The Sun.
London, England, 1846-02-06 00:00:00

time. The captain desired me to stop in the cabin. A
charge was brought against the deceased Reason by a
man named Morris. The deceased had said " that he
would have law when he came to England," or words to
that effect. The captain then desired Reason to be sent for.
He came down then. Barry Yelverton and William Dunn,
the cook, were in the cabin, as well as a foreigner, Jules Cor-
diavello. The captain was more than half drunk. He had
been taking brandy and water before. I did not remain an
the cabin till Reason's death. To the best of my knowledge
the captain took hold of him and shook him on the sofa,
where he desired him to sit. Ha struck him over the side
with the point of the bayonet. I can recollect that he
spoke some words to him first. I think he said
you are a d-- mutineer, sir. Reason did not answer.
1 I did not see the captain do anything more
while I was there. There were bayonets always about the
cabin. He had not a bayonet in his hand when Morris first
spoke to him, but he took it into his hand when Reason first
came down. There was a boy on board named Glover, and
soon after I left he came and called me. I went down to
the cabin again, and saw the captain and Dunn theree.liaal
Rea-
son was lying down alongside the sofa, and the
fmeathathewasdeaedad. T
dead. I disbelieved
captainelieve looicd as if
dit,bu oetafter-
fwu ramr ded
found that he was ds
he were more in possession of his senses thvaend.befTorbee Ibadlefy
I t
the cabin, and he appeared calm and Immo
was carried out and buried on the following morning. reed
the burial service over him. I find an entry in the log on
the 24th October, signed by the captain. I made that entry
by the captain's desire. He told me that Reason had died
in a tit, and Dunn told me so also. I had a conversation
with the captain before, and he desired me to say that he had
died in a fit. I entered in the log-book what he desired
me to enter, although I guessed how the man had died. I
think that the other names were signed after Mars died,
In general cases the captain and the two chief officers sign
the log, but no others.
Cross-examined by Mr. Jenvis—This voyage was the first
long voyage I made under Captain Johnstone. Nothing
particular occurred in the outward voyage. Rambert was a
new hand. I cannot say how many new hands were shipped.
I cannot say that any of the hands had shipped under false
names, or that they had left their ships at Hong-Kong.
Rambert leaped overboard on the 25th of September. I did
not hear some days before that that there was to be a mu-
tiny. Rambert was in the habit of treating the men un-
kindly, but the captain was not. He seemed very attentive
to the interests of the owners, and before this time was very
quiet. The men wore at this time grumbling because they
were on short allowance. Yelverton and French made some
commitaieation to the captain, that the crew. or pert of the
crew, heal sharpened their knives with the intention of taking
the captain's lire. French accused the cook with a design on
the captain's life. This communication added to the captain's
excitement. A man named Cole informed him, also, that the
crow intended, after taking hls life. to sail with the ship to
the Contineat. Dunn told the captain, in about an hour
after the previous statements, that French had sharpened his
knife on both sides, and said that he would be one of the first
to take his life. He also heard the foreigner tell the
captain that Gair, a seaman, had come to him,
and pointing a marline spike at his breast, threat-
ened to run it into him if he would not assist
to kill the captain. The crew generally were in
the habit of carrying tales to the captain of the intention of
other persons. The way this was done was, the captain
would call down one of the crew, and holding a cutlass over
him, would threaten to cut him if he would not reveal some-
thing about some of the other men, and to save himself the
man did so. Barry Yelverton, French, and Dunn's commu-
nications were voluntary ones. After Rambert's death and
the arrival of the Tory at Fayal, she was boarded by the cap-
tain of an English vessel, who remained for about an hour and
a half, having free access to the ship and free com-
munication with the crew of the Tory. After leaving
Faye], French made another voluntary communication to the
captain. When the boy Glover called for me the captain
was more than half drunk, and he had been in this excited
state for some time before. When Reason was called down
the captain struck him on the side with the bayonet.
Re-examined by Mr. BODKIN—I wrote the false entries
because I knew the captain would put an end to any one's
existence who refused to obey him. He said to me " that if
I disobeyed him, I should not have long to live."
