The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-27 00:00:00

No. 16,629. LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING S Ny AUG UST 27, 1846.

INVENTORS and DEPOSITORS of WORK-
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- -

COURT-MARTIAL ON THE HON.
CAPTAIN GORDON, R.N.
PORTSMOUTH, WEDNESDAY EVENING.--A naval
court-martial assembled this morning on board the
Victory, 104, ordinary guard-ship in this harbour, bear-
ing the flag of Rear-Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, C. 8.,
Superintendent of the Dockyard, to try Captain the lion.
John Gordon, R.N., of the America, 50-gun frigate, upon
the following charge:—
" For that he the said Captain the lion. John Gordon,
being then in the actual service and full pay of her Majesty's
fleet, and Captain and Commanding Officer of her Majesty's
ship America, did, on the 26th day of April, 1846, sail with
her Majesty's said ship America, from Valparaiso in Chili,
for England, in disobedience of the orders of Rear• Admiral
Sir George Francis Seymour, then his superior officer, and
Commander-in-Chief of her Majesty's ships and vessels em-
ployed and to be employed in the Pacific, and in breach of
the 22d Article of War."
The Court was composed of the following members:—
Sir Charles Ogle, Bart., Admiral of the Blue, and Com-
mander-in-Chief of her Majesty's ships and vessels at
Spithead and in Portsmouth harbour, president; Rear-
Admiral Hyde Parker, C. 8.; Captain John Pasco, of
the Victory; Captain Henry Ducie C bads, C. 8., of the
Excellent; Captain Sir James Everard Home, Bart., of
the North Star; Captain John Robb, of the Gladiator.
Mr. Greetham, the Deputy Judge Advocate of the
Fleet, attended the Court.
Owing to the circumstances of the case, and the high
rank of the prisoner, who is brother of the Earl of Aber •
deen, very great interest was excited, and the cabin was
crowded to excess. By the courtesy, we believe, of the
president, a table and chairs apart from the crowd were
allowed for the press, that officer rightly judging that
the Court was substantially made public, not by admit-
ting the party at the door, but by giving reasonahle ac-
commodation to those who lay before the entire people
what passes in a quiet court.
The doors were opened at a quarter before ten o'clock,
and on entering we found the Court constituted. Cap-
tain Gordon stood within the barrier, at the foot of the
table at which the Court sat. His brother, the Hon. W.
Gordon. M.P., late a Lord of the Admiralty, entered
with the crowd, and was near the accused during the
day.
The members of the Court being sworn,
The Deputy JUDGE-ADVOCATE proceeded to state the
circumstances, and began by reading a letter from
Captain Gordon to the Secretary of the Admiralty,
dated from the America, Valparaiso, April 22, 1846,
inclosing a copy of a letter written that day to the
Commander-in-Chief, and of a requisition signed by the
merchants who had embarked specie on board the
America ; the letter added, " I only regret, for the
protection of British interests, I have been compelled to
act as I have done without being able first to obtain the
sanction of the Commanner-in-Chief, as it would re-
quire several months before I could hear from him. I
also enclose a copy of his last orders to me here."
The following were the three enclosures :
"Her Majesty's ship America, Valparaiso,
April 22, 1846.
" Sir,—l had the honour to forward to you on the 18th of
March, by her Majesty's ketch Spy, all my correspondence
and documents relative to the service I have been detached
upon these last twelve months, and many documents respect-
ing the Oregon treaty ; also a very strong requisition from
the merchants at Mazatlan, and others who have embarked
treasure on board this ship for conveyance to Valparaiso and
England to the amount of very near 2,000.000 dollars, re-
questing that from the insurances having been effected in
this ship, their property should not be transhipped into any
vessel of inferior force pending the present unsettled state of
the differences with the United States of America. A copy
of this document was sent me, together with a letter under
a flying seal, directed to you from her Britannic Majesty's
Consul at Tepic, strongly recommending the adoption of that
measure. It is a very important document, and has caused
me great anxiety of mind to decide how to act. But after
taking the opinions of the senior lieutenant, and another
officer of the civil branch, I determined to avoid all risk, and
proceed at once to England with the treasure under my
charge; for I could not feel justified, under such circum-
stances, in transferring so large an amount of specie into a
vessel carrying but 18 guns; and, although I cannot think
war with America will be declared for some time yet, recol-
lecting the circumstance of the Guerriere and Little Belt,
before any declaration of the late war with the
United States, and as the insurance has been effected
in this ship, should anything happen, the conse-
quence would be ruinous to the merchants and owners of
the treasure entrusted to me, and I am not quite certain
if I should not myself be responsible, having been ordered to
act for the protection of their interests. When I arrived at
San Blas from the Sandwich Islands, in December, after re-
ceiving the necessary information from her Majesty Minister
in Mexico, that pacific relations were likely to continue be-
tween the United States and Mexico, and from the opinion
expressed by her Majesty's Consul at Tepic, and others, that
an amicable settlement was likely to be made on the Oregon
boundary question, I therefore proceeded to obey your orders
of October 10, 1845, and sent an extract from them to her
Majesty's Consul, informing him of my arrival for the pro-
tection of British interests, and that I was to embark any
treasure the merchants were desirous of sending to Valparaiso
or England, and proceeded to Mazatlan, acting under his
directions. The end of February I left Mazatlan, having
embarked a very large amount of specie, and I very much
regret not having met you here to take your directions how
to proceed, being well aware of the great responsibility I am
now compelled to act under. By a letter received from you
