The Sun.
London, England, 1817-10-04 00:00:00

MUTINY ON THE
,HIGH SEAS..

SHADWELL PoLim—Yesterday Jonathan Ta-
tum, Jeremiah Leary, George Cress, John Gibson,
and William Davis, mariners on board-the ,Sir
Joseph Banks West Indianarto, were brought tip,
heavily ironed, in the custody of John Roebuck
and Moore, officers of the Thames .Police, charged
by Mr. Anthony Ford, Captain of the Sir Joseph
bunks, with feloniously and piratically consulting
and combining toget-her to make a revolt and mu-
tiny in the said ship on'the high seas during their
voyage from Jamaica, bet wee❑ the banks of New-
foundland and Great Britain. The following are
tbeleading facts

• •S'

It appears, that in the month of August the ship
was on its voyage to Loudon, and the crew;

I which consisted of 11 seamen, had itone their
duty pp to the 14th of September, when several
of them began• to murmur for want of grog and.
provisions, and, it is supposed, contemplated a
plan to murder the officers and take the ship to
New Orleans. Many suspicious- circumstances.
occurred, which led the officers to suspect a mu-
tiny would take place. Ou he 14th of September
Williarb Davis, a lad only'l4 years of age, who
acted as one of the most desperate, on being de-
sired by• Captain Ford to grease the jib-stay,
refused, and seized a. bticket, with which he-struck
the Captain on the, face,Which cut him. The
cabin-boy seeing the transaction, immediately
ran and informed a gentleman, passenger, that he
was afraid the Captain would be, murdered, on
which the gimileman ran up to his istance,
when Leary; one of the prisoners, tookluti a tre-
mendous bludgeon, and brandishing it, called out,
" Come along, my boys,'' and would have mur-
dered the Captain, if not for the activity 'of the
gentleman,' who pre%'ented hint by piniemin, and
threatening to throw him overboatd if he olfered
any violence.. Deals was they secured and con-
fined in-irons, when he made a terrible noise, and
called the Captain several opprobrions.names, and
said be -should not be in possession of the ahip •
more than three (lays. The prisoner Davis having
occasion to go upon deck for a necessary purpose,
the Captain complied; •and on _his going (von
deck, the prisoner Gibson swore by G—d none
of his messutates
„should be
.kept in ;roils while he
was in the ship ; on-saying-which, he selzed a
large bolt, and liberated Davis.- Davis aid Gib
son were both intoxicated, and Davis wanted tor
throw himself overboard, but from the effect of
ploenzy of passion, he fell in a fit.
The Captain frt.oaently asked the prisoners what
tiiey had to compiam of : they said more provi-
sions., grog," and cutlet.. The Captain desired
them to go to their duty, as' lie twain) coffee to
give tlo'in. Front the confusion the ship was
thrown into, the officers and passengers thought
it advisable to protect themselves, .as their lives
were. in danger, for which purpose they gaiited
possession of the arms, and loaded them. On the
Sunday following, (he. prisoners, armed with bil-
lets of wood and bolts of iron, went upon deck,
and in a menacing manner demanded their grog.
The Captain ordered them to get, it. The fact
was, that the prineipalipart of the crew had broken
in upon the stores, and consumed the greater
part of the provision and liquor; and C'e Captain
thought L advisable, front their constant 'state of
intdxicatioo, to debar them front having any more ,
liquor, and had it removed to a place of ruot'e
safety. From their mutinous conduct on deck,
the Captain said, they did not return to
,their
duty, he would: fire on them, when Tatum and
Cress, prisoners, opened their naked breasts, and,
in -an attitude of. defiance, dared him to put his
threat into execution._ Shortly after, the Captain
fell in with all, American ship called the Galeu,
and informed the Captain of that vessel that there
Was a mutiny on board the ship : with tite'assist-
ance of the Galen's crew he recurred the three
most desperate of the mutineers, named Stewart,
M'Allister, and -Tainting, atol put them on board
the Galen, to convey them to the British Coniul
at Boston, in America, in order to be sent home
to England for trial ; and on the Sir Joseph_
Banks arriving at Blackwall, the prisoners were
given in custody to two of tile Thames police-
officers, by Whom they were brought to thisoffice
for examination.

Mr. Anthony Ford, Captain ; Charles William
Hasty,. Esq. passengers t Ailr';'•john Julia, first
mate; John Brown,•secolill mate ; Henry Harris;
carpenter ; Antonio Joseph, cook ; Edward Hos-
cabiu-boy and Archihald.burankina, sea-
man, were the witnesses examined as to the above

charges.
•
It ft►rthcr appeared; -that when the prisoner
Davis was treed from his irons by Gibson, hepro-
cured. a pistol, and said he would shoot the ca►p-
ta.iu like a mad dog if he interfered. •
Harris, the carpenter, in his evidence deposed,
that about three days before the mutiny took
place, he was told by,the prisoner Davis that the
ship would not be in the Captain's possession three
days longer ; but_ thought no more of it, until he
was potting him jn irous for st.Hing the Captain,
when lie ►nade use of some expressiOns which
strengthened his suspicions that there was some
conspiracy. Two or three days after this the pri-
soners came armed on deck, and were opposed by
the Officers; and from the state of.the crew, he
had every reason.to believe there was an intention
of mutiny ; and he belieVes it was their intention
to take the lives of the Officers, as they plundered
the store-room, though. they had plenty of provi-
sions ; and having stolen the liquors, ana. being
hi a state of intoxication,' the Captain
.thought
proper to keep it from them ; and from what he
knows, the Captain was a very good man.' When
IWAllister was at the wheel he waved his hat,
which was the signal for the mutineers to come
on deck. Since the principal of the mutiueers
were sent in custody to AMerica, the prisoners
petitioned the Captain for forgiveness, and show-
ed every mark at contrition for the, offence they
had been guilty of, and begged his intercession on
their behalf, as_they had been innocently led into
it. -The examination being taken, the prisoners
were committed for further examination in a fort
night or three weeks, at which period the three
principal mutineers are expected to arrive front
America.

WOESHIP;STREET.—Thomas Sterrick, a sweep,
was brought up charged by a Mr. Scheggs, a gro-
cer in Old-street, with having a desk in hiS poS-
session, the property of the plaintiff, which had
been_ stolen trom his premises, and walking away
with it at' eleven o'clock-in-the morning.
Tke priSoner•said it had been given;tb :him, to
Carry by a person in the street. - •w.
The Officer, however, stated that be knetv the
prisoner to ,be connected with a gang of thieves,
and that' he had confessed-to him -that he bad
stolen- it from the shop of Mr. Scheggs,—,Com-
mitted.,

Last week- a person who has , been recently
selling American flour in Coventry was detected
by the officers in the abominable practice or mixing
a quantity of burnt Derbyshire stone with his:flour.:
An information- having been laid against him
before the Magistrates, he was fined in thelniti-
gated penalty of 51.