Here is my new Pulp Alley crew with plenty of "local flavor" and possibilities for future conflict.
The Johnson CrewBackgroundCaptain Samuel Johnson, master of the Charlotte, has been missing at sea with his crew of nine for eight months. The Charlotte, a schooner with a coal fired boiler, was last seen leaving Macau for its home port of Sumay Guam.
Johnson and the Charlotte had conducted a semi-regular shipping circuit between Guam, Yap, the Palaus, Manila, and Hong Kong for well over a decade. Johnson Shipping Ltd maintains a small warehouse and office with a coal bunker on Guam. Johnson and his Chinese partner Xing Do have steady trading partners in Manila, Hong Kong, Kolonia Yap, and Koror Palau. The Charlotte had taken on shipments previously to ports beyond the normal circuit including Macau, Hai Phong, Singapore, Batavia, Ningpo, Shanghai, Yokohama, and Honolulu. Charts for these ports and others are kept in the chart locker and maintained at the home office.
Johnson and his wife Maraquita have 15 hectares of land in Agat, Guam from a Spanish Crown grant to his wife’s family. This has been registered and confirmed with the new US Naval government. An additional 20 hectare grant is in dispute. Twelve hectares are leased with rent paid in corn, sweet potatoes, yams, pigs, and cattle. Previous to the US seizure of Guam and Spain’s sale of the Northern Mariana Islands to Germany , twice a year runs were made to the island of Tinian to hunt wild cattle for salt and pickled beef. Negotiations are ongoing with the German District Officer Georg Fritz to gain a license to continue this hunting. The 40 foot schooner, Reef Runner, used for Tinian trips and local fishing is anchored at Sumay.
The CrewMaraquita C Johnson , is certain that the captain is still alive and is determined to find her husband. She comes from a large family but is her father’s only daughter. She was brought up rough and tumble on her family’s rancho and can fight or shoot as well as any of her brothers. When in town she conforms to more upper class mores. Maraquita has assisted with Johnson Shipping Ltd for ten years and has made several voyages on the Charlotte.
“Jun” Johnson is the Captain and Maraquita’s only child. Jun has sailed with his father for the last six years and is familiar with sailing routes and trading partners. He and the crew have often adventured through the waterfronts on ports throughout the Philippine and South China Seas. Jun is good with his hands and weapons. He regrets that he could not make the most recent voyage of the Charlotte. He took time off to pursue a courtship that ended poorly.
“Champ” Bukowsky is Johnson’s first officer. A thin nervous man, Champ was down with a tropical fever when the Charlotte last sailed. Champ gained his nickname from being the perennial champion of the marathon shipboard poker tournaments. Bukowsky speaks with a slight accent and is known to have had trouble with Russians at several port visits. He is rock solid with the Charlotte’s owner and crew.
Xing Do is Captain Johnson’s Chinese trade partner and minority owner in Johnson Shipping Ltd. He and the Captain speculate and transport goods throughout the Western Pacific. Xing Do first met Captain Johnson years ago when he had to leave Shanghai in a hurry. It is rumored that the White Lotus Tong still bears a grudge against him
Ben Harper is crew member out of the bayous of Louisiana. He is a steady hand with a facility for languages, speaking English, French, Spanish, and waterfront Chinese. Like Bukowsky, Harper was incapacitated with a tropical fever when the Charlotte last sailed.
Hope you fellow Pulp Alley fans enjoy.
LB
Welcome, Guest. Please 
April 29, 2024, 09:16:12 AM
January 23, 2013, 07:20:20 PM