the day before I sailed, I was inclined to think that, unless
you came yourself, you would send the Fisgard, and that it
depended on what orders came by the December mail,
whether you would think it necessary to collect a force to
the northward. The Fisgard arrived after I left Mazatlan,
and I communicated with her at San Blas, where
I had to wait twenty-four hours to get the De-
cember mail from England, by which no mention
was made in your dispatches of the Oregon or California ;
and I am led to believe, respecting the latter place, our Go-
vernment have at present no desire to interfere. Therefore,
under the peculiar and difficult situation I find myself placed
in, I trust the decision I have arrived at will meet with your
approbation, and that my short absence will not materially
interfere with your arrangements for the service of the sta-
tion. I have directed Captain Onslow to continue to execute
the orders you have left, and to act as if, according to those
orders, he had sent the Salamander home to England, and
remain here for your further instructions respecting the dis-
posal of her Majesty's ship under his command; and I con-
clude by assuring you that I have acted throughout to the
best of my judgment, and have not been led by personal in-
terest to adopt the line of conduct I have felt it my duty to
do. Indeed, had I waited a few months according to the
routine of the service, it would have become my duty to take
a freight home to England, which, with what I am entitled
to for bringing this to Valparaiso, would be far more profit-
able • and, further, I have to assure you that I have acted
to the best of my judgment.—l have the honour to be, &c.,
" J. GORDON.
" To Rear-Admiral Sir G. F. Seymour, G.C.H.,
Commander-in-Chief."
" Sir,—We, the undersigned merchants residing in Ma-
zatlan, having shipped a large amount of treasure on board
her Majesty's ship America, are desirous of its arrival in
England with as little delay as possible ; and as in the pre-
sent unsettled state of the differences with the United States
of America, we are anxious to have our property protected
by a vessel of large force, we beg to request that you will be
pleased to represent to Admiral Seymour, the Commander-
in-Chief, the importance to us that the voyage of the America
should be continued to England, in order to prevent all delay
at Valparaiso, but particularly to avoid having so large an
amount of specie exposed to the risk of conveyance by a
vessel of inferior force. It is also to be borne in mind that
the insurance which is effected in England will be by the
America, which might lead to doubts in settling losses if
transhipped to a less powerful vessel. Under these circum-
stances, we hope you will use your best endeavours in our
behalf, that the America may be permitted to carry our
treasures to England without transhipping the same at Val-
paraiso.
" Port of Mazatlan, Janury 13, 1846.
"F.de la Forre decker and Co. "P. Foot.
" Haas Denghausen and Co. " Francis Cook.
" Uhde and Pali. " Parrott and Co.
" Vega Hermanos. " J. R. Molter and Co.
" Runhardt and Ewald. " Redonnet, Echeguren,
" Mott, Talbot, and Co. and Co.
" To Eustace Barron, Esq., Her Britannic
Majesty's Consul, Tepic."
At the foot of the foregoing document Captain Gordon
had written—" The original document, with a letter
from Mr. Consul Barron strongly recommending the
measure, sent to me under a flying seal, was furnished
to the Commander-in-Chief at sea, by the Spy, and I
neglected taking a copy of the letter signed •Barron
Forbes, and Co., who have embarked a great amount of
specie."
Sir G. F. Seymour's instructions, also inclosed, were as
follows :
" By Sir George Francis Seymour, C. 8., G.C.H., Rear-
Admiral of the Blue, and Commander-in-Chief of her
Majesty's ships and
.vessels employed and to be em-
ployed in the Pacific.
" In case of your return to this port during my absence,
and the question between Great Britain and the United
States remaining unsettled, and making it advisable that the
squadron should assemble and receive my orders for their
further proceedings, you are, as soon as you can complete het
necessary refit and supplies of her Majesty's ship under your
command, to return to the northward, for the purpose of
joining my flag, calling at Callao and San Blas, in order to
receive any information or directions which I may leave at
either port for your guidance. In the event of the state of
affairs making the return of the America to the northward
clearly unnecessary, you are to remain on the coast of Chili
and Peru, for the protection of British interests, until further
orders.
" Given on board her Majesty's ship, Collingwood, Yelps-
paraiso, this 13th of February, 1846.
" G. F. SEYMOUR,
" Rear •Admiral and Commander-in-Chief.
" To the lion. John Gordon, Captain of her
Majesty's ship, America."
The following letter was next read by the Deputy-
Judge-Advocate; it was addressed by Captain Gordon
to the Secretary of the Admiralty, and dated—
" Her Majesty's ship America, Spithead, Aug. 19, 1846.
" I have had the honour to receive your letter of the Bth
of July, informing me that my conduct in proceeding to
England, as stated in my letter to Sir G. F. Seymour of the
22d of April, appeared to their Lordships to be so reprehen-
sible that they had determined on investigating it by a
court-martial. I had hoped that the reasons assigned in my
letter to the Admiralty, and the explanations given therein,
would have proved sufficient to justify in the sight of their
Lordships the step I had taken. I need not say with what
deep concern I find that this is not the case, and that my
conduct on this occasion has been such as to bring me under
the displeasure of their Lordships. Under these circum-
stances I feel bound to admit that 1 have judged erroneously,
but I beg most respectfully to assure their Lordships that I
have not been influenced by any unworthy motives. I acted
on a full consideration of what appeared to me at the time
to be the best; if I have erred, it has not been from any
undue regard to personal advantage, and still less with any
desire to deprive a brother officer of what might justly be his
due. I beg now to mention that as soon as I became in-
formed, on my arrival here, of the opinion entertained by

