The Sun.
London, England, 1859-11-28 00:00:00

THF RECENT MUTINY ON BOARD

.H. 01.6. PRINCESS ROYAL.

Five separate courts-martial have been ordered
by the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty to be
held on board H.M.S. Victory, at Portsmouth, in
connexion with the late disturbance en board the
Princess Royal. The first court assembled on Sa-
turday, at nine a.m., for the trial of the following
seven prisoners on charges of " mutiny" and "
tinous conduct :"—John Earley, ordinary seaman ;
Robert Thurley, ditto ; Henry Randle, ditto ; John
Harvey, ditto; John Wilson (1), ablebodied ; James
Smith (1), ordinary seaman; and Charles Coak,
ditto.

The court was composed of Rear-Admiral the
Hon. George Grey, president; Captains the Hon.
Joseph Denman, G. T. Gordon, O'Callaghan, R.
Harris, It. S. Hewlett, C. 8., Cockburn, Hillier, and
Wilson, with Mr. J. W. Hillyer, Deputy Judge-
Advocate.
Captain Baillie, commanding H.M.S. Princess
Royal, appeared as prosecutor, assisted by Mr. W.
Swainson, the Admiralty solicitor.
The first witness examined was Commander J. J.
S. Josling, who deposed—l am commander of
H.M.S. Princess Royal. On the afternoon of Satur-
day, the 12th inst., I was on board. In the after-
noon, about half-past three, the chief petty officers
came aft on the quarter deck on behalf of the ship's
company to request me to ask leave of the captain
until Monday morning. I told them the captain
was not on board, but that I would send an officer
to the Port Admiral's house with their requisition.
Lieut. Prattent was the officer sent. About 4 p.m.
the captain came on board and ordered me to send
one watch on leave. I sent for the petty officers to
ascertain which watch it was that was to go
on shore, and they agreed to cast lots ; but, find-
ing that did not meet the approval of the ship's
company, they asked for the first halves of both
watches (equal to one watch) to go, which I granted.
I then ordered them to fall in on the jetty, and they
were mustered by the watch bell. While they
were mustering the petty officers of the second halves
of the watches came aft to request that the rest of
the ship's company might have leave also. I refused
to hear or to forward such an application. While
this was taking plate, Captain Baillie came out of
his cabin to go to the Admiral's house, and in pass-
ing through the men asked me " what was the
mutter," or words to that effect. I told him what
the petty officers now requested, and he passed on.
I ordered Lieut. Prattent to pass those men who
were going on leave through the dockyard gates,
and he accompanied them through the yard for that
purpose. About a quarter of an hour afterwards I
observed the liberty men returning with Lieute-
nant Prattent, and Captain Baillie following close
behind. Finding the men on their arrival very
unsteady; ordered them to fall in, and requested
Captain Baillie to speak to them, and I heard noises
on the lower deck, and went down to see what was
the matter. I walked half way round the deck,
and found the men quite respectful, but heard
shouting behind my back, and in the fore part of
the ship. Could not distinguish the people doing
so. I then went on deck and reported to Captain
Baillie the state of matters below, and asked him
to beat to quarters, which he ordered me to do. I
went down on the lower deck and found that the
ports had been lowered and the lights put out, the
men making a great noise and throwing their mess
traps about the deck. I found Lieutenant Prattent
on the deck with a light in his hand, and
walked forward with him and endeavoured. to
address the men, but the shot, bread barges, and
mess-traps were being rolled and thrown about, and
Lieut. Prattent's light was extinguished, so thatlwe
were in total darkness, and found it uselesss to re-
main on the lower deck, I then reported again to
the captain the state of the lower deck. Th boat-
swain's mate was ordered to pipe all the well-dis-
posed men to come on the upper deck and have
their names put down. Some of the men came up.
The captain thou ordered the gratings to be placed
on the hatchways and fastened down with capstan
bars. The men below then commenced to haul
down the ladders, and were more furious than ever,
throwing cutlasses, broken pieces of mess-traps and
other missiles up the hatchways. Sentries were
then placed on each hatchway, with orders to
secure any of the men who attempted to come up
from below. The Marines bad been ordered under
arms when the hatchways were secured, and Cap-
tali Baillie sent an officer to acquaint the Admiral
with the state of the ship's company. A party of
Marines came on board from the St. Vincent, and
other bodies of Marines from the ships in harbour
fell in on the jetty alongside which the ship was
made fast. The men below, now being intimidated
by the arrival of the Marines, commenced coming
up the hatchway, which had; been left open the
whole time by the funnel casing, by twos and
threes, and were secured as they came up, and
passed round to the port side of the deck to have
their names taken down. After they had all been
mustered they were pinioned and sent in boats an
board the St. Vincent. When the Marines first
arrived from the different ships in the harbour to
suppress the disturbance the well-disposed men
were mustered out of the ship on to the jetty,
where they remained until all the prisoners hid
been removed. •

