Talk:Sea Witch (clipper)

Havana wreck

I recall reading her cargo wasn't immigrants but "coolies," meaning Chinese slaves or at least indentured servants. Proscriptus (talk) 12:10, 17 September 2009 (UTC)

This website says that the cargo were coolies: http://www.eraoftheclipperships.com/page63.html. Lots of Chinese indentured servants worked in Cuba, so I would guess that these were indeed Chinese indentured servants. I don't see why that means they weren't immigrants, though. Over half of America's pre-Revolution white immigrants were indentured servants. Pirate Dan (talk) 14:21, 17 September 2009 (UTC)

The word coolies was in common Euro-American discourse at the time of the wreck as a reference to Chinese indentured servants. If the word is used at the present day (2009) it should be carefully placed in the context of 1850s linguistic practice and word usage, as with other derogatory or potentially-derogatory ethnic words and phrases.Bigturtle (talk) 14:53, 28 September 2009 (UTC)

I agree on both counts; my thought is that the word "immigrants" implies a degree of consent that was almost certainly lacking. In the context of the article, it speaks to the, let's call it "diminished role," of this once-proud ship, and implies a broader (and accurate) fate for the clipper fleet in general. I think I have a reference to the coolie cargo in "Queens of the Western Ocean"; if I can find it, I'll quote and cite the relevant passage, while linking the word to the Wikipedia entry. Does that sound appropriate? Proscriptus (talk) 12:10, 30 September 2009 (UTC)

That sounds thoroughly satisfactory. Bigturtle (talk) 15:45, 30 September 2009 (UTC)

Ship Length

The Info Box says she was 170 feet long, but the text says she was 192 feet long. What is the correct length? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.232.181.52 (talk) 06:35, 18 June 2013 (UTC)