Hello Sailor

Tom (GH) recently came across the following story in the Ipswich Journal for 1785, whilst squinting throught the microfiche of the Ipswich Journal at Bury Records office. It will shortly appear in the Newspaper section, but it is certainly a curious story. One would certainly like to know the end of the story. The crime, if it happened, would have been doubly heinous to public opinion as Captain had a particular duty 'in loco parentis' for his apprentice.

August 27th 1785

On Sunday information was given to magistrates at Ipswich that Capt William Prentice of the ship Unity of this port with timber from Memel had committed sodomical practices on his apprentice David Wilson, a boy of between 13 and 14 years on the high seas

A warrant was granted and on Monday the water bailiff with an assistant went to Levington Creek in a boat where the Unity lay in order to apprehend him.

As soon as the Captain saw the bailiff he ordered out his boat to go ashore, the tide being out he walked a considerable way on the oozes with his plahes. The bailiff seeing this rowed back home and hired a horse and met the Captain coming home and apprehended him.