Litchfield enquirer., 1844-06-27

Er0m tNc hoStoN J1A0S.
MUTINY AND Horrible MURDER ON THE
HIGH SEAS

MUTINY AND HORRIBLE MURDER ON THE
HIGH SEAS.
We received By cunnisOn's Express yesterday.
St, Johns IN By papers Ct the 18th inst. contain
ing full particulars of the Mutiny and Murder on
board Of the English barque Saladin, which vessel
was wrecked at Country HarbOr, near Halifax, about
three weeks since. The following article from
the Halifax Morning Post gives the best authenti-
Gated particulars:
Since our last number, the community has been
startled with the information that two Of the PRS
oners of the Saladin have turned Queens Evidence,
and have disclosed tale of blood which makes the
heart thrill with horror.
| On Saturday morning. two Of the prisoners, Carr
and Galloway sent for the Hon. MIR. Tobin, and be-
fore him and the Hon. Attorney General, and 9TH
er proper officers, made aconfession to the follow
ing effect.
of February, with complement Of IL persons, in
Guiding officers. Some of these were new men
four Of the crew who had gone out to Valparaiso,
having left her there. A Captain Fielding, whose
vessel had been seized for smuggling cargo of
guano, and his lad about 10 years Of age, were
taken ON board as passengers. This man, it ap-
pears, instigated all the mischief. His plan, sug
gested by avarice, for he must have been aware Of
the valuable freight on board, was to kill the cap-
tain and officers seize the ship, and proceed with
her to the St. Lawrence. on the shores Of which
they were toland, divide the plunder and then sep
arate to enjoy as they best might their unhalloed
gains. Unhappily, hePrevailed.
The bloody drama opened ON Sunday night, the
| 18th of April. The first mate, whose watch it
was, had been unwell and had lain down to sleep
| on the hen coop or companion, and was the first
| victim of Fielding and those of the crew he had
persuaded to join in their iniquity.
Having fully committed themselves to the worst
hu nf he
went below for the purpose Of despatching the cap
tain whom they found asleep, but his dog ESQ tri-
fling was the incident that averted their purpose)
being at his side, and probably having an instinc-
tive consciousness Of their intention, which they
perceived they retired without efecting their pur
pose
The second mate then came on deck, was seized
upon and thrown over. While in the water he
called out murder /" and Fielding, fearful perhaps,
that such an alarm might have put the captain on
hisguard, raised the cry, " a man Overboard."-
This awoke Capt Mackenzie,w who rushed on deck,
when the Swede, (Anderson,) one of the prisoners
struck at him as he was emerging from the compan-
ion.
He was seized upon, and his existence termina-
ted without raising any alarm among those below.
After the captain dead the rest OF the crew who
were not implicated in the conspiracy, were de-
spatched in cold blood without being able to make
any resista nee, each made his appearance on the
Cks
then assumed the command, called the men ait,
! harrangued them in aspeech, in which he assured
them Of being under commander who would APP
precate their services, and who would not bully
them as Sandy" had done, and explained his de-
signs with regard to their future destination, as we
| have before stated.
| 1t pleased the Almighty to crush thisdaring VIII
lain, ere the exultaton attendant upon his success
( had subsidized, by the very instruments through
whom his unhallowed designs have been executed.
Dark hints of there being yet too many on board,
led each one to consider his own safety involved,
and to suspect the designsof their tyrant. To pre-
vent, it is supposed, any fatal result which might
ensure from the quarrelsome dispositions Of such a
gang ofdesperadoes, all the fire arms and all weap
ons whatever at his suggestion, were thrown ever
board, with exception Of the Captains gun.
Fielding. however, had concealed weapons for
his own defence, in case ofneed. These had been
discovered in birth--it is saba pair of loaded
}pistols and knife were still in his possession The
men questioned his intentions, and not being salts
fed with his replies, they seized upon and bound
him one whole night in the cabin. After serious
consultation, the next morning, (the Tuesday sue
ceeding the murder Of the Captain, they determine
ed to throw him overheard, which was soon efec-
ted and thus the villain persisted by similar death
to that by which he had sent his innocent and un-
lsuspecting victimsto their last account!
The destruction ofthe father involved that of the
son. The poor lad had taken no part in the hotri-
BILE scenes though witness of them, and perhaps
consenting, so far as he might he allowed. He
entreated them pteously to spare his life, but the
shrieking victim met the same miserable fate
as his parent. Nothing extraordinary appears to
have occurred between this time and the wreck of
the vessel save the scenes Of riot and dissipation
that might have been expected. The figure head
was disguised, and the name Of the vessel covered
over with painted canvass-her guilty crew must
also have carefully avoided speaking vessels on
their voyage. One Of their boats they sank, proba
bly, as precautionary measure against any por-
tion Of the crew escaping in her.
| The prisoners will be tried by the High Court
of Commissioners Court distinct from the Court
of Vice Admiralty, and appointed to take cogni-
zance Of crimes Of tnutiny and piracy on the high
seas.
| The names of the prisoners are, Cass, Galloway,
! Johnston, Hezelton, Jones and Anderson-the last
q Swede.
We cannot state positively when the trial will
come on, but believe that there will be unneces-
sary delay in furthering the ends Of justice.
COL Polls "Nobles .anceshy-The Loco foco
orators at the 6. Polk and Texas meeting in this
eloquence on the "noble blood that coursed in the
veins'' Of James X. Polk. It was "re revolutionary
blood'-his was glorious ancestry-his " great
uncke' was one Of the signers of the famous Nee
klenburg Declaration of Independencein ITS, and
divers others of the noble" family-uncles, cous-
ms, &c., fought it'll great valor, and
sion the " Polk family fought and defeated band
Of tories Of four times their own number Well,
we have ascertained, to our satisfaction that the
90 Polk family" were, in the main, true patriots,
fought well and displayed great courage in the
the family-one black sheep in the iock-one rank
T0RY--and II most unfortunately haDDens that