their Lordships of this matter, I have at once, and without
any hesitation, taken measures for reserving, to be transferred
to the agent of Captain Onslow, of the Daphne, or any other
officer who may have suffered pecuniary loss by any error in
my judgment on the occasion, the whole amount of whatever
may be derived from this conveyance to England. I beg to
call to the attention of their Lordships that in none of the
orders from Sir G. F. Seymour did I receive any instructions
for the diposal of the freight on my arrival at Valparaiso
further than to embark such specie as the merchants in
Mexico wished to send to Mexico or to England, or in the
orders left for me at Valparaiso. Deeply suffering under a
sense of their Lordships' displeasure, I cannot conclude with-
out humbly expressing a hope that, under all the circum-
stances of the case, their Lordships may be disposed to take
a less unfavourable view of my conduct than they announced
in your letter of the Bth of July."
The foregoing letter enclosed all Sir G. F. Seymour's
orders ; the only relevant one not above given was the
following :
" By Sir George Francis Seymour, C. 8., G.C.H., Rear-
Admiral of the Blue, and Commander-in-Chief of her
Majesty's ships and vessels employed and to be employed
in the Pacific Ocean.

" You are hereby required and directed, on the arrival of
the America at this anchorage, to embark the stores and pro-
visions intended for her, at present in the store-houses of
Messrs. Rhodes and Co., of Honolulu ; and having so done,
you are, as soon as your ship is ready for sea, to proceed to
complete her water, either at Hilo in Owyhee, or at Hanalei
in Atooi, as you may deem most desirable. Having com-
pleted your water, you are to proceed to San Blas, unless you
shall have become apprised of circumstances which shall in-
duce you to consider that it will be for the advantage of her
Majesty's service that you should return previously to the
coast of Upper Californa, in which case you are to proceed
there in the first instance, and to be guided by circumstances
as to your stay. On the arrival of the America at San Blas,
you will put yourself in immediate communication with her
Majesty's Consul at Tepic, and learn from him the present
political relations between Great Britain and the United
States, as far as they are known, and those also between the
United States and Mexico; and you will direct your sub-
sequent conduct in the manner most calculated to afford pro-
tection and confidence to her Majesty's subjects in the latter
republic. If you have good reason for believing that friendly
relations between Great Britain and the United States are

likely to be preserved, and there is no necessity for your con-
tinued stay on the coast of Mexico to protect the commerce
of British subjects, you are, after embarking on board such
specie as the merchants wish to send to Valparaiso or to
England, to leave the coast of Mexico the end of January,*
and to proceed to Valparaiso, where you will receive further
orders. If, on the contrary, you shall have reason to believe
that an accommodation of the questions between Great Bri-
tain and the United States is unlikely or uncertain, you are
instead of leaving the northern part of the Pacific, in the
America, at the time specified, to send the Frolic or Modeste,
to Valparaiso, with the freight then collected. You are also
to consider those sloops under your orders until they receive
other directions from me, observing that you will probably
find the first upon the coast of Mexico, to which she is about to
proceed, and the latter is directed to return to Woahoo when
she has executed the service on which she is at present em-
ployed on the north-west coast. You will afford the mer-
chants every assistance, consistent with your instructions, in
embarking treasure, either on board the America or one of
the sloops under your orders, during your continuance on the
coast, at the usual shipping ports. I enclose you a copy of
an order I had sent forward by the Modeste to the Sandwich
Islands, directing you to proceed to Monterey and San Fran-
cisco, had: the America arrived here previous to the Colling-
wood. I wish the principle of these orders still to guide your
conduct, in case of your proceeding to that quarter, as far as
they are consistent with what you have learned, from good
authority in Mexico, to be the present policy of her Majesty's
Government ; but instead of proceeding there immediately,
as directed at the commencement of the said order, you are

to be guided by your own discretion, founded on the informa-
tion you have received relative to that province, whether
and when you shall proceed there. Yon are, as directed on a
previous occasion, to open dispatches which may arrive in
Mexico bearing my address; and should any of these orders
or letters be confidential, you will see the necessity of observ-
ing the greatest reserve on the subjects to which they relate,
and to cause copies or extracts to be made thereof for my in-
formation, should you have an opportunity of communicating
with me; but you are to leave the public letters from Eng-
land still in the care of her Majesty's Consul, as there will
be probably duplicates thereof sent to Valparaiso by Panama,
and it is desirable that if circumstances should call me to San
Bias, I should find there the public communications sent to
me by that route.
"Given on board of her Majesty's ship Collingwood, Hono-
lulu,•this 10th October, 1845.

