The Sun.
London, England, 1858-01-01 00:00:00

THE IMPRISONED ENGLISH ENGINBE.

AT SALERNO.

0

The following is a copy of the official papers
relative to the imprisonment of the engineers,
Watt and Park, at Salerno, which were yesterday
printed by order of Parliament :

ACTING-CONSUL BARBAR TO THE EARL OP CLARENDON.

Extract.)

(Received Dec. 5.)
NapleP, Nay: 28, 1857.

I have the honour to report to your lordship that on
the 25th inst. I proceeded, together with Mr. Park, to
Salerno to visit the two engineers.
On reaching that town I applied to the Attorney-Ge-
neral, in order that he would issue the necessary orders
to the prison authorities for our admission, and I availed
of the opportunity to express to him my regret that
when II of the crew of the Cagliari had been released
from prison the engineers Watt and Park had not been
included, and I requested to be informed when the trial
would come on. .

.—.-
He replied that they were not released, because a
letter of Miss Whyte's of a serious nature had been
found on Watt, or in his cabin on board the Cagliari,
which had been conveyed to him from the shore at
Genoa Park, and that he could not state when the trial
would commence.
On entering the prison where the two engineers were
confined I strictly examined them both on the subject
of the letter in question, and I am happy to say that the
Attorney-General's report to me was completely false,
Park never took any letter on board, and Watt never
received one. Park assured me hat some days since be
was brought before the Attorney-General, where he
found already waiting there one of the insurgents, who
Rai brought to give his evidence. This individual
deposed in favour of Watt and Park, completely exo-
nerating them from any complicity in the affair of the
seizure of the Cagliari, and stated that be (deponent),
wi h others, bad forced a notice upon Park by holding
daggers at hisjtbroat till he took it ; that the notice was
to the effect that if he did his duty no harm would hap-
pen to him (Park) and his companion ; but if otherwise
they would forfeit their lives." That both engineers
were then forced down the engine-room, and one of the
insurgents stood over them with a pistol, while another,
also armed, stood at the top of the engine-room pre-
pared to fire on the engineers if the insurgents perceived
anything to rouse their suspicions. Park farther informs
that when the witness bad stated thus Bauch, the Attor-
ney-General, who bad apparently taken down the depo-
sition as it was uttered, had purposely so altered the
wording that on reading it to deponent be refused to
sign it, as the Attorney-General had contrived to make
the deposition against the engineers, instead of a com-
plete acquittal.
The deponent insisted upon that page of the procts
being torn out, and the Attorney-General finally, but
reluctantly, did so.
I was informed at; Salerno, by good authority, that
en the 19th Oct., when the engineers were pronounced
to have been lawfully arrested, the President of the
Grand Court was very desirous of setting the engineers
at liberty ; but the Attorney-General insisted that it
should be otherwise. _ _

Unclosed, I have the honour of transmitting a state-
ment which I have drawn up from the reports of Watt
and Park, male to me in the presence of the father of
the latter, who has signed it with me ; it is too full of
the misery which the poor men have suffered to require
any comments from me.