The Sun.
London, England, 1861-01-12 00:00:00

CRUELTY A 7 SEA.

On Thursday evening Mr. Bower Marsh, deputy-
coroner for Rochester, concluded a lengthened.
inquiry at that city into the circumstances attend-
ing the death of William Jordan, one of the crew
of the Warlock, which lately arrived at Chatham
from Demerara, whose death was alleged to have
been occasioned by the gross cruelty and inhuman
treatment which he received on board that vessel at
the hands of Peter Emslie, the captain. Prior to
the examination of the witnesses the deputy-coroner
and jury proceeded on board the Warlock to view
the body. The deceased, .a fine muscular young
man of colour, apparently about 20 years of age,
was lying on the floor of the forecastle with only a
few rags under him and a piece of blanket round
his legs, every other part of the body being bare.
The forecastle was dripping with wet, and, not-
withstanding the intense severity of the weather,
no fire was permitted in it. The body of the
deceased was lying in filth and wet, and the stench
arising was so great as to overpower several of the
jurors. The deceased had died in exactly the same
place where his body lay, and the spectacle the
body presented was most distressing. Deceased, it
appeared, was visited on Saturday afternoon last
by Mr. Lee, a Scripture reader employed by one of
the religious societies at Rochester, who found him
lying on the floor of the forecastle with only a piece
or blanket tied round his legs, and another piece
round his loins. He was then insensible and dying,
and, notwithstanding the inclement weather, not a
vestige of clothing was upon him, and his body and
arms were quite bare. The Scripture reader
described it as the most painful sight he had ever
witnessed, An effort was made for him to be

Lord Kinloch, Judge Ordinary, has pronounced admitted yito the naval hospital at Melville, but
an interlocutor, sustaining the general relevancy of as he was not in her Majesty's service, he
the action against the late directors of this bank could not be taken into that establishment.
instituted by the liquidators, Referring to the alter- On the captain of the vessel being remon-
native charge of knowing the state of affairs, or strated with he treated the matter with the
failing to inquire, his lordship says :—" The direc- greatest unconcern. The principal witness exa-
tors had it specially commuted to them to take care mined by the jury was the chief mate of the ship,
that the business of the bank was conducted safely; a man named Daniel James D. Macfarlane, who,
in other words, that as far as possible transactions in reply to the deputy-coroner, stated that the de-
should only be engaged in with persons of UT:- ceased had been on board the Warlock since Octo-
doubted credit. . . It was plainly part of their ber last, when he joined her at Demerara for a
duty to adopt all means of information, reasonable voyage to England. He continued very well until
and practicable. How much should be held suffi- the arrival of the ship in the Downs, when he
cient for their satisfaction—whether, for instance, turned up ill; but was ordered on deck until he
they were entitled to rest satisfied with the ma- could scarcely stand. The vessel arrived at Chat-
nager's statement—is a pointnot now to be decided. ham on Friday, on which day the mate went into
It is enough to hold that they were bound by the the forecastle and found deceased very ill and deli-
nature of their office to make themselves aware, by rious. He then called the captain to see him, but
all reasonable and practicable means, of the he declared the deceased was not ill, only " sham-
condition and circumstances of those with ming ;" and, to try him, put a quantity of salt in
whom they dealt. If this be so, it seems to his mouth. At that time deceased was dying. On
the Lord Ordinary to follow, that responsi- the previous day the captain, although the deceased
bility rests on them equally, whether they /knew was so ill, ordered him on deck during the run
the facts, or failed to know them by neglect of from the Downs to Chatham, to scrape gratings,
a duty of inquiry within their power to perform. but at that time deceased could scarcely stand. On
The case to be made out against the directors will the occasion of the captain putting salt in deceased's
undoubtedly be a different and more difficult one mouth the chief mate told him he was doing wrong
under the minor alternative than where actual and not treating him properly, but the captain said
`knowledge is proved. It will be necessary to he was no more ill than •he was.. No fire was
establish against each person charged, net only that allowed in the forecastle, and the wet came in on
the means of information were within his power, the men as they slept in their hammocks. The
but these were such as his position made it ineum- forecastle was, according to the evidence of the
bent on him to have recourse to. But the question chief and second mates, not fit for any human being
at present is not as to the measure of proof affecting to be in, and " not fit for a pig to be placed in.
all or any of the offenders, but as to the extent of The captain only saw deceased once, and then he
relevancy.. And it humbly ,appears to the Lord lashed him in his hammock. There were plenty of
Ordinary that a relevant case is presented by either clothes on board, but deceased had scarcely any to
branch of the alternative." Adverting to the con- cover him, and, although the captain had a medi-
elusions founded on non-communication of the fact tine-chest on board, ho never administered any to
that one-fourth of the capital was lost, Lord Kin- deceased. During the voyage he frequently gave
loch says,—" It seems to the Lord Ordinary very deceased a " touch up" withthe rope. On the arrival
plain, that if at the period of any annual balance of the ship at the Nore the captain went ashore in
it was by any means made manifest to the directors the afternoon, and remained till next day, during
that one-fourth of the capital had been lost, it was which time all the crew were without food. No
their imperative duty to report the fact to the spirits were allowed on board, but the captain had
shareholders. If, knowing this fact, they repre- some. After the vessel had anchored the captain or-
sented to the shareholders that the capital was dered that no food should be given to the deceased,
intact and the company flourishing, they were as he ought to have gone ashore with the rest of the
guilty of a fraudulent mis-statement. Simply to crew. The mate, however, gave him a pint of coffee
conceal the fact was a violation of duty. Or, apply- and a glass of rum in it, which he swallowed.
ing the former alternative, which the Lord Ordi- There was room for the deceased to sleep in the
nary conceives to hold good on this branch of the cabin, but the captain kept him in tho hammock.
case also, if, having the fact readily within the The deceased, who had fallen out of his hammock,
means of information which they were hound to expired on Monday morning. Mr. Beavan, surgeon,
use, they failed to communicate it, there was still a who had made a post mortem examination of the
neglect of duty, which, involving perhaps less of deceased, said he found the body healthy and there
moral blame, equally exposed them to legalrespon- were no signs of disease. The stomach contained a
sibility. . . It is difficult to resist the conchs- small quantity of digested food. The feet and, legs
sion, that a relevant case is here stated, whether as were much swollen from the effects of cold. He had
laid on actual fraud, or on wrongful violation of no doubt that death was caused by exposuret to the
duty. The undue concealment is charged equally cold and neglect. The jury, after hearingh
e whole
on all the successive directors. Each, as he came of the evidence adduced, returned-averdtptchtaoitnfm,
nightaannd-
into office, is alleged to have known,'or have been slaughter against Peter
retcaEhymewdsalisteOefft heeeteedata
Maidstone Gaol
in a position to know, the fact, and culpably to have the deputy-coroner at once
. made out his warrant
mis-stated or withheld it. The evidence may dis- for his apprehension, w
close great differences among them ; but the case, if and the captain was
relevant against one, is stated equally against all," yesterday to await his trial at the next assizes.