"G. F. SEYMOUR,
" Rear Admiral and Commander•in-Chie.
To the Hon. John Gordon, Captain of

her Majesty's ship America."
Another letter from Captain Gordon to the Secretary
of the Admiralty was next read ; it was dated August

20, 1846, and rani thus :
" With reference to4ny letter of yesterday's date, I omitted
to forward, ;for the information of their Lordships, the en-
closed extract from the orders of Sir G. F. Seymour, under
which Captain Onslow, of the Daphne, was acting, by which
it appears that the amount of specie expected from Mexico
was inconsiderable; but having, under the alarm of hostili-
ties between Mexico and the United States, shipped a large

_ . _
amount of treasure, with a strong requisition from the ship-
pers who bad effected their insurances in this ship, together
with the urgent request from her Majesty's Consul, induced
me, after mature consideration, to accede to their solicita-
tions, and not to tranship it into a vessel of such an inferior
force." _ _ _

The extract from the orders to Captain Onslow was
• "Should the amount of treasure expected from Mexico
not be such as to fully justify the employment of a ship of
war for its conveyance, and the Salamander should be re-
turned from the islands, you are to tranship itinto her instead
of conveying it in the Daphne, and you are to remain on the
coast of Chili and Peru until further orders. You are to con-
duct the duties which may be required on this coast for the
protection of British trade and the furtherance of the public
service, to cause or apply for the transfer of the specie ex-
pected from Mexico to the ship you command, and proceed
with the same to Spithead, reporting your arrival to the
Secretary to the Admiralty."
With this paper the statement of the Judge-Advocate
concluded, and the Court was cleared for a short time.
On our re-admission, this officer stated to the Court
that Captain Gordon requested that " his friend " might
be allowed to attend him.
Leave being granted, the barrier was opened to admit
Mr. Hoskins, the respectable solicitor, who is the Mayor
of Portsmouth. Courts. martial scarcely recognizing a
lawyer, the accused is obliged to resort to a fiction, and
call his attorney " his friend."

Captain Gordon was then allowed a seat, and
The JUDGE-ADVOCATE called evidence in support of
the charge. It consisted merely of the production of
Sir G. F. Seymour's orders of February 13, 1846, and
October 10, 1845, with the log-book of the America, and
the letters of Captain Gordon.
Mr. HoSKINS then proceeded to read Captain Gor-
don's defence, as follows:
Mr. President and Gentlemen of this Honourable
Court,—lt is with feelings of painful emotion that lam
called upon to defend myself before this honourable tri-
bunal, against the charge of disobedience to the orders of
my Commander-in-Chief. My answer to that charge,
however, shall consist of a plain and unvarnished state-
ment of facts as they occurred, comprising, as it neces-
sarily must, the order which I received from Rear-Ad-
miral Sir George Francis Seymour on the 10th of Octo-
ber, 1845 ; the course I adopted in obeying it ; the
circumstances in which I was placed by carrying that
order into execution ; the discretion necessary to be
exercised when placed in those circumstances; and the
determination at which, after mature deliberation, I
arrived. And I cannot fail to hope that, after having
made that statement, this Honourable Court will feel
satisfied that I have not been guilty even of an error in
judgment, but that I have exercised a sound discretion,
and that, impelled by a sense of duty alone, I have
adopted the only proper course which the position in
which I was placed had left open for my adoption. On the
arrival of the America at Honolulu, on the 21st of Oc-
tober, 1845, I received from the Commander-in-Chief
the order bearing date the 10th day of the same month,
which is already before the Court. In pursuance of this
order I sailed in the America from Honolulu on the 2d
of November, 1845, and reached San Blas on the 10th of
December following, when we proceeded, on the 17th of
December, to Mazatlan, which we reached on the 22d of
that month, and continued there till the end of February,

1846. It will be seen by this order that a discretion
was vested in me by the Commander-in-Chief, as to the
course of my proceedings, depending on the information
I should obtain as to the continuance of friendly rela-
tions between Great Britain and the United States of
America. My continued and anxious attention, there-
fore, was devoted to the procuring of such information
on this subject as I could obtain ; and with this view,
pursuant to the order which has been read, I put myself
in immediate communication with the British Consul at
Tepid on that subject, and continued to communicate
with him during the whole time of our stay at Mazatlan.
I here take the liberty of putting before the Court the
information which I received, both from the Commander-
in-Chief and from the British Consul at Tepic, on the
subject which so much engaged my attention. The ori-
ginal letters will be handed yin to the Court, but as they
contain references to other matters, I have extracted
such parts as relate only to the point in question, and
which are as follow:
di Fitou THE COMMANDER- IN. CHIEF.
" Honolulu, Oct. 10, 1845.
s
"I have no word of Oregon, or probable war, since the
letter
and I am therefore less inclined to fetter you
about
as f
while you remain in charge of the north
t California,
the Columbus is again expected in this quarter, but I
atcomo not
that
ihnl:e It
paccor
country
of the news of our Government relative
ul March, you saw in duplicate at Tepic, and I
un
mt
am inclined to think the Oregon matter will be settled."
"FROM THE SAME.
if you find it right to come away in February."
"I am afraid no ship will come up to Mexico until after I
get to Valparaiso, to order either Daphne or Fisgard, or any
larger frigate that may be necessary to be there, after you
"Valparaiso, Jan. 10, 184 G.
expected from Payta, with the
October mail, or perhaps Captain Gordon may go on to Pa-
nama and bring me that of December. The expectation of
come"T
her daily arrival has prevented me sending off the Fisgard ;
but unless I am induced to come on in the Collingwood to the
hawe CaO'rmorant is daily
northward at once, I shall probably detach the Fisgard in that
direction."

