The Express.
London, England, 1864-02-05 00:00:00

THE CASE OF MURDER AND PIRACY

ON BOARD THE "FLOWERY LAND.*
—•--
In the case of the eight prisoners charged with the
murder of the captain of the Flowery Land,
Bares Brae roll, in summing up the can to the jury,
commenced by observing that unless they should be of
opinion that this vessel was a British vessel, and award by
a British subject, this court bad no jurisdiction, but it ap-
peered to him that there was staple evidence of these facts,
and that this part of the case would not present any diffi.
0014. The prisoners were charged by the present indict-
ment with the murder of the captain of the ship, and this
was the only question they would have to consider, and
they had nothing whatever to do with the other murders,
or the scuttliog of the vessel. Where there were so many
prisoners charged with an offence, it of course rendered
it more difficult for a jury to come to a oonclusioc, but he
eaplanied to them that if they should be of opinion that
the primmers had entered into a compiracy to seize and
plunder the vessel, and that they determined to kill the cap-
tain, if snob a step was necessary. in furtherance of that
object, although only one or two of them committed the
actual murder, they would all be equally/I.:thy in the eye of
the law of the crime, mil they would have to say by
their verdict whether they believed that this war the state
of things that existed on board this venal at the time the
act imputed to the prisoners was onninitted. In the come
of his summing up, the learned judge mid be was sorry to
hear the observations that had been made by one of the
learned counsel for the prisoners, that the law was not ad-
ministered in this country equally to the rich and the poor.
for the statement was got a true me. Would any as at-
tempt to pretend that in the courts of law of this sonetry
the poor were not tweeted with equal consideration to the
rich ? The rich were, of comae, always bother
off Mae the poor. They could obtain the sr
sistanai of the most eminent counsel, and protect their
interests at the expanse of thousands ; and what law
could prevent that? It appeared to lion that the learned
had made a great mistake in introducing such a topic
—it was totally oat of place, and ought not to have been
brought forward in such a case as the present. The learned
judge then west carefully through all the material points of
the evidsoos as it related to the several prisoners.
The jury retired at twenty-five minutes to five o'clock,
to deliberate, sad at squatter past six they came into court
and asked a question of the learned judge, as to the evidence
against the prisoner Carlos, which having been answered,
they retired.
About seven o'clock they again came into court, sad re-
turned a verdict of Guilty against all the prisoners except
Carlos, whom they found Not Guilty.
The prisoners who had been convicted were then called
epos in the usual form to state whether they had any-
Wog to urge why sentence of death should sot be posed
time them.
Wetter replied, when the queritiou was explained to him
by the interpreter, that he sever stabbed the captain, and
he did not break open any box.
Lyons made • loam rambling statement, the effect of
which, as explained by the interpreter, was that they were
ill-treated oe board the vessel, and kept short of food, acid
at last his countrymen said they really must do something,
end they wanted to commit violence, but he told them net
to do so, and to wait till they got to Singapore. Oa the day
the affair happened the captain told them to do something to
me of the sails,ancl the mate struck Ambrosio, and Ambrosio
mid they must do something, sad the same night he killed
the mate. After that he saw him kill the captain's brother.
Hs said he knew what had happened afterwards, but he
took no share in it, and he had nothing to do with killing
the captain or any of the others.
Damao made a similar statement, and be also en-
deavoared tothrow the bliss. ups some of his companions.
Santos said, " I did not kill them, but I knew they were
killed after they had been killed."
Lops said that three of the primmer' were innocent.
They knew nothing and had done nothing. No one knew
of the death of the captain until after it was done. There
IMO los, killed the captain, four committed the three
amides, and no more. The men who were discharged, he
said, knew quits as much about it as they did.
Blanco =de • statement to the same effect, and Marcel-
liso said octhiss.
Hr. Harker, the pi:iscipsl usher of the court, then made
the usual proclamation for silence while sentence of death
was being passed epos the prisms, a
Bares Bramwell, having put on the black cap, addressed
the prisosers se follows :—You have been found guilty of
the crime shrilled murder, and it is my dote to pass on you
the materna of the law for that crime. Atter • good deal
of rellemioa I have come to the conclusion that I Mall
best perform my duty by passing that sentence without
adding an words of my own. His lordship then plead
sentence of death in the usual form.
A short &curios them took place as to what course
should be takes with the ether 117606•111011 is which the
primmer Carlos, who had been acquitted, was %eluded, but
vo daisies was arrived at, and it was eventually arranged
that the matter should stand over till this (Friday) mornieg.
The primers did melee= in the slightest degree affected
at the sections. and while the interpreter was explaining
some portion of their atatementa several of them laughed
and appeared quits amused at what was going ea