My thanks to Liz for the information on Master Attendants. Capt. R.W. (Reinera William) Meppen was my husband's 4x Gt. Grandfather. He fathered 16 children so was no doubt grateful for the perks of his job as Master Attendant. In some notes by Frederick Daniel Meppen, Reinera's son b. 1819, he says his father "the late Von Meppen was Governor of Pulicat when it was a Dutch settlement and after it passed into the hands of the East India Company was appointed Master Attendant, Collector of Sea Customs, Justice of the Peace and Magistrate of Pulicat" I am not sure this is all fact. Frederick also said his grandfather was Baron von Meppen which Is unlikely from information I have as his grandafther went to India as a surgeon's assistant but did rise to become Chief Surgeon at the "castle at Negapatnam". Another son of Reinera, Capt. R.W. (Robert William) Meppen (b. 1815) was a Master Attendant of Bimlipitam. In which Navy were they Captains? Marion Meppen-Walter

For Marian..... As far as I know, all the Master Attendants were Captains in the Indian Marine Service, and also used their official positions to trade for themselves with other Eastern ports, which would account for the post of Master Attendant being quite lucrative. Several of them seem to have either captained or owned country trade ships before settling down to a profitable job onshore. The families (Hindes, Meppen, Eaton, Norfor, Gahan, Van Someren and Mahoney) all seem to have been connected by marriage or by the country trade - which usually meant trading in opium for Batavia and China, with payment in tea. Capt. Robert Meppen of Coringa married a niece of Lydia Pascal, the first wife of my main interest, Godlieb Van Someren, merchant of Madras. Edmund Pascal (brother of Lydia) & wife Leonora Weeden had a daughter, b c 1820 Catherine Emmeline Pascal who married Captain Robert W Meppen, mariner, at Coringa on 1 Sep 1841. I recently bought a book "The East Indiamen" which has a fascinating chapter on the country trade but unfortunately no mention of master attendants or country trade merchants in it. Do contact me off list if you think I might have any more information of interest to you. Ciao, Liz Coreglia Antelminelli > >