FROM THE SAME.
"None of the mills yet arrived have brought me a word
about the Oregon since the letters and orders you saw before
you left the coast of Mexico last year.,,
" Valparaiso, Jan. 15, 1846.
wrote you on the 10th, but if you remain on the coast
of Mexico this will perhaps reach you earlier by the Fisgard.
I have the official Admiralty letters , directed here to the

* If no ship should have arrived to relieve you at the end
of January, you are at liberty to prolong your departure from
the coast of Mexico to the end of February, if you shall think
fit.—G. F. S.

early part of October ; they contain no mention of Oregon or
any other subject of any consequence, and I have never re-
ceived a paper in which that country or California is men-
tioned since that you saw on your way to the northward.
Before the Fisgari arrives it is probable that the November
and December mail will reach San Blas, and may show more
what is likely to be the event. I intend leaving this early
next month to get the December mail at Payta, and probably
that of January, and then come on to San Blas, if the
affairs which make a collection of the squadron expedient
have not ended, which I think doubtful or unlikely. This is
uncertain about reaching you, and I have not attempted to
fetter the exercise of your discretion by any precise orders if
you remain on the coast."
" FROM lIEB BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S CONSUL AT TEPIC.
" February 28.
. .

" I see nothing to make me believe there will be a war
about Oregon ; they are debating the affair in the American
Congress, and the upshot will be much bluster and nothing
done; but your dispatches will enable Nou to know the
views of England, of which I am ignorant:"
Being satisfied, therefore, from these communication, as
well as from other sources (for I lost no opportunity of
seeking information wherever it could be obtained) that
there was no probability of the friendly relations be-
tween this country and the United States being dis-
turbed, and it being unnecessary for me to continue on
the coast of Mexico for the protection of British in-
terests, I proceeded to obey that part of the Commander-
in-Chief's order of the 10th October, 1845, which directs
me to embark on board the America such specie as the
merchants might wish to send to Valparaiso or to Eng-
land, and then to leave the coast of Mexico in January
or February, and to proceed to Valparaiso, where I
should receive further orders. I accordingly commenced
receiving on board specie belonging to the merchants,
and whilst doing so I addressed a letter to her Britannia
Majesty's Consul at Tepic, requesting his opinion as to the
course I should pursue, to which I received the follow-
ing reply:— _ _ _

