw three boats coming out to take off their passengers, their load of boys were sad to be leaving their new friend, Tahuli, but he quickly assured them that he was coming with them.

When he saw all the boys and girls already lined up at O'Toole House and all the boys the Patrick was discharging, he turned to Pat and asked, "Sir, where do all these boys and girls come from?"

Pat smiled and said, "They are all children we have rescued, see that big hotel up on the hill, that is where they all live and the new one going up beside it will double our capacity to care for them."

He looked somberly at Pat and said, "All those children would be dead, but for you?"

Pat replied, "Yes, I am afraid you are correct, that is why we do what we do."

The young Prince spoke quietly, almost to himself, "My people will assist these folks, our own love for children knows no bounds!"

They ferried all the children over to the lawn covered area below the main house, where Mrs. Tangimora had set up a buffet meals for the new arrivals. The children had not yet lost their fear of strange people and situations and they hung back, not wanting to bring anger down on themselves.

Prince Tahuli saw what was happening and he broke away from his Uncle and went over to the tables. He was still in great pain, but he shoved it aside and called out, "This food is for us, come, join me in our first meal in Hawaii. We are free and belong to none, eat as you please, as much as you wish!

He grabbed a plate, and, despite his healing shoulder, filled it with far more food than he really wanted, but he was showing the new children that they could have as much as they wanted.

Pat shook his head, he knew what pain the young Prince was in and he admired the boy's bravery. He spoke quietly to his Father, Wil, and told him of the boy.

Wil just shook his head and wondered how soon that boy would be King of Tonga!

Tahuli motioned to his Uncle and whispered in his ear, "I want to build a Welcome Center here, one that will welcome these rescued children and let them know that someone really does care about them. Make it happen Uncle Teo, make it happen."

A boy Prince had just become a man at the young age of thirteen!

After everyone had satisfied their hunger, they got everyone checked in up at Causey Hotel. Andrew was out in front, greeting every child as they came up the hill and directed them to the lobby, where they would be assigned a room. He was worried that they were not going to have enough space, the new addition was not yet ready and more children were on the Patrick than he had anticipated. Just as the last child was checked in, they had assigned the very last room in the building.

Prince Tahuli and his sister agreed to share a room so that every child had his or her own room!

Andrew was surprised when a dozen Marine MPs arrived, telling him they were security for the young Tongan Prince. Their Gunnery Sergeant said, "Don't worry about rooms for us, just get those kids settled. We can make like monkeys and roost in the trees for a while.

He grinned and whispered to Andrew, "Don't worry Sir; we have portable quarters on their way over here from Pearl Harbor. They are barges that we will anchor in the harbor. They are really quite nice with air conditioning, showers and laundry facilities. A tender will come every two days and haul the garbage and sewage away, so it doesn't make a mess in the harbor. Mrs. Tangimora said she would feed us, so we will be eating like kings while we are here!"

That evening, the barges did arrive and, when Andrew looked at them, they were as the Marine had said. He determined that he needed to find out if the Navy had any of those barges as surplus, it would help his housing problems!

Their problems continued with the State Governor's Office and it was beginning to look like it would take an act of Congress to force the man to leave them alone. Andrew was taking up half the time of his attorneys, fighting the man off.

He hesitated to threaten to move Causey Industries out of the state, if he actually had to do it, it would upset the lives of all his employees and he was not anxious to do that. He would have to find another way to block the bigot's moves.

Prince Tahuli and his sister would be with them for the next six months while the young Prince underwent physical therapy for his injuries. His Mother, The Queen of Tonga came to visit her son twice and to check on the Welcome Center her son wanted to build. When she saw all the children, she agreed with him and, before it was time for the Prince to return to his Island home, he saw the foundations and outer walls go up on the PRINCE TAHULI WELCOME CENTER!

TBC

Trong's older brother, 'Go, is settling in and Chief Bennagan's two children will join the old Chief as he retires from the Navy and takes up residence at O'Toole House. Will things ever slow down or will the Gang Buster pace continue? Only the fates can tell, and they are silent.