Swan 1904

The Swan left Fremantle some time before the 14 August, heading north for some deep sea fishing. Aboard the Swan were William Sullivan aged 28, Clements Kaylor and a Spaniard, Lucas Matons, aged 21.

They reached the Beagle Islands, 140 miles north of Fremantle and six miles from the mainland, where they managed to secure a good haul.

At around 2pm on Sunday, 14 August, Lucas Matons recounts that he and his two mates were fishing about two and a half miles from Beagle Island, when the little wind that was blowing ceased, and a dead calm ensued. To their dismay the boat started to drift towards the rocks surrounding Beagle Island and with only one paddle there was little they could do.

Little by little, the boat neared the breakers and then suddenly, meeting an especially huge wave, the boat capsized. The three men ended up in the water.

Lucas Matons stated that he was the first to reach the surface, however the vessel had disappeared and there was no sign of his mates. Suddenly, Clements Kaylor appeared, followed by William Sullivan a short time after. The three rid themselves of all their clothes, except their guernseys and commenced to swim for land.

William Sullivan was not in the best of health and soon became exhausted, Clements Kaylor indicated to Lucas Matons that he was going back to help him.

Lucas Matons continued swimming towards the shore, and although he turned around once or twice, he never saw his mates again. After a hard struggle, exhausted, he reached land just before sundown and estimated that he had been in the water for over five hours. He was alone and spent the first night walking about.

In the morning, thirsty and hungry, he set about searching the island for food and drink. It was only then that the full horror of his situation dawned upon him. The island, except for a few shellfish and rock crabs, was absolutely destitute of either food or water.

He succeeded in finding a few oysters and one or two crabs, but this did little more than keep the body and soul together. He had no matches to light a fire and suffered terribly from sleep, cold and thirst.

At times he could not refrain from drinking scanty amounts of sea water. His tongue and mouth began to swell and he became weaker and weaker, but he did not lose heart, although reports do say that on the day that he was rescued he had given up hope.

He found a piece of driftwood to which he fastened his only piece of clothing, setting it up as a signal, which he intended to use to get attention should any vessel be sailing past.

After five days, on 19 August around 4pm, Lucas Matons was rescued from Beagle Island. The fishing boat, Arthur George, with Benjamin Carr, Charles Peterson and William Geutsch onboard, was passing Beagle Island on route to Fremantle and noticed a naked man waving a rag towards them.

They sailed close to the islands, but due to the rocks, could not make a landing and reports are that Lucas Matons swam out to the boat. He was in a terrible state and his lips and tongue were so severely swollen that he could hardly speak.

He was tended to by the crew of the Arthur George and recovered enough to narrate his experiences. He said he remembered very little of what had taken place and remarked ‘I had to swim away from my mates, for the sharks are many and I was afraid’.

The Arthur George arrived in Fremantle on 22 August, flying a signal of distress, and Sergeant Hopkins, who was on duty at the wharves, proceeded immediately on board to investigate. He found Lucas Matons, the sole survivor of three men who left Fremantle on the Swan, in a very weak state, but recovering from his ordeal. He was taken to Fremantle Hospital and later cared for by a number of his countrymen.

Clements Kaylor was the son of a fisherman living in North Fremantle, and Sergeant Hopkins had the painful task of informing Mrs Kaylor of his sad loss.

Inquiries made about William Sullivan elicited the fact that he arrived from Grimsby, England, on the barque, Una, on 24 January 1904. He was a single man, about 28 years of age and it was believed that his father, also a fisherman, still resided in Grimsby.