Star.
London, England, 1825-01-08 00:00:00

.F.ISIIION.IIIT.E MOVEMENTS.

The Dowager Marchioness. of l)ownshlre, Lord A. Hill, and
Lady Mary Hill, return to Thomas's Hotel, to-day, from Brighton.
Lord Hervey his left town for his father's (the Earl of Bristol's)
seat, Ickwerth Pirk, Suffolk.
The Earl and Countess of Surrey have arrived at West Hill,
Surrey, on a visit to the Marquis and Marchioness of Staffbrd,
from Worksop Manor, Notts.
Departures front Gould's Hotel, Jerntyn-street —Madame Jar-
din, and P. Musioff, Esq. for Paris. •
Arrivals at the Bath Hotel, Arlington-street—Mr. Mrs. and
Miss Tanner, from Bath; and Mrs. and Miss Easton, from their
seat in Kent.—Departures: Major and Mrs. Clayton, for Eases;
Mr. and Mrs. Stirling, fur Brighton.
Capt. Drummond left town yesterday, for Brighton.
J. Reeves, Esq. has arrived in town from Belvoir Castle.
C. Duneonthe, Esq. M.l'. and Lady Duncombe, have arrived at
their seat Duncombe Park, in Yorkshire, from a tour.
Major Cane has attired at Blake's Hotel, Jermyn-street, from
a tour.

CANNIBALISM IN PAN DIEMAA'S LAND.

TRIAL OF ALEXANDER PIERCE,

A Convict. arrived In Van Dieman's Land, on board the Ship
Castile Forbes, P.b. QS, 1820, for the Murder of This. Cox,
whom he-put to death, and cut up to exist upon. ,
On the 6th of July, 1822, Alexander Pierce was, from
his depraved and wicked conduct tried at the Court
House, Hobart Town, and transported to the settlement
of Macquarie Harbour, an island containing twenty-
five acres of land, thickly wooded ; escape is almost im-
possible ; yet. it was attempted by Pierce and seven
others; two of them after an absence of sixteen days,
returned so exhausted that they died in the hospital a
few days afterwards. These men stated that a person of
the name of Cornelius bad been killed as sustenance
for the rest. Pies ca was taken and punished, and again
made his escape with Thomas Cox, whom he murdered.
The trial for this murder came on on Monday, the 14th
of June, at Hobart Town, before Chief Justice Pedder,
.when Alexander Pierce, a convict, was arraigned for
the murder of a fellow prisoner, named Thomas Cox,
at or near. King's River, in the mouth of November last,
1823, and he pleaded—Not Gbilty.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL stated the case, adducing
certain confessions of the prisoner before the late Lieu-
tenant Cuthbertson, Commandant at Macquarie Har-
bour, and on his examination by.the Rev. Robert Knop-
wood. From them it appeared, that, as. other evidence
would prove, the prisoner and the deceased, on the 13th
November, absconded trona their day into the woods,
each of them taking his axe, and the prisoner being
heavily ironed ; that they for several days wandered on
without provisions, and reduced by weaknet.s, until, on
the following Sunday evening, the deceased and pri-
soner arrived at King's River ; a quarrel then arose be-
cause the deceased could not swim, and after prisoner
had struck him ors the head three times with his axe,
the deceased seeing him about to go. away (his irons
having been knocked off), said, in a faint voice, " for
mercy s sake, come back, and put me out of my misery !"
Prisoner struck him a fourth blow, which immedi-
ately caused death ; he then cut a piece off one thigh,
which he roasted and ate; and'l44; putting another.
piece in his pocket, he swam acros;lhe liver, with an
intent to reach Port Dalrymple. Soon "afterwards,
however, he became so erervihelmed with the agonies
of remorse, that he was constrained to tecross the river,
and on seeing a schooner under weigh from the settle-
ment, he made a signal fire; which on being seen, itt-
&lced the pilot boat to put off and take bim on board.
He was then conveyed to the harbour, where he pub-
licly owned the murder, and said he was willing Nl'
die for it.' The Attorney-General conclnded a thrilling:
tale of *almost incredible barbarity, by calling
- Thomas Smith who swore, :hat in November last he was
coxswain to the Commandant at Macquarie Harbour; he knew
the prisoner and the deceased; they absconded from Logan's
gang on the 13th; on the 2dd, Pierce made his signal fire on the
beach, near King's 'River, and was taken back to the Settlement:
' be said, Cox had died, and he bad cut off a bit of his flesh to
chew what had become of bins.". Witness, on the following day,
was ordered by the Commandant to go with prisoner, and get
Cox's body; he went, and it Was found. The head was away,
the hands.cut off, the bowels were torn out, and the greater part
of the breech and thighs gone, as were the calf of the legs, and the
fleshy parts of the arms. Witness said to the prisoner,' How could
you do such a deed as this?' he answered,' Nu person can tell what
he will do when driven by hunger.' Witness then said, 4 Where is
the head?' the answer was, I left it with the body.' Witness
searched for and found it a few yards off, under the shade of a
fallen tree; witness thNs• picked up what appeared to be the liver
of the decased, and an saxe stained with blood ; on which pri-
toner was asked, ' if that was the axe with which lie had killed
Cos ?' and he answered, it was?. The fragments of the body
were quite naked; and star 'thew were some pieces of a shirt and
the cover of. a hat. Mete had been a Bre near the body, and nut

