The Sun.
London, England, 1832-11-07 00:00:00

PIRACY AND MURDER BY CONVICTS

The following is an ex tact from a private letter
received from Sydney, da, ed the 17th of May la-t :
" On the 31st of December last, while the Cale-
donia, a merchant brig belonging to Messrs. Mackay
and Co., merchants of Sydney, was lying at More-
ton-bay, a penal settlement, it was hoarded by 11
desperate Convicts, who, having secured the crew,
sent them all on shore, with the exception of Mr.
Browning, the captain, an intelligent and respect-
able young man. They then hoisted sails and put
to sea, commanding the captain to take charge of
the vessel, and to steer for some of the islands in
the South Seas frequented by English vessels, ex-
pressing their determination to stow themselves
away in some of their ships, and thus obtain a pas-
sage to their native shores. Mr. Browning denied
that he was competent to undertake such a task,'
but the pirates said they had made themselves ac-
quainted not only with his character but his corn-i

petencc, and threatened him with instant death if
he did not comply with their wisres: Finding
there was no alternative he took charge of the
vessel, and steered in a southerly direction. It was
not low; before he discovered the desperate charac-
ters with whom he had to deal, and in a short time
six of the most arrocious entered into a conspiracy
to murder the other five, a diabolical purpose which
they soon carried into effect. The first four were
soon despatched, but the fifth endeavoured, by every
possible expedient, to escape, running round the ves-
sel, and up the shrouds on one side and down on the
other. As a last refuge he run out upon the bowsprit,
where he begged for mercy, but in vain. Some of
the monsters pursued him with cutlasses in hand,
and upon approaching near to him he slung himself
fiom a rope, hanging from it with both hands, and
again most piteously begged for life; but the mon-
sters, with demoniac laughter, scoffed at his en-
treaties, and cutting the rope by which he was sus.
pended, thus consigned him _to the watery deep,
where, after a few struggles, he sunk to rise no
more. Mr. Browning, with this example before
him, found it necessary by a resumption of confi-
dence and kindness to gain the good opinion of the
remaining miscreants, and ultimately ran the vessel
on shore on one of the small islands in his track,
where the ❑atives came on board, and treated them
with great kindness. He then discovered that a
conspiracy had been formed by his infamous crew to
murder him, as the only means of preserving their
own lives, should they by possibility be secured.
Finding his danger, he threw himself upon the pro-
tection of the chief of the island, and was thus res-
cued from impending danger. The ruffians then
broke up the vessel with crow-bars, thus cutting off
the chance of escape, as they were unable them-
selves to take charge of the vessel, and Mr. Brown-
ing refused again to embark with them. Shortly
afterwards an English whaler came to the island, to
whom he related the situation in which he was
placed; part of the crew came on shore, for the
purpose of securing the murderers, but they fled
inland, and Mr. Browning was taken on board the
whaler ; the chief, who had treated him in the most
hospitable manner, deeply deploring his departure.
He was subsequently put on board the Milo, an
American vessel, on the way to Sydney, where he
arrived safely on the 14th of May ; the owners of
the Caledonia, and all his friends, having given hr►n
up for lost."

While the Charles Harris, Captain KING,
from Hamburg, was discharging her cargo at the London
Docks, the landing-waiter's attention was attracte.l by
seeing some linen banging out of a Ihig entered as woallen
rags. He desired that it should be opened, when it wa,
discovered that it contained a stone jar lull of whit
brandy. Nine similar parcels contained jars of brandy,
amounting in all to 45 gallons.