Julian Cordiavello, examined by Mr. CLERK—Joined the
ship at Liverpool for the outward and home voyage. He
recollected the death of Reason some three days after the
ship left Fayal on her return He remembered his being in
the cabin at about midnight with others. When Reason came
in the captain told him to sit down on the sofa ; he had then a
cutlasc in his hand. He said, then you want law, I'll give
you English law, and he struck him on the forehead with
the cutlass. H 6 then seized Reason by the collar, and shoved
him from side to side. The captain then threw the cutlass
on the floor, and called the boy Jenning to bring the bayonet.
He struck him twice with it, and the man died immediately.
Mr. Justice WiemAers—Where did he strike him ? Wit-
ness—On the breast. He called Dunn, and the man was dis-
covered to be dead. The body of Reason was thrown over-
board.
Cross-examined—He knew a Frenchman on board
of the name of Morris. He was shipped at
Hong-Kong. He (the witness) did not know that Morris
had been on 4oard the ship William the Fourth, or that
he had been acused of mutiny. Witness had never heard
Reason threaten the captain's life. The captain in his con-
duct was very violent, very much like a wild animal. He
often exclaimed, "this is the arm that slew the Boyne at
the hattle of Bannockburn."
Barry Yelverton was next examined, and said he was an
apprentice on board the Tory, and was in her on the voyage
from Hong-Kong. He recollected the vessel falling short of
water and provisions before the ship reached Ascension.
The night on which they expected to make Ascension,
he asked Reason if he thought they would reach land before
the next morning? His answer was, he did not know; but
if they did so, he would put a blue shirt on the forearm, so
that some man-of-war's men would come on board and learn
how the men had been treated on the voyage by Captain
Johnstone. That was all that witness heard Reason say.
Witness told this to the captain after the Tory fell in with
the French barque, from which they obtained provisions.
He believed that he told the captain the day after
leaving the French barque. The captain called
witness into the cabin then, and said that,
,judg-
ing from the mate's appearance, he concluded all
was not right, and asked him if• he had heard anything.
The captain had a cutlass in his hands, and said, " Tell me at
once, did you hear any one threaten my life ?" The captain
then sent for French, and said to him, "French, did you not
hear Reason say, that if the ship did not make the Island of
Ascension before morning he would have my life?"
French said he had, and that the witness also
had heard the same. Witness then told all he
had heard, which he had already stated in evidence.
French also said he had seen the men sharpening their knives
on the grindstone. About an hour after witness went on
deck, and saw the captain and several other of the officers
armed. The men were all aft, and the captain was cutting
at them. Among the men aft were Reason, Lee, and Cone,
and these were the men the captain was cutting at then.
They were in irons at the time at the break of the poop.
They ware cut on the head, and witness saw all the three
bleeding. The same night the three were hauled into the tops,
but before this they had an,anchor shackle placed on the necks of
each. They were hauled into the tops by ropes. Shortly
after this Rambert jumped overboard. He recollected the
ship being off Fayal, and the captain going on shore to the
British Consul's. Witness went with him, but remained on
shore by the boat till the captain's return. The captain ap-
peared to be rather intoxicated when he came back, and said
something about the crew, but the words he did not recollect.
About two days after he recollected Reason, who was now
first mate, being sent for into the cabin. At this time the cap-
tain appeared to be very intoxicated. Morris was sent for a
little before, and asked if he had heard of any plot against his
(the captain's) life. He answered all that he had beard
Reason, Cone, and Lee say was, that on arriving he London
they would have law for him for what he had done to them.
The captain, on Reason coming into the cabin, said he would
have his law now, and cut the latter several times on the
head. Reason was sent on deck after this, and again sent
for about four hours after, and cut at in a singular manner.
