New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1866-09-25
Arrest OF Captain RrnIRe Of the Confederate
Ravy-The Chesapealke Affair.
From the Richmond Times,

The arrest, in New York, on Saturday evening,
of Captain John G. Braine, formerly Of the Con
federate navy, on the charge of murder, and that
he had papers on his person showing that he b0-
longed to recent. organization in New Orl"sh.7
has been announced by telegraph. Capt. Brat :
it will be recollected, on the 9th of Decembc', ,
1868, seized the United States passenger steam :
Chesapeake, while she was on her passage fro n
New York to Portland, Maine. He was arrested
at the Wall House, Brooklyn, on Saturday, on a
requisltion from Washington, by the United Sta cs
marshal at the instance OF one James Johnsoh !,
first engineer of the Chesapeake, who was on
board when Grin Schatfer, the second engineer
was killed by one Of the Confederates engaged il
the capture. Capt. Brane is charged in the war
rantwith the murder of Schstter. johnson, when
Capt Braine was arrested, was very insoent in
his language towards him. and taunted him bit
tery The reporter of the New York News visited
Capt. Braine at the police station, and gives the
following account OF the Interview
Passing from the prison yard to the corridor in
front of the grated cells, the reporter found in
one Of them a tall, handsome, manifestly mtelli-
gent man, apparently about thirty years of age,
with high forehead, large, dark blue eyes, aquiine
nose and well formed mouth and chin, the gen
eral expression of his countenance being pleasant
rather than otherwise. He was faultessiy attired
in dark garments, and had the air and ease, even
under the circumstances, of well-bred gentle
man, The doOrkeeper ntimated that the indiy-
dual was Capt. Braine. Our reporter then ap-
preached the grating, and made known the object
of his visit Though many persons outside spoke
very roughly of the prisoner, our reporter, adop
ing the good old English maxim, that every man
is innocent until he is proved 10 be guilty, was re-
solved to treat the accused with respect, and he
did SO. Capt. Braine, on being asked if lie had
any objection to make brief statement of his
completely III the affair which resulted in the death
of Shaffer, very readily replied that he had not,
and thereupon, gave, in reply to interrogatories,
| a brief account of the Chesapeake capture, the
substance of which is as follows:
In December, 1868, Braine came to Williams
burr but did M tarrV long. for ahpnt n
before the capture of the Chesapeake, he sailed
on board that vessel with his wife for Portland;
| he had at this time commission as lieutenant il
the Confederate States navy while on this trip lie
conceived the design of capturing the vessel. He
next went to ST. Johns, New Brunswick, where
his command were awaiting his arrival. They
W ere mostly Englishmen; there were few Irish
men, in his own words, las good fighting men a
a man wants." he then came through Boston, viz
New London, to New York, under orders iron
the Confederate States navy department, with hi
men. Arriving at O'Clock in the afternoon, ht
went with them the same day on board the Chesa.
peake at pier No IA North river. He Gays tina
the assertion which has frequently been made tha
he enlisted men from New York and Brooklyn il
utterly untrue On the same day that they wen
on board they sailed. At about o'clock mex
the vessel off Cape Cod His men had all beei
instructed i'll their roles Guards were placed q
various points.
Their instructions were not to shoot any bu
such as.refused to surrender The second engi
neer, Grin Shatfer, 1t appears, when called upol
to surrender. was below, olliug the machinery
On hearing the demand he responded byzfrn
upon BraiDes second lieutenant. Three sh0t
were then discharged at him, and he was Instant
killed. Some of the officers, according /
Braine's account, showed less intrepidity. On
officer, he says, hid behind au ice box in the ga
ley. The first engineer was wounded in the chin
the first officer in the leg and arm Brane say
that he saved the captains life, but bandcuffe
him. The tiremen were put in irons The vesse
now in possession of Braine, steamed under order
to Sea Cove, Manan Island, British island o
Eastport, Maine. Here he remained three or fou
hours, and then steamed up the Bay of Fundy
Braine put the prisoners on board pilot boat 0
Pugwash, on the coast Of Nova Scotia, came /
T anchor, and had a communication with the agen
of the Confederate States Of America; weghe
anchor, and steered for SherbrOok st. Mary
Halifax, and was by noon next day off 9armout
Light. On the following day, the vessel hayin
been caught in a storm off Cape Sable, put I'M
: Shelburu haFbor, short of coal; cleared for
: Have, Nova Scotia; lay there week and mac
: arrangements for cOalng at Scarborough harbo
u near Halifax; sailed alongside the United Stat
frgate Niagara next morning. AS the rest of
t connection wilh the Chesapeake is already ~
known, tits unnecessary to repeat it here
. AT the termination Of the war; Braine was
$ command Of the Confederate States schooner s
!, Mary'5. Hearing that the war had terminated,