" Tepic, January 21,1846.
" Since you ask me my opinion about your own move-
ments, I shall say that I think you had better go on as you
are doing, receive specie, and remain at Mazatlan as long as
you prudently can—l should think till about the 20th of
February. Come down to San Blas, be there about the 21st,
and leave on the Ist of March. This would give you another
month to see how affairs turn out. lam certain Paredes
will be out with whatever plan he may be hatching; and
who knows but something may turn up that may make the
American Commodore take himself off before the time you
are ready to sail? I enclose you a copy of a document
signed by the merchants at Mazatlan, and now under signa-
ture by those of this place, and which I shall send to the
admiral, in hopes it may induce him to send you home. It
is really very desirable that property should be on board a
stout vessel in these times, and you have now two vessels to
leave. Sir Thomas Thompson can look after the Yankees,
and all you could do is to look after them, for whatever may
happen I presume you would not fight them without a war
being declared with England."
Having, therefore, received on board specie to the
amount of 1,800,000 dollars to be conveyed to England,
and having sailed from Mazatlan on the 27th of Februry
and San Bias on the following day, I reached Valpa-
raiso on the 20th of April. Before leaving Mazatlan,
however, the requisition (alluded to in the letter which
has just been read) from the merchants who bad shipped
treasure on board the America, was addressed and sent
to the British Consul at Tepic, requesting him to repre-
sent to the Commander in-Chief the importance to their
interests of having the specie conveyed to England in
the America, and that it might not be transhipped into
any vessel of inferior force. A copy of this docu-
ment was sent to me, together with a letter, under a
flying seal, directed to the Commander-in-Chief, from
her Majesty's Consul at Tepic, strongly recommending
the adoption of that measure. This important docu-
ment has already been read. On my reaching Valpa-
raiso I was placed in circumstances of great perplexity
and responsibility, since neither did the order of my
Commander-in-Chief, of the 10th of October, 1845,
nor that of the 13th of February, 1846, contain any
directions as to the disposal of the treasure which I had
on board. Entrusted, therefore, as I was with so large
an amount of property belonging to British merchants
for safe conveyance to England—insured as that pro-
perty had been (although without my previous know-
ledge) as specie to be conveyed to this country by the
America—receiving, as I had done, a copy of so power-
ful an appeal from the merchants to whom this treasure
belonged—left, as I was, without the possibility of com-
municating with my Commander-in-Chief for several
months, I felt a great weight of responsibility in deter-
mining what course I ought to pursue. I had no fear
whatever of war with America, but still under the feel-
ings of irritation manifested by individual officers of the
United States, there was the possibility of a hostile
encounter with a vessel of small force, conveying so
large an amount of treasure—an event which might
have proved, in all respects, most disastrous in its
consequences. That the dread of such an encounter
was felt by all the merchants at Mazatlan I shall be able
to show by the testimony of one of those gentlemen, Mr.
Kelly, who being in England, and seeing by the public
prints that I was about to be tried by court-martial,
kindly wrote to me from Liverpool, volunteering that
evidence which he is here to-day prepared to give.
From that gentleman's testimony the Court will learn
that insurances could not be effected upon freight sent
home to England under the war rate of 3 per cent., in-
stead of the usual rate of 1 per cent., and that the mer-
chants knowing that on a former occasion, when there
was a probability of hostilities between the United
States and Mexico, the Americans took pessession of
California before any declaration of war, were naturally
in a great state of alarm, lest the treasure belong-
ing to them, if sent by a ship of inferior
force, might come into collision with an Ame-
rican ship of larger force, and be captured. From the
orders also left by the Commander-in-Chief for Captain
Onslow, of the Daphne, that the treasure, which might
be brought from San Blas should be sent to England,
either by the Salamander, if a small amount, or by the
Daphne, if a larger sum, it was perfectly obvious that it
was the Commander-in-Chief's desire that the amount of
force to be employed for :the protection of the specie
should be proportioned to the amount to be protected;
whilst it was eqUally clear that the orders did not con-
template so large an amount of treasure being brought
from San Blas as was shipped by the merchants for its
special protection on board the America. I was still
further impressed with the necessity of having this large
amount of specie conveyed by a ship of superior force to
the Daphne, by the fact that the Commander in-Chief
had himself evinced a doubt as to the safety of sending
specie to England by the Daphne, by giving directions for
the insurance of his share of whatever amount might be
transmitted by that vessel. After, therefore, devoting
the whole energies of my mind to the consideration of
the subject, and most maturely deliberating on the step
which ought to be taken, and after seeking the opinion
of those upon whose judgment reliance might be placed,
I felt assured that it was my duty to convey to Eng-
land in the America the treasure which had been so en-
trusted to me, and I had no hesitation in believing then,
as I do at the present moment, that the decision at
which I arrived would be fully approved by my Com-
mander-in-Chief, to whom I wrote at Valparaiso
the letter of the 22d April last, which has already
been read. The contents of that letter will at once
show that I was not acting in wilful and unjustifiable
disobedience to the orders of the Commander-in-
Chief, but that I was actuated only by an anxious
desire, under the peculiar circumstances in which I
was placed, to discharge what I fully believed to be
my duty. I may appeal to the experience of this Hon.
Court in proof of the fact, that in the course of our ser-
vice, and especially on foreign stations, an officer is
sometimes placed in circumstances which must necessa-
rily invest him with a large amount of discretion in the
discharge of his duty, even to an apparent deviation
from orders received. In those circumstances I have
been placed; that discretion I have exercised to the very
best of my judgment; and it is satisfactory for me to
know that I have been borne out in the opinion under
which I acted, by a continuance of the peaceful relations
between this country and the United States; for this
Hon. Court, will, I trust, readily believe me when I say
that if I had for one moment believed it probable that
those peaceful relations would have been disturbed, no
consideration whatever should have induced me to pro-
ceed to England without express orders from my Com-
mander-in-Chief. The Daphne was left by me for the
protection of British interests in Mexico, and I am
not aware that either her Majesty's service or any inte-
rests whatever can have suffered from the step which I
have felt it to be my duty to take. On my arrival in
England I was surprised to find that an order for court-
martial had been issued to try me for disobedience of
the Commander-in-Chief's order of the 13th February,
and that the most calumnious and exaggerated misrepre-
sentations of the circumstances of this case were reported
in the public newspapers. I trust that it is scarcely
necessary for me, in the presence of this Hon. Court,'
to give a distinct and indignant denial to the imputation
of my having been actuated by base and mercenary
motives in bringing this freight to England. Those who
know me best will at once pronounce me incapable of
having so acted from any undue regard to personal ad.
vantage, even although its amount had been large, in-
stead of being, as it is, comparatively small. And, as a
proof that I have not been actuated by any interested mo-
tive, I beg to mention that I took the earliest opportu-
nity on my arrival at borne of adopting measures for
reserving the whole amount of whatever might be derived
from the conveyance of this treasure to England, in order
that the same may be transferred to the agent of Cap-
tain Onslow, of the Daphne, or any other officer who
may have suffered pecuniary loss from the step
which I have taken, although no complaint or re-
monstrance has been made by Captain Onslow or any
other officer. I may also add, as another proof
of my not being influenced by selfish or interested motives,
that before we left Mexico I distributed amongst my
ship's company more than 1,0001., part of moneys that
were at my sole disposal, whilst the remainder was ex-
pended in decorations to her Majesty's ship which I have
the honour to command. The letter addressed by me
from Spithead to the Admiralty was written under poig-
nant feelings of regret, that I should, by a discharge of
what I conceived to be my duty, have incurred the dis-
pleasure of their Lordsbips ; and any expression contained
in that letter, of my having acted erroneously, was in-
tended to convey my acquiescence in and deference to
their Lordships' judgment, and not as admitting that I
was influenced by any other than what I firmly be-
lieved to be a sense of duty when I left Valparaiso. It
now only remains, Sir and gentlemen, for me to thank
you for the patient attention which you have given to my
explsnation of the circumstances under which I now