. .
hi from—► k ley a knife, ',hick witneii picked tip—s—Tite. bols,mg
then placed in two rugs, and Witness, with the prisoner, rtturiTid
to the Settlement. Prisoner, on being asked where Cox 's handii
were,' said be had left them on a tree where the boat lauded
a search was then made for them, but they could not, be found.
Prisciner said, 4 he had cut off Cox's flesh to support him on his
intended journey to Port Dalrymple, but when he had crossed
the river something came over him, and forced him to return ;•
he threw the flesh into the river, made a sign, and gave hint:
self up.'
William Evans, of the Waterloo schooner, had gone on shore
to take the prisoner, who said, Cox was drowned in the King's
River.' Prisoner's hands were fastened, and his pockets searched,
in one of which was a piece of flesh ; he asked ' what thit was?'
and said,' it's a piece of Cox, and I brought it to shew th it he is
lost.' Witness heard the Commandant say to ptisoner, '.Tell me,
Pierce, did you do the deed F Prisoner answered,' Yes, and I ant
willing to die fur it.' Witness asked bim s why he had killed Cox ?'
fie said,' I'll tell no nun, until I am going to suffer.'
" Many other witnesses were then called, who corroborated the
above depositions in every essential point.
The prisoner's written confessions were then put in.
The CHIEF JUSTICE addressed the Jury at consider4hle
length, and after retiring a short time, they returned a
vet dict of Guilty.
Stlitence of death was then parsed on the prisoner,
who waq executed on Monday the 21st of June.

•

The Rev. Mr. Conolly, a tAtholic Clergythan, who
attended the wretched man, addres,ed the crowd as-
sembled around the scaffold, a few minutes before the

fatal drop was let fail :—He commenced by statilg,
that Pierce, standing on the awful entrance into eternity
on which he was pined, was desirous to make the most
_ _ _

public acknowledgment of his guilt, and had requested
and directed him to say, that he committed the murner
of Cox, under the following circumstances:
Having been arrested here, after his escape from
Macquarie Harbour, Pierce was sent hack to that Set-
.

Clement, where the deceased (Cox) and he had sit orked

•
together in the same gang. Cox constantly entreated
him to run away with him; and having procured fish-
hooks, a knife, and a burnt rag for tinder, he at last
agreed to go with him. For the first and second day,
they strayed through the forest, and the third made
the beach, and travelled towards Port Dalrymple, until
the fifth, when they arrved at King's River. They re-
mained, for three or four days, in an adjoining wood, to
avoid soldiers who were in pursuit of them, and wet e, all
the time, from the period they started without a morsel
to eat. Overcome by famine, Pearce determined to
take Cox's life, which he effected by the stroke of an
axe while Cox was sleeping. Soon after the soldiers
had departed, Pierce occupied the place they had been
in, where he remained part of a day and a night, living
on the mutilated remains of Cox; he returned to the
Settlement, made signal, and was taken up by the pilot,
who conveyed him to the Macquarie • Harbour, where
he disclosed to the Commandant the deed he had done,
being weary of life, and willing to die for the misfor-
tunes and atrocities into which be had fallen.
The Reverend Gentleman proceeded to state, that eight men had
made their escape last year from Macquarie Harbour. To set the
Public right respecting their fate, Pierce is desirous to stow, that
this party, which consisted of himself, Matthew Travers, IJoh
Greenhill, Bill Cornelius, Alexander Daitoni John Mather., and
two more, named Bodnam and Brown, escaped from Macquarie.
Harbour in two boats, taking with them what provisions the coal-
miners had, which afforded each man about two ounces of food per
day, for a week; afterwards they lived eight or nine days on the
tops of tea-tree and peppermint, which they boiled In tin pots, to
event the juice. Having ascended a hill, in sight of Macquarie Har-
bour, they struck a light, and made two fires. Cornelius, Brown,
and Dalton, placed themselves at one fire, the rest of the party
at the other; those three separated, ptivately, front the party,
on account of Greenhill having already said, that lots thirst be cast
for some one to be put to death, to save the whole from perishing.
After their departure, the party, then consisting of five men, lived
two or three days on wild berries, and their kangaroo jackets, which
they roasted; at length they arrived at Gordon'. River, where it
was agreed, that while Mathers and Pearce collected fire wood,
Greenhill and Travers should kill Bodnam, which they accordingly
did. It was insisted upon, that every one should plt take uf Bode
Dam's remains, lest, in the event of their ultimate success to
obtain their liberty. any of them might comider•ltimrelf innocent
of his death, and give evidence against the rest. After a day
or two, they all swhm across the' river, except Travers, whom
they dragged across by means of a pole to which be tied himself.
Having spent some days in distress and famine, it was proposed to
Pierce, by Greenhill and Travers, that blathers be killed, to which
he agreed. Travers and Pierce held him, while Greenhill killeJ hint
with an axe. Living on the remains of the deceased, which they
were hardly able to taste, they spent three or four days, through
weakness, without advancing beyond five or six miles, 'havers
being scarcely able to move, from lameness and swelling in his
foot.—Greenhill and Pierce *teed to kill Travers, which Gret nhill
did, while Pierce collected fire-wood. Haying lived so:ne time
on the remains of Travers, they were some days without any
thing to eat; their wants were dreadful—each strove to catch
the other off hie guard, and kill hint. Pierce succeeded to find
Greenhill • asleep, took his life, and lived on him for four days
He was afthwards for three days without any sustenance—fell in,
at last, with the Dement River, and found some small pieces of
opossums, &c. at a place where the natives had lately made fires. .
More desirous to die than to live, he called out, as lordly as be
could, expecting the natives would hear hint, and come to put an
end to his existence ! Having fallen in with some bush-rargers,
with whom be was taken, Pierce was sent back to Macquarie Har-
bour, from whence he escaped with Cox, as has been already stated,
for whose death he is now about to suffer.
Pierce was a native of Fermanagh, and was transported in his
twenty-sixth year, for stealing six pair of shock

