Delaware weekly Republican. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1841-188?, 1857-03-26


v ednesday evening, news reached Hong Kong "
4 a irighttnltragedy. This was the cold-blood- "
d murder of the captain, officers, foreign n
rev aud passengers, of the postal steamer il
all eleven souls. The particulars n
" this dreadful deed having been obtained t
rom Chinese who escaped, and who during the y
,ct will most probably have been in such q t
right that but little poper was left for obserya- '
ion, are imperfect and in some respects con-
dieting. Tho intelligence as first CLEANED was
as follows -
With the shot holesin her bows, and stack
temporarily plugged, Captain Weslien I'M
daunted by the attack on him on the night
of tho 22d nlt., again proceeded with the This
lie, on Sunday last, on his customary voyage
to Canton. On the way down, the water being
low in French river, the vessel took the mud,
and so chokea her feed pipes, that little be-
low Whampoa, on Tuesday morning, 1t became
necessary to anchor for the purpose of cleaning
them. At half past ten in the forenoon of that
day the steamer Shamrock came up, and after
asccrtaining that nothing was required, she
took in tow her majesty's steam sloop Hornets
boat, previously alongside the Thistle, and pro-
caeded on. Stopping only couple Of hours
in Canton the Shamrock again reached WAN
poa by dusk on Tuesday evening, and was
hardly Mt anchor when information was brought
to the pilot to the effect that the Thistle had
been taken into Second Bar Creek, and set on
Aecapitated. When first told of what had oc-
Cured, Captain Wood thought that the report
was merely that the vessel getting aground, or
OF the previous attack on her. Early next |
morning, however, tho pilot, who had request
cd permission to go on shore, alleging that his
| father was dead, came off secretly aud ear
| nestly implored Captain Wood to turn all the
! Chinese passengers on shore for, he asserted,
he was sure that 1t was their intention 70 take
| the vessel in the same way the Thistle had been
| captured.
AT daylight all doubt regarding the Truth of
the report was put at rest by the appearance OF
three of the Chinese servants OF the Thistle, |
who then told the following tale 1.-The steamer
they said. had not been long under way when
the captain left the upper deck with Manila
man seacunny at the wheel, and proceeded
towards the engine room hatchway, where he
was in the act Of stopping forward, looking
| down, when IN assassin from behind stabbed
him with one of those short pointed swords Of
which every Chinese householder in Hong
| Kong has one or more pairs. The first engi-
| neer, Mr.. Abraham, an American, was on tho
other side OF the hatchway at tins time, and
/ was similarly assaied two Manila mon sea-
cunnies were working ut hand pump below,
and soon shared the same fate; one man got into
one Of the coal bunkers, and there, afterwards,
unable to get out when the vessel was set on
fire, was burnt.
A passenger in the cabin--a Portuguese gem
tleman, whose name we do not publish until
further assured OF the identity-together with
his servant, Portuguese, were also murdered
as was sick artileryman, who was the first vic
tim. The captain on being stabbed ran aft,
but fell before he reached the cabin door. The
mate [peterson,) succeeded in getting into the
cabin and fired several muskets at the wretches
as they attempted to get hold of him. A stink
: pot thrown into the cabin at last drove him
overheard, aud he must have been drowned, as
: he was never seen to rise. The Manila man
l at the wheel was killed from behind, without
seciLg the hand that welded tho weapon. In
: all. as we have said, eleven persons were thus
: disposed of, and search was made for the Chi
$ nese boys employed in the cabin, one of whom
! by jumping overheard and hiding under the
n counter Of the vessel, succeeding in escaping
n as did the others in other ways.