stand before you. That explanation will, I trust, be
satisfactory to the high-minded and distinguished Bri•
tish officers of which this court is composed. To such
honourable keeping I may safely confide my character,
dearer to nne than life itself. For many years engaged
in the same service as yourself, I have to the present
moment borne an irreproachable name. I rely with
confidence on your justice and impartiality, and, re-
tiring as I shall do from this court with the conscious-
ness of having, to the best of my judgment, discharged
my duty, I trust that I shall carry with me the
approval of this Honourable Court ; and that I shall be
at once restored to the service of my Sovereign and my
country, possessed of that jewel of inestimable value to a
British officer—an unblemished reputation.
Mr. Kelly, a merchant, carrying on business at
Mazatlan. was then called and sworn. He stated that
he had shipped nearly 26,000/. on board the America ;
that the merchants at Mazatlan felt alarm, and sent the
requisition to Captain Gordon, and that in fact the
underwriters in England exacted treble premium for in-
suring against capture. The merchants felt more sure
by having their specie on board so large a vessel ; though
he for himself should scarcely suppose the Americans would
take specie out of an English man-of-war by force, no
declaration of war being made. The witness stated that
the American force in those seas consisted of two frigates,
three sloops, and two store-ships.
Captain ROBB—As a British merchant, do you con-
sider that your interests would have materially suffered
if the requisition had not been attended to ? Witness—
As circumstances have turned out, I see now that they
would not ; but at that time, with a large amount of
tpireodpestratyteaotfsatffakaierelere was great anxiety in the unset-
ainbgTouwhteiwered,theoCpeonuerdt,waansdctlheearfeodlio
follow
the DEPUTY JUDGE-ADVOCATE
then
doorslec (11 bs ye the Court and examined by
2t
casees s minutess
beingw e r were thehcea

Lieutenant Agassiz—l am First Lieutenant of the
America. Captain Gordon consulted with me in re-
gard to taking the treasure home to England in the
America from Valparaiso. The first time I told him
it was difficult to give an opinion, not knowing
all the circumstances, and I must be prejudiced,
as I wished to go home. Captain Gordon replied, "So
do I ; but it is against my interest, as it will be my next
turn for freight ; but I think I am bound to go home by
this requisition." I asked time to consider, and after-
wards understanding that Admiral Seymour's orders
were not against it, 1 said I thought he would be obliged
to go home ; if anything happened to the freight I
thought the insurance office would come upon him. He
had told me the Admiral's orders were not against his
going home ; that his orders were distinct, to protect
British property—British interests. I believe the
Americans had at Mazatlan, when we left, two 50-gun
frigates, two 22-gun corvettes, and a schooner ; but I
cannot speak to the calibre of the guns, for I never was
on board. The French had a frigate at Mazatlan, and
a brig and corvette at Valparaiso. There was, I believe,
no English frigate in the Pacific of the size of the
America when she left Valparaiso for England. No
treasure was taken out of the Daphne.
Mr. C. Thorndike, the master, sworn—The Americans
had at Mazatlan, when we left, two frigates, two or three
corvettes, and one store-ship. I was never on board
them. The Commodore's ship was the Savannah ; the
other frigate was the Constitution. One of the cor-
vettes was the Portsmouth, I remember. They called
the frigates 50-guns, but I believe they mounted 54.
There was, I believe, no English • frigate in the Pacific,
of the size of the America, when she sailed from Val-
paraiso for England ; the Grampus was expected daily;
in fact so much so, that we thought a large vessel we
saw the next day was that. I do not know what force
the Americans had in the Pacific. The French frigate
had left Mazatlan before we did. When we were at
Valparaiso, the Commander-in-Chief was reported to
be to the northward, at San Blas ; we had called there
on our way, but I did not hear that he was then ex-
pected there. It would take three or four weeks for the
America to sail from Valparaiso to San Bias.
Colin Wm. Lindsay, second lieutenant of the America,
was then sworn and examined by the DEPUTY JUDGE-
ADVOCATE. _ _

What force had the Americans at Mazatlan when the
America sailed from that place?—Two frigates, two cor-
vettes, one small schooner, and a store-ship.
Sir C. OGLE—Do you know the force of those ships?
—No ; they were large frigates ; 44 or 46 guns they
called them.
Captain CHADs—Never mind what they called them.
Sir C. OGLE—Did you go on board of them?—l went
on board the Commodore's.
Do you know what metal the frigates carried—what
was the actual number of their guns?—l do not know.
Do you know the names of the frigates?—The Savan-
nah and the Constitution.
Was there any English frigate in the Pacific of the
size of the America when she sailed for England from
Valparaiso?—Yes ; the Fisgard and the Talbot were
there.