The case of the Spanish Refugees has attracted and
continues to attract the warm sympathy of aU classes and of all par.
ties in England. Their cause is that of humanity, which knows not
the distinction of party, faction, or even country. The subscriptioa
is honourable to the British character, and vie wish to see

it continually augmenting.
The Bishop of LONDON has subscribed twenty guine.or
in furtherance of the plan for opening the view of St. Bride's
Church steeple.
4. very serious accident has just occurred to Colonel
.BIRIZIAT, while hunting. Ills horse made a swing in taking a
leap, which brought the rider in contact with a tree, by which be
has partially fractured the knee cap ; and it is the opinion of his
medical attendants, that he will suffer front the effect uf the injury
for some time. lie is at present confined to kis bed at' the Castle.
At Oakley, Bedfordshire, while in the act of dressing
herself, Lady Tavissocr's clothes caught fire, and before she could
throw them off she was much burnt, and the room in Haines; but
we are happy to state she is in a fair way of recovery.
'We regret to learn that there has been a serious affray
at Meeker, between- the Catholics and the Orangemen. Setteral
particulars have reached us, which we shall not at present detail. it
is said that four individuals (Catholics, as we understand) .Ive
been killed.—Dsibtin Eueniag Paper. .11
Loss OF Till SHIP DIAMOND.—NattIeS of the cabin
passengers lost and saved on this melancholy occasion. Cabin
sengera lost—Mr. Wood,of Saddleworth ; Mr. Broadbent,-of Sad-
leworth ; Mr. Given,' Of New York and a .young fasnak,othe
child of Mr. and Mrs. Bentley, of Baltimore, wile were. .saved.
The body of Mr. Wood has been found ; In his pockets were up..
wards of 7,0001. which have been saved.' CaptalreMsfcejr;
respectable individual, and very well Inman fn, tbe-trede ; Mr.
Clarke, the chief mate; and one seaman; elm iaeperson named
Lowe, and two other steerage passengerß; making in alt ten Wiwi-
duals, met with a watery grave. The names of the cabin.passen-
gen sated are, Mr. Nicholson. of Nen York': Mr. and Mrs.l3etteley,
of Baltimore ; Mr. Gddard, Slate of Mississippi ; Mr. Macdonald;
Dr. Strum of London; Mr. William Walker; Mr. John William
Cousins; and Mr. Broadbent. The total number of the crew old
passengers was above 40; some of the passengers have reported it
zit 411. The Diamond sailed from New York on the 'l4th of De-
cember, and would therefore have the President's message on
board, but im papers of any description are saved.
- - -

"awe Thom, aged thirtrono years, and tlyt property of
Young, Esq. of Mochrutn, died at Youngbeld house, on the
ult. This celebrated horse was got by Staring Thom out
forest mare, and was allowed by the best judges to bo a most
plete animal in all points.

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