Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1871-03-26
LEAPlNc oVERBoARD.
a Tale Of cruslty-DOubIe Irons, Starya-
iiOa, Cuffs, Kicks ana Abuse.
The Tale Told by the Man who Is to bs
Hanged for Firing the Robart
Edwards.

From The New York SUM-
According to his own account, Per.
due was an experienced seaman Ia
ships carpenter) when he shipped on
the Robert Edwards, at Bedford
HaTbor, on the 9th or 10th Of May.
He had made several voyages in Lon.
don vessels, and had visited nearly
every part Of the world. He had
never been able to save any money,
however, and thought that a four.
years voyage in a Whaier, where he
would find no temptation to spend his
wages, would enable him to accumu.
late sufficient capital to start in bust.
ness for himself on his return. Nearly
all the other men were green hands,
excepting young Duncan, the Brook.
Ign minister's son, who had been dur.
ing two years previous on the school
ship Mercury.
When a couple of months out the
men became dissatisfied because only
one whale had been caught. bat be.
yOnd a little growing on this account,
Perdue afirms that no reason existed
for the charge of mutiny. This whale
was captured by the boat to which
PeTdue was attached, and which was
commanded by the third mate, q
negro, named Freeman, who, to use
Perdue's expression, "was the only
white man among the officers"
PERDUE's ACCOUNT.
Perdue says that he was abed at the
time the fire broke out on the Robert
Edwards, and knows nothing what.
ever Of its origin, except what may
be- contained in the following cirCum-
stances: The forward hold, he SAYS,
was used as a stOrehOuse for ropes and
odds and ends, and, contrary to ali
rules which govern ships, the green
hands made a practice of going down
there with lighted pipes and naked
lights whenever they felt so disposed.
He says that he can prove that Solo
mon Case, a Sandwich Islander, was
sitting there sheathing his pantalOOns
by the light of a candle stuck in a coil
of rope on the night of the fire, and
that four other men-HazaId of Con-
nectiCut, Ayres of New Hampshire,
and Burns and RestWick of Massachu-
setts-Were in there together on the
same evening, pricking the smoke OF
an Oil lamp into their arms. All these
men are now within reach and will
testify, ifpermitted, to these facts.
He accounts for Duncan's enmity by
saying that he once caught him in the
commission of a certain crime and
threw a bucket of water upon him.
He says that Capt. Pease favored Dun
can because DUncan's father promised
the captain a compensation for look
ing after his son, before the Robert
Edwards started on her ill-fated voy-
age.
LIE ACCUSES THE OFFICERS OF
CRUELTY.
Perdue accuses the officers of the
ship of the most shocking cruelty.
On the night the fire broke out the
first mate approached him (Perdue)
and said, I" You --, you set fire
to the ship" Perdue replied, " No,
sir, l did not" The mate then went
away, and the captain coming up re-
peated the charge. Perdue gave the
same answer. The captain thenIeft, but
returned presently with the mate to
where Perdue was working at the
pumps. The captain caught him by
the beard with one hand and the mate
seized his hair.
you Cd id Five Points -
said the captain, " do you deny
that you fred my ship? ! knew you
were -- from the first moment
you shipped"
Perdue answered, "If you will not
believe the truth, 1 have nothing left
to say but that I did everything you
accuse me Of" The captain then
struck him twice with a revolver on
the forehead and on the left side Ofthe
nose, with such force as to knock his
head out Of their grasp, and tear hairs
from his beard and scalp at the same
time. The mate then stood over Per
due, Allen and Svensen, who were
working the starbOaTd pumps to-
gether, and lashed them with a three
inch rope until Svensen said:
My God! [ can stand this no long
and putting his hand on the rail,
LEAPED OVERHEARD.
The mate made a blow at him as he
fell, saying, "GO, you - -,
Cd d-n you" The third mate,
Freeman, shouted to lower a boat,
but the captain said mo; let him 90 )"
The fourth mate jumped on the fore
castle and sung out, "Oh, if l only
had a rifle! What splendid shot the
.- is head would make"
The first mate said, turning to Per-
due and Allen, "It will be your turn
to 90 next" and continued his cruel
lashing.
When they took to the boats at last,
and were picked up by the brig Mary
Rice, the accused men were compelled
to lie on the open deck, the sea wash
ing her from stem to stern all the
time; and during her voyage to Rio
JanierO, sixty days, they had nothing
to eat or drink but two hard tack and
a pint Of water per day. The Mary
Rice was q small vessel, and was
heavily laden with flour. They were
in double irons.
In Rio, the Vice Consul, Cardoze,
would not listen to their story, ana
they were flung into Jail. The vOy-
age home on the South America was
as bad. Still
IN DOUBLE IRONS, HALF STARVED,
and without clothing, they were all
badly frozen, and two of them were as
near dead as men could be.
One day they stood on the boiler
two hours in their bare feet to en-
deavor to get a little warmth into
their bodies, and a lady passenger see
ing them for the first time exclaimed,
" II had known that these poor men
had no shoes, 1 would have got them
some myself" They had nothing to
protect their bodies but the thin
clothes they had on when the Robert
Edwards caught fire, and these they
had worn for nearly five months.
They were allowed to go no further
forward than the fOrecastle, and no
further aft than the paddle boxes, and
at night they were told that if they
moved they would be chained down
to the lee scuppers.
They arrived here in the afternoon,
and were Immediately taken before
Commissioner Shields, who asked
them whether they had anything to
say in their own behalf. Perdue was
about to speak, when Mr.. Field, or
his counsel, stopped him. Next day
they waived an examination. They
sent to Ludlow street jail, where
Tracy, the warden, furnished them
shoes.
DUNCAN TURNED NFORMERi
ls he afterward admitted, at the in
Of Mr.. Russell, his counsel,
and Perdue's also. The gentleman
aid to Duncan: "NO matter what
becomes Of the Others, PHI get you off
anyhow.0 Perdue paid Russell $500
he would touch the case. Al
en- and Meridian pleaded guilty, be-
,ause, as they told Perdue, "the OH
,ers were bound to have them found
guilty anyhow They got ten years
,ach. Perdue would not stoOp to
.uch a subterfuge. His counsel neg
eeted to bring his witnesses together
although they would not have re-