Admiral PARKER—Do you call the Fisgard the size
' the America?—No.

You don't understand the question. Was there any
English frigate in the Pacific of the size of the America
when you sailed for England ?—I don't know.
What force had the Americans in the Pacific?—l am
not aware.
What had the French? —I am not aware.

Was any treasure taken out of the Daphne2—None.
Captain CRADS—How long were you lying in com-
pany with the American frigates 2—l do not know the
exact time; perhaps six weeks.
Were you doing duty in the America at that time?—
Y es.

How far were the American frigates from you?—
About 500 yards.
Was there any rumour of a difference between Eng.
[and and America at that time respecting the Oregon
territory?—Not officially; not to my knowledge; not
that I heard of.
Had you no knowledge that there was a requisition
from merchants to carry the treasure to England in con-
sequence of some difference?---Yes; so far as that they
had written a requisition for the America to go home
with the money.
Captain CRADS—Did you not feel it your duty as an
officer to ascertain the force of ships that might have
been your enemy next day—to count their ports?—Yes.
State the force—The Savannah had 48 32-pounders,
but I believe six of them on the main deck were of
heavier calibre. The Constitution had 44 or 46 guns.
Captain CHADS observed—Your evidence is not what
it ought to be, sir," as an officer, and you have given it
with great hesitation and prevarication, and that the
Court ought to consider.
PRESIDENT—Certainly it has :been with great diffi-
culty that we have extracted the evidence from you.
Captain Pasco made an observation to the President,
and the court was again cleared. After the lapse of a
few minutes the doors were opened.
The PRESIDENT then, addressing the last witness, said
—I am extremely sorry to be authorised by the Court to
express their opinion of your conduct in giving your
evidence as unbecoming the character of an officer ; and
that opinion of the Court will be recorded.
Lieutenant Lindsay—l am very sorry the Court
should view my conduct in that light. I was not
aware that I should be called as a witness until twelve
o'clock, or I should have endeavoured to have collected
my thoughts on the subject, and should have been able
to have answered more explicitly.
The master was again recalled, and was asked by the
Court, how long was the run from Mazatlan to Valpa-
raiso; to which he replied, that the average passage was
about four or five weeks.
Captain Gordon remarked—You said 90 days.
The PRESIDENT then inquired of Captain Gordon, if he
had anything more to offer, and having answered in the
negative, the Court was then ordered to be cleared for
the last time, it being about ten minutes past one.
At a quarter-past two admission was again obtained,
when the following verdict was read by the Deputy
Judge Advocate, after reciting the charges, the Court
standing with their cocked-hats and gloves on :
" Having heard the evidence produced in support of
the charge, and by Captain the Hon. John Gordon in
his defence, and what he has alleged in aid thereof, and
having maturely and deliberately weighed and consi-
dered the whole, the Court is of opinion that the charge
has been fully proved against Captain the Hon. John
Gordon, but that in sailing from Valparaiso for England
in the said ship America, with the said treasure on
board her, the said Captain the Hon. J. Gordon was not
actuated by his private pecuniary advantage. And the
Court do adjudge the said Captain the Hon. John
Gordon to be severely reprimanded, and the said Captain
the Hon. John Gordon is hereby reprimanded accord-
ingly."
The Court then rose, and left the ship. The result
was received by the majority of the assembly with some-
thing like disappointment, and appeared very much to
surprise the Gallant Captain himself. The feeling
among the officers was evidently in his favour after
hearing the evidence and defence. The Master at Arms
having presented Captain Gordon with his sword, in
company with his brother, he went ashore in his gig.

THE WEATHER.—THE CROPS.—Since our last we
have experienced much changeable weather, having had a
succession of rain, sunshine, wind, and sometimes a chill, and
at other times a sultry and heated atmosphere—in two or
three instances quite oppressive. But it is pleasing to know
that these changes have not been productive of any
material injury to the crops generally, nor was harvest
labour considerably retarded. In the vicinity of mountain
dstricts there have been some floods, which have done
partial injuries, but to no very great extent, while on
the whole, farmers, as to the grain crops, have no reason
to complain, as the harvest, in that line, has been much
earlier, abundant, and propitious than in former years, for
some time past. The failure of the potato crop is the great
and general complaint. Where the potato has failed, turnip
sowing and cabbage planting should not be neglected or
delayed a moment, as they are at present the only available
substitute for that esculent, so long the general food of our
poor. There is one consolation, however, in mitigation of
the evils likely to result from the potato blight, which is,
that the present grain harvest promises to be more than an
average.— Ulster Gazette.
THE CHARITY CommrssioN.--It appears from a return
yesterday made public, that the expenses which have been
incurred by the Charity Commission in each year from the
commencement in 1818 to the final termination in 1838,
amounted to 261,8261. Is. OJAI Mr. Hume wished to know
the expense incurred in each year, which could not be given,
as the accounts were made up to certain periods. There are
19 periods embraced in the return.