He also pitched him about with his hands. Reason asked
the captain several times to spare him, but he paid no
attention to it, and shouted out the expression about the
battle of Bannockburn. The captain also stabbed Beason
in the left breast twice. About ten minutes after Reason
died. The dead body was afterwards placed at the foot of the
cabin, when the captain thrust the cutlass into it at the
shoulder, saying lie would serve the whole of them in the
same way. The most of the craw were by at the time, hav-
ing come down to see the body. Witness the following night
heard the captain say he would snake the crew walk the
plank. The captain draele much more after falling in with
the French barque than before. The witness, in con-
tinuation, repeated in substance the evidence about the entries
which he made in the log-book, made, as witness declared, at
the dictation of the captain, and the particulars of which
were given fully at the time of the examination before the
magistrates. lie made the deposition he then did, because
the captain threatened the crew, if they did not do so, lie
would have their life's blood.
The witness was cross-examined at sonic length, but no-
thing was elicited that materially affected his evidence in
chief.
David Johnson called and examined—Said he was a sea-
man on board the Tory. He joined the ship at Hong,-Kong.
He remembered the death of Reason. On the evening be-
fore Reason died the deceased came to witness's berth and
said thet the captain had called him. He saw a cut across
his forehead and the blood was upon it. Reason was called
by Julian and went away. After that witness never saw
Reason alive, bat next day he saw the dead body about 8
o'clock, when he saw four of the ship's company carrying
it along the deck. Witness saw the body bare and noticed
several stabs.
Franklin Tucker was next examined, and deposed as to
Reason. The last time he saw him alive was on the morning
of the day of his death; he was going down into the cabin,
and he had several cuts on his head. The next time he saw
him was about two hours after, when he saw him brought up
on deck dead. Witness afterwards examined the body, and
it was much cut on the head and body, apparently with a
cutlass.
There was nothing elicited in the cross-examination of
this witness.
Wm. Dunn, the cook of the ship, was next examined—He
deposed to the main features of the evidence already given,
respecting the scarcity of provisions when expecting to reach
Ascension. The witness,
wdtoinnteenigthedt., thle,rceanpchtainheT• arvaeddition, said the crew were very
iencglereefzed to run for a sail that
, a
crming to him in the
poop with his knife sharpened,said if the captain
touched him he would run it intoa
m. Witness
taken and
pro-
posed that the captain shouladgliabbe
Reason,
•
an
aconEld manage it without
ia
econfinedreply
tillto
rtehneeyb , i rseaaicdh et
they
ey
murdering the captain. The next day they fpeloirtiiwmiet.dh the
the
French barque. He told the captain' what
c234lt,abinectaluiaste
he
eitn(esstbe hweiatrodent)haittiteFordeendchabalitatdinlenfed on the
poop and murdering him. The witness then went on in lathe
cor-
roboration of Reason, Lee, and Cone, being subsequently put irons, the particulars of the death of the former, 'and as to
having signed the log- book, stating that Reason had diedin a
fit. He signed the log-book entirely from the threats of the cap
fain. The Nyitlle';'i was or ss-examined at seine length with
the objec' ht .!lowing that the , itness had freely stated that
Rent . La I diet in a tie ena that he had heard the crew
dlr. ~:',.,. ;11., captain's life. Oil these heads no material
point, via. ciliated, otherwise than already given, though, he
Pt.tte I Le 12.1,1 some words with the captain respecting a
woman on b0a..,!, whom the latter accused him of living with.
James Glover, the steward, followed in examination, and
deposed as to 'he cutting and stabbing of Reison on the
night in question. Ilie evidence was mainly in confirmation
of that of lielverton and Julian.
Henry Slack was next called, who briefly deposed to hay-
. ing heard
evening before his death.
Iva
aaboy,the son of the female
examined to the •as captain
passenger, • ,
Henry J3ofmrsesT
Stephen,h
o n' p se,
did not see eason struck, but
the death aftersason. He
threatening when in loyal to ''kill them all," and also as to
breast.
saw him his death. He had two wounds on his
James Sinclair, the carpenter, was called, but counsel for
to him,
the Crown declining to put any question
be
which in substance was the same as that g
-
ven
Mr. JERVIS examined him at some length. Hisievidence,
fore the magistrate, was to the effect—that the
men were very discontented, and had threatened
among themselves to do some bodily harm to tho