By Captain Baillie—At the time you were asked
for leave by the petty officers did, you hear any
person say, "Leave for all or none ?' —I did.
Were the' prisoners present at that time P—l
can't say that they were.
Can you identify either of the prisoners as hay-
in; come from the lower deck after the hatches
had been fastened down ? I can : John Earley.
In answer to questions by the Court Commander
Josling further stated,--:When the well-affected men
were piped up from the lower deck they had ample
means of coming up. About seven or eight minutes
elapsed between the men being piped from the
lower deck and the hatches being battened down ;
quite sufficient time for any well-affected men to
have got up had they wished to do so. There was
one hatchway with no gratings fitted to it against
the funnel casing, and iron ladders were placed
against it. It was open the whole time for any
man to come up, but guarded by sentries. Saw the
prisoners when they were pinioned. They were
sober. When the petty officers came on deck to
ask for leave on the two occasions referred to there
was no appearance of a mutinous assembly, and the
ship's company was orderly. It was the custom of
the ship to give leave to one watch, and nit to the
first part of both watches, as had been done on this
occasion. The prisoner John Earley came up by
the iron ladder against the funnel casing, about the
mid part of the disturbance. I consider he was an
ill-affected man, because lie came up long after the
hatchways had been secured, and the well-affected
men had been piped on deck. There was no stated
time given for the well-affected men to come up on.
deck. About seven or eight minutes elapsed be-
tween the "pipe" and securing the hatchways, and
the iron ladders were open for any man to come up
who wished to do so. Was certain that John Ear-
ley did not come up from below until after the ar-
rival of the marines from the St. Vincent. The
men knew of the marines' arrival on the jetty by
occasionally tricing up the lower deck ports to see
what was going on. The call " leave for all or
none," when the petty officers were asking for
leave, was from a single voice. The remainder of
the crew were then assembled round the mainmast
to hear the result of the application. The drum-
mer when he beat to quarters was standing on the
main hatchway gratings on the maindeck. The
pipe for the well-affected men to assemble was
delivered at more than ono hatchway ; heard it
repeated several times, and considered that, in
spite of the noise and confusion below, several
of the men might have heard it. Was on
the lower deck at the time and heard it him-
self. The boatswain's mate piped on the main
deck, and he believed he came on the lower
deck also. Saw several of the. men go up in
answer to the pipe. Called out to the men several
times to go on deck, both from the hatchways and
the lower deck • whilst on the lower deck several of
the men assembled round me and cried " Shame."
A few of the well-affected men about me on the
lower deck appeared anxious to assist me in sup-
pressing the mutinous conduct of the rest, calling
out to them several times ; but the noise was too
great to be heard, and the missiles were flying
about. A man standing near me received a wound
on the head, and both officers and men were struck
several times. Immediately the drum beat to
quarters, the lower deck ports were lowered, the
lights put out, and the riot commenced. A few of
the petty officers near me did all in their power,
by words, to suppress the mutinous conduct of the
crew. 'While on the main deck heard voices on the
lower deck calling out, " Come down you -- and
we'll settle you," or words to that effect ; also heard
other foul and abusive language. None of the men
who had leave to go on shore were concerned in the
cry of " leave for all or none," as they were on the
jetty at the time. There were no mates of the main
or lower decks ; boatswains' mates had charge.
The ship's complement of mates and midshipmen
was about ten short. There were about 13 doing
duty on board, sof whom were naval cadets. -
By the prisoner John Earley—You belonged to
the first half of the port watch, aud to the best of my
knowledge, went wi`h the men on leave to the
dockyard gates, and afterwards returned to the ship
and fell in with the rest on the quarter-deck.
There was a slight disturbance below at the time.
Lieutenant P. M. Prattent—Belonged to her
Majesty's ship Princess Royal, and accompanied the
men on leave to the dockyard gates to pass them
out, by orders from Commander Josling. While at
the dockyard gates received orders to conduct the
men back to the ship. There was great demur on
the part of the men to obey those orders. One of