40 CORAL AND ATOLLS 



islands the belief is that the Cocos men and their captain 

 were put overboard, and the Italians disguised her and sailed 

 away. There are features in the case that lend a probability 

 to this view, for when inquiries were made, it was found that 

 the ship named Lidgi Baffo was quietly lying in Genoa at 

 the time of her supposed wreck upon the reef of Cocos- 

 Keeling. It would appear as though the ship in which the 

 Italians came was a pirated and disguised one, and it would be 

 no surprise to many people in the atoll to find the J. G. C.- 

 Ross still afloat under a new name. But her loss was a 

 heavy one, and a great blow to George Ross and all his people, 

 and nine gocd men went with her and left their wives to 

 mourn. 



George Ross did not return to the islands in time to be 

 present at the visit of H.M.S. Esyoir in 1885, and so the visit 

 of representatives of the Straits Settlements Government was 

 carried out in his absence. Nevertheless Mr. Birch amassed 

 a great deal of valuable information concerning the atoll, and 

 the report that he furnished to the Government is one of the 

 best accounts of the conditions of the place that have been put 

 on record. In August 1886, H.M.S. Zephyr made a visit of 

 inspection with the object of granting to George Ross new 

 letters patent, revoking those of September 10, 1878, by which 

 the islands had been placed under the Government of Ceylon. 



On Tuesday, August 24, 1886, the new letters patent 

 were read to the people by Mr. A. P. Talbot. The ceremonies 

 of 1875 were repeated, the Union Jack was hoisted, and a 

 party of British bluejackets gave the royal salute and fired a 

 feu-de-joie. A proclamation was given to the people and the 

 Governor of the Straits Settlements was made their overlord, 

 while a grant-in-fee of the islands was given to George 

 Clunies-Ross. Since that time the visits of British men- 

 o'-war have been fairly regular, and each succeeding Commis- 

 sioner has noted the progress of the settlement and the 

 beneficence of the Governor's rule. 



The settlement of Cocos-Keeling had now become a 

 peaceful colony devoted to the quiet development of the 