/ The Chinese tiremen were then directed tC
y remain at their work, and the vessel wa!
y steerei up the creek called by the Chinese
e ChOwnee, to the village of Lanlkongtow, dis
l. tlut some half dozeu miles inland. There
n her wood work was set on tire, and when tina
l. was destroyed, every particle of brass Torl
e that could BIO removed was taken away; in fact
= the vessel is much disabled that It is qnesti
s. enable whether it il worth while to repair her
/ The assassins. said to have numbered under
y dozen in all, tust na time in walking OIL witt
A. tile hoahs OF their victims in handkerchief
ne and at Canton, we suppose, Will receive tho re
II wards said to be offered for such comnodtte
III by the gentry and people.
n Having turned all the Chinese passenger
us out OF the Shamrock, as suggested by tn
Is pilot, Captain Wood started for Hong ,nwnl
lu the above to tho Hornet
Up off Somehow, and to the men-Uf war lying a
u, the Bague.
&c The other OF the postal steamers, the Rose
on her way up on Tuesday morning, descfie
L the burning vessel, and made all speed Up t
y report the TACT 10 Her Majesty's ship Sylille
IN at WampOH. But nothing could ne done with
8 out the orders Of the Commodore, busily en-
Or gagged with his men in the Dutch Folly; an
u the Rose was directed to proceed on her VII
g, to Canton without delay. Unfortunately, ow
10 ing to the low state OF the tide, it was not pos
" siDle to get up the usual route, and she had [
~ make detcur by Blenhrm Reach. Before sh
r could get round, the Barracuda was observe
ISL coming up with the Thistle, her hull hayin
Al been found at the mouth of the creek.
The people Of the village on which she ha
IL been taken, fearing lest the consequence migl
lie visited on their heads, had prudently r,
nl solved to have her moved by fisherman out int
as the streani were in II short time she would hay
ny sunk, stop-cock being open, and a hole maC
l's in the starb0ard bow, by which means she W.
lh- nearly full Of water. After some little dea
ef- arrange the manner in which the Barracnu
!let should be safe for any salvage to be awarde
ing Captain Ricoby was permitted to take char
yer of his owners vessel, and return to liol
' m' Kong. Five headless bodies We're found
Ftn the hull, and in the coal bunker as before 81
.nu ted, the CHARGED remains of another.
ase PERiLous CONDITION OF THE BRIrIsH ArCA
50 TOI,-IhO following extract from private Il
~ ter dated ''ltong Kong, Jan. H." shows I'll
~. ~ apprehension existed lest the British should
llu- uverpowored by the Chinese:
Stn I" MATTERS here are growing worse and wOrs
o"- and will, fear, continue TO do so until
=. have a force to give tie Cinnamon such thras
uh- ing us they have never yet had. / fear
are must do something that will sadly shock t
I SUI propriety Of people at home before We c
teal bring them to reason. Ton will judge from
u Ill Singapore letter that am opposed TO a
s lI harsh measure so long as there is u chance
NJ nv, gaining our point in any other way but Il
my it is now too plain that nothing else but I
NY the most extreme Of harsh measures will bri
tur- Yeh to reason.
'ur The position al present is this--ho and
anu anu alone, of all the good Governors General
'ioh the empire, has effectually put down the
Aee, bellion in his provinces. lie and many of
.oep people look on US in 4 similar light to W
70 they do the rebels; he has eXterminated 0
" and he has said he will extermnatH the 9th
NJ and thus far, il you put aside the taking Of
Nplr forts, which wera mostly undefended, he
oo ~, gained the advantage in every instance, and
'hs' the present moment Our forces are utterly
; ~ raly2ed and acting only on the defensi
81 while the Chinese take the Offensive, and t
o'H with some considerable success, in
, oar light in which they view such affairs. 7
loho have burnt down the factories and driven
Youl to within fifty feet OF the river. They are
.P5 king Whampoa so unsafe that the Admirr
nm abandoning it, They have taken one ri
,,a steamer 1.-THE Thistle), murderedall the fore
ms crs on board, and burnt her. They came d
par in force on one of their forts held by us,
'-oP- attacked at the same time one of her
o!s'- jesty's ships COnus and Hornet, statona
'a'eS tho barriers, some two miles below the
and Were with some difficulty and some 10y