Rapides gazette. (Alexandria, La.) 1869-187?, 1872-06-22
An Unparalleled horror.
FIVE HUNDRED HUMAN BEINGS MEET
A HORRIBLE DEATH.

| A catastrophe almost unparalleled
in horror, disclosing thu gross or, elites
OF the emigraat trade by one last and
most terrible demonstration, hapiMn-
ed III the China Sea last May; and is
recorded in a Parliamentary report inst
ordered ~ rhe HOuses0f Commons to
be lrintx,d. A vessel called the Don
Juan, sailing under the dag and witt,
the consent VI the Portuguese Govern
iaelit, set sail on the 4th Of MAY, with
go coolies Oh board. T .ese Door
aretches, 1t appears. were kidnapped
! aud shipped in the most shameful man
ner. Once Oh board. this large multi
tude was placed literally in prison
pelineti on the main deck and fastened
down ny three iron gratings which
closed the hatrhes, ten coolies at y
time only being allowed to come on
deck. The ship sailed Ia fair weather
from Macao. On the second day vi
the voyage, AZ declared b., Herker, an
austrian seaman, the caisan selected
twenty coolies, and put them in irons,
with mvch brutality, AZ an example to
the others. On tho third day "a diff
Guilty a,Use about The TODD passed
down to the eIuigrants. The interpre.
ter got angry, and slruck those who
complained witlLhis cane, whereupou
he wietched coolies made dash ut
tiirn European jailOrs. The iron
matches were Immediately slammed
back upon them, anu, when the poor
creatures beat upon the beams and
planks to get air, inuskets were fired
down into fhe crowd. 1t then appears
that, in desperatIOn surne lew Ut rhe
cuOilvs set fire tOa st0re-rOOln forward.
hoping, no doubt, 10 force tue crew To
throw their prison obeai. The sailors
tried to pump water down upon Tia.
SCAT of the cOndagr;ItiOn, but tile frsn.
zied men teiow passed the hose out of
The port h0es, 30 that pumping be-
came useless. Then the fire spread TX.
yOild all control, and volumes of thick
1 smoke rolled into the main deck, chOk
ing the mass OF coolies at the other
eutl, who hal taken no part in the pre-.
vious proceedings. Red tongues OF
flame and suGUcating clouds filed the
ship yellow matches, while tue ,nisera-
ble prisoners iwat ut the iron grating,
tore at the fastenings of the deck, and
even endrav, red to get up to the air
through the veutilatOrs. The port
holes. however, were fastened, the
dead lights were too small to allow of
a mans body passing, and the venti;a.
tore were barred, sd that there WAS no
escape.
In two hours time the fire Was I" en-.
tablisled ON the naih deck (which
means that scores Of the Chinese hal
already lm.en rOaStesi or smother, d.
yet the crew never took a single stru
toward saving the lives OF the imprii-
sOned Hrrtcbes. They merely lowered
three boats on their own account, AMI
pushed off from the burning vrssei.
leaving all that mass of human crea-
lures peDt up in floating h~Il Of fear
and agony. The Sea Was calm; the
harches might surely have been Open
esi AT the last moment vet the DDrl
Jman's cals.lim and hands showed IN,
while the snip siazssi, and while the
coolies perislled inside with fright,,..
cries and screams. The scuundrr,
master and crew saved their viiiaiilUns
lives; junk picked them up; and
the same witness who tells us this
says that when the twenty Chinese II,
irons, who were upon the fortcast,e
broke away their letters and SWAN
towards the junk, they we.e pushed
OH into the sea to drown. Meanwhile,
in their awful terror. the survivors o;
the too below found some means 81
bursting the tore hatch. SvOres were
by this riine killesl by the flames ur
the smoke; scores had been trsmplesl
down in the frpnzied rush tor lite Ia
the upper deck. Abou, handre.l in
all AT last emerged from that Gng,fI,a
o. anguish, anti iexpeai az oHcx into the
SEA. A few managed to get hold 0l
spars and floating gear, aud hung
upon these till some fishing lmats pick
Ell them up next morning. The major
| lily were ALREADY lnOrtally injured wher
they escaped, or were drowned. OF
crushed by the falling chains and
I, spars Of the ship. But Mt he le,s,
I'VE hundred Were first morv ed I.
death, or choked aud tram,,issl dead
before the internal prison gate wa,
ioru.d BY the breaking open Of the
I'll.