Page:Royal Naval Biography Marshall v2p2.djvu/255

  officer received his first commission in 1793; was made a Commander into the Echo sloop of war, at Jamaica, in 1800; and posted into the Garland frigate on the same station., Jan. 27, 1803. He subsequently commanded the Cumberland of 74 guns; Victory, a first rate, fitting for the flag of Sir James Saumarez; and Helder frigate. The latter ship was employed for several years on the Baltic station. Captain Serrell married, in 1804, Miss E. Dean, of Liverpool.

Agent.– Hugh Stanger, Esq. 

 officer is a son of the late Peter John Heywood, Esq. a Deemster of the Isle of Man, and Seneschal to his Grace the Duke of Athol, by Elizabeth, daughter of James Spedding, of Whitehaven, co. Cumberland, Esq.; and was born at his father’s residence, the Nunnery, near Douglas, June 6, 1773.

He entered the naval service as a Midshipman, Oct. 11, 1786; and made his first voyage in the Bounty, a ship of about two hundred and fifteen tons, which had been purchased by government and fitted up for the purpose of conveying the bread-fruit and other plants from Otaheite to the West India islands, in consequence of the merchants and planters having represented that essential benefit would be derived from the introduction of the former as an article of food for the inhabitants of those colonies.

The deplorable result of this undertaking is well-known to the public, though the extraordinary circumstances that occurred on board the Bounty, previous to the fatal morning of April 28, 1789, have either escaped the notice, or not been deemed worthy the attention of other writers on naval subjects. To her commander’s “Narrative of the Mutiny” which broke out on that day, it would be folly to look for any statement having a tendency to implicate his own conduct: Captain Schomberg, when compiling his “Naval 