28 CORAL AND ATOLLS 



Before lie made this one excursion into the old civilisa- 

 tion which he had left with his childhood, the greatest event in 

 the history of his governorship had taken place, for on March 

 31, 1857, H.M.S. Juno arrived in the atoll. It was a great 

 occasion in the islands ; with the firing of a royal salute, 

 Captain Fremantle proclaimed the atoll to be a part of the 

 British dominions ; and the dream of the Cocos islanders was 

 realised. 



At the same time, the status of Ross Secundus as an 

 absolute ruler was somewhat altered, for he was declared in 

 the proclamation to be appointed as the Governor of the 

 Settlement during Her Majesty's pleasure : the Dutch flag was 

 no more to be hoisted upon the trading schooner of the islands, 

 and Ross Secundus was to be responsible for the good conduct 

 of the colony. 



It would appear that all the demonstration and ceremony 

 incidental to this visit of the man-o'-war was in reality the 

 outcome of a very curious mistake, for it is said that the 

 Cocos Island that was intended for annexation to the British 

 dominions was one in the Andaman group, and not the atoll 

 of Cocos-Keeling at all. However, the visit of the Juno 

 marks a well-remembered epoch in the history of the settle- 

 ment, and from that date the group rpvnks among the British 

 possessions. 



Captain Fremantle did not steam away directly the 

 business of the proclamation was disposed of, but the Juno 

 remained at anchor in the atoll for three months, and the 

 events of this prolonged stay are not likely to be soon for- 

 gotten. It was a time of gaiety and change for all the 

 islanders, and one that brought them into contact with uuich 

 that was new to them, and it marked an eventful period in 

 their quiet island routine of life. 



A curious incident happened during the stay of the Jano, 

 as before she steamed from the lagoon in June 1857, a Russian 

 man-o'-war called in at the atoll, and seeing her there, saluted 

 the British flag and retired, though this was presumably not 

 the sole object of her visit. 



