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The voyage of every
VOC ship and all passengers and officials were listed in a separate book
called the Ship Pay-ledger. Two identical copies were made. The first
one was deposited in the Batavia archive after the arrival of the ship
and a second with the chamber to which the ship belonged ( one of six in the
Netherlands). The
Assendelft sailed under the chamber of Amsterdam. Only a few
books for the late 17 century survived including the Assendelft voyage
of
1695 to Ceylon. A wealth of information appears in these Ship
Pay-ledgers in two columns marked debit and credit. This information include :
name, surname. city of origin, rank at appointment, wage, kit supplied,
duration of journey, cost for the VOC, debt and payments to people in the
Netherlands, final settlement, date of free burgher status ( release
from duty) and date of death1.
From Samuel Walter
entry in the Ship Pay-Ledger of the Assendelft (1695)2
a wealth of new information can be obtained (Click on the entries left to
enlarge) . This is the oldest known document listing Samuel Walter from
Samuel Walter van Prespoort. Two months wages (gagie) in
cash of 18 Guilder were paid out to prior his departure to
Samuel. Samuel owed the VOC 150 Guilders for a loan for lodging and a
kit. Samuel therefore owed the VOC 168 Guilders before he left ( more
than one and a half years wages at 9 guilders per month!). There
is very little information available during his stay in Amsterdam.
According to the Ship pay ledger Samuel owed money to the following persons:
Jan van den Bergh (67 Guilders) en Engeltje(n) Andries (76 Guilders) which
was subtracted from his wages in 1698,1699 en 1700.
We are not sure if he borrowed money from them or if he new them well. It is
probable that he stayed with them during his stay in Amsterdam.
Two important dates appear credit column, namely is free burgher
status ( release from duty) on 24 February 1711 and his date of death on 13
December 1725.
1 VOC
1.04.02, Index, p 113, The Hague
Archive.
2 VOC 1.04.02, Scheepssoldijboeken, 5428,
The Hague
Archive.
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