AMBERGRIS – AN EXTRAORDINARY TALE

Ambergris is one of those rare, mystical materials that have captured the imagination of people for centuries. But what exactly is it?

Well, it’s a waxy substance occasionally (very occasionally) found in the intestines of sperm whales, or washed up on beaches after being excreted by them.  Scientists believe it is formed  by the whale to cover the hard beaks  of the squid they feed on. This reminds me of  oysters forming pearls around  irritating intrusions. By the way, a decent  lump of ambergris is more valuable than  a string of  natural pearls.

Beak of a squid embedded in ambergris,

When the ambergris is fresh is smells pretty awful, but as it dries out it takes on a musky perfume  compared to  sandalwood, with a hint of mossy earth and the sea. It also has fixative qualities, which is why it’s used in the  manufacture of perfume…and why it costs so much.

In the winter of 1891, news came of an extraordinary find in Tasmania.

Some stir was caused on the wharves this  afternoon, when it became known that a large find of ambergris had been made by two Hobart fishermen, named Louis Smith and Harry Smith. It appears that the fisherman found the body of a whale, which had been killed by Captain McGrath, of the whaler Waterwitch, who towed it into Port Davey; (North West Post, July 28 1891)

The scene must have looked a bit like this;

Here are a couple of images of the Waterwitch, one of the most well known whalers of the day;

SOURCE – MARITIME MUSEUM TASMANIA

After McGrath’s men had boiled down the blubber for oil they left the carcass on the beach and sailed off.

George ‘Louis’ Smith  and his mate Harry  were in the area and  decided to check the remains for ambergris, something Louis in particular  had always hoped to find. He cut a large hole in the whale’s  throat and made his way into the evil smelling  ‘belly of the beast’.  Good grief, imagine what that must have been like!

But miraculously, there it was; a giant lump of the precious substance weighing over 180 pounds.

It was placed in Louis Smith’s boat, covered with sacking and a tarpaulin, and taken to Hobart. Resisting offers to sell the  ambergris then and there, Smith had it transported to the Commercial Bank, where it was placed in a sealed strong box.

I should add that both Louis and Harry were from the Cape Verde Islands and were  known  respectively (though sadly not respectfully) as ‘Black Louis’ and ‘Black Harry’.

The bank manager of the bank was a man called David Barclay. With his advice and assistance the decision was made to send the ambergris to London. This was carried out in complete secrecy.  At the time the substance was selling for around  £11 an ounce, but news of so large a find would have substantially reduced its value.   For the same reason, it was sold slowly and  in small pieces  by the London dealers.

There were varying accounts of how much Louis and Harry received, but the lowest figure mentioned was  £3,000 each, a fortune in 1891. The crew of the Waterwitch would be ribbed  for years about leaving such treasure behind.

Louis bought himself a new boat,  and a property at Southport, where he continued to work hard, growing fruit and vegetables.  Wisely, he left the bulk of the ambergris money on a term deposit at the bank. He later credited  David Barclay with helping to  ensure  the money was not frittered away.  Harry was not so lucky and apparently died an impoverished alcoholic.

Three years earlier Louis had married Sarah Ann James, and the windfall provided them with a secure future.

SOURCE – TASMANIAN ARCHIVES

Sarah had an illegitimate daughter at the time of the marriage, four year old Mary Selena. Louis accepted the child as his own and provided for her over many years. In 1906 Mary married a Chinese gardener called Charlie Tye.  Louis and Mary had no other children and when the Tye family moved to Victoria the aging couple  were on their own.  It was a dreadful blow for Louis when Sarah died in  the Hobart hospital on January 1924, aged 67. However, he would  soon follow her to the grave.

Ironically, the sea, which had given Louis so much in his life, claimed him  just seven months later. on August 2 1924. An inquest was held.

The circumstances of the drowning were published in the Huon Times.  After Mrs Smith’s  death  a neighbour  began delivering dinners to the old man. However, on Sunday night there was no answer to his knock and he noticed that  the cattle had not been fed. The police were informed and it was discovered that at about 6pm on Saturday Louis had gone out in a storm to deliver a basket of decorative holly berries and leaves to the steward of the river steamer Breone. After the delivery no-one saw him again.

It turned out that Louis was already unwell, as he had fallen off the jetty while taking a line from the Breone the previous week. Friends said he  would have drowned then, except that there was someone nearby to pull him from the water. Tragically, on this  occasion it was so dark that his fall went unnoticed,  and the wind so loud that his cries for help went unheard.   A search of the beach next day found the empty holly basket. The body of Louis was  lying in a couple of feet of water a few chains from the jetty.

When the old man’s will was read it was revealed  he had left his estate, valued at around  £2,000 to two daughters of his old  bank manager friend, David Barclay.

Louis’s stepdaughter Mary Tye challenged the will. She  claimed that Barclay  had used undue influence on a man who was not of sound mind, testifying that her stepfather  had developed a sort of religious mania.  However, the court found that when the will was made in 1915, Louis was definitely  capable of making his own decisions.  His English was never fluent and he was illiterate, but those who knew him described him as  shrewd and very  intelligent, even in old age.

The demeaning way of referring to Louis continued in reports about the case.

Perhaps the most telling evidence  was provided by the solicitor who drew up the will, Mr Simmons.

Simmons had asked the old man why he left everything to strangers and he replied, ‘I have no children of my own. Mary married a Chinaman and has gone to another State. and I don’t mean to leave her anything. But for Mr Barclay, I would not have had any money’   Simmons then stated,  ‘The way Mr Smith had obtained his money through the finding of the ambergris and the way it was carefully handled and marketed in London through the instrumentality of Mr Barclay and realised   £6,000 was a little romance in itself. They had not heard in court that Mr Barclay ever got a penny over it, so the old man was naturally very grateful for that, and for advising him from time to time as to taking care of his money.

Mrs Tye’s case was thrown out and she was ordered to pay all costs.   Although the will was found to have conveyed Louis Smith’s  true intentions, neither Mr Barclay or his daughters were in need of money. Barclay said he  only fought the case due to Mary Tye’s unfounded allegations against him.

NOTE – Whales are protected in Australia, and ambergris is judged to be  part of a whale. Even if you miraculously happened upon a piece, it is not legal to sell the substance here.

Worth its weight in gold (Source – Australian Museum.)

TO WATCH A FUNNY LITTLE VIDEO OF HOW AMBERGRIS FORMS, CLICK HERE.  😍🐋