18th C Indian Ocean Voyages

The Voyage of the Hirondelle (1784-1785)

The Hirondelle was a patache (a light, shallow, two-masted sailing vessel) apparently owned by a farming collective (fermiers généraux). It had a crew of just thirteen and a cargo capacity of 30 tonnes. Under the command of Paul Daigre, the Hirondelle travelled along the coast in the vicinity of Lorient to service the farmers in the area during the fall and winter or 1784-1785.

This is the last known voyage of Joséph Tréguier. He is listed as a "mousse gabier" (deckhand) and, despite his years of experience, he was still earning only 20 livres. Perhaps he was taking on light work in semi-retirement. It also indicates: “payé à la part.” Apparently he was only paid in part, but this is also true of the entire crew including the captain, so it seems likely that the voyage didn't turn as much of a profit as anticipated.

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