The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1873-02-01
ATROCITIES OF THE SOUTH SEA
SLAVE TRADE.

and five of the crew of that vessel, were convicted
of assault in kidnapping Polynesians, and sem
fenced to two years Imprisonment; and subse-
quently the Captain, and Charles Dowden the
mate, were tried for having murdered "a certain
man whose name is unknown" "a Polynesian)
and were convicted and sentenced to death.
Their punishment, however, has been committed
TO imprisonment for life, the first three in irons.
The reason given for this is that they were not
the prime agents in the affair, DIR. Murray, the
owner of the vessel, who was on board at the time
of the murderous atrocities, being proved by the
evidence to be the principal william. Ii seems
however that he so far escapes, through a safe
conduct given by the British Consul at Fiji, who
admitted him as Queens witness. The evidence
want to show that instead of one man, between
20 and so Polynesians were massacred.
The published account of the trial had created
in the Colonies and in England an unprecedented
feeling of horror and indignation, and had aroused
a frmer determination TO assist in every possible
way in putting down a traffic so fruitful in human
misery.
We copy brief portions of the testimony or
Murray, Queens witness, but principal murderer:
left Melbourne on the Sth of june last year.
The old crew left at Levuka. Armstrong then be-
came captain, and the other prisoner was taken on
as mate. The arrangement was made by the cap
tain. Armstrong engaged the men then taken on
the fresh crew-at 60 a month, and at Is a head
for ~head-mOney. i think we had a crew of 10 men
besides Armstrong and Dowden. We sailed to the
island of Apii. Before getting there We tried to get
labor in a legitimate way, but without success.
The next island we went TO was Palma Island, and
there one OF the passengers (Mr. Mount), dressed
as a missionary, attempted to lure the natives on
board but IL failed. We went then TO an island
southeast of Mallicolo. We anchored there and
sent off a boat. The natives fired on our boat. and
we Sired on them in retaliation. They tried to in
duce us 10 land. and when we would not land they
fred poisoned arrows on us. / got wounded in the
course of the fight afterwards. Several of the ma
tives were Hshed out of the water by us, and taken
on board the ship. We went on to several OF the
islands, and captured the natives generally by
breaking or upsetting their canoes, and by getting
the natives out of the water into which they were
plunged. We broke up the canoes by throwing pig
iron into them, and we then seized the natives in
the water. The captain and crew used to be chiefly
engaged in throwing the weights into the canoes,
and the passengers, in their own boat, used to pick
up the natives out OF the water. The passengers
thus commonly engaged were Mr.. Scott, Mr.. Morris,
and Mr.. Wilson. They always worked their own
boat, and sometimes the crew helped. The second
boat was manned by seamen alone. Mr.. Mount
used to muster the crew OF the passengers boat.
Each man had his appointed duty and place and
they used, when so called upon by Mr.. Mosnt, to
man the boat. The passengers used to pick up the
natives, and used sometimes TO bit the natives in
the water on the head with clubs. or with sling
shot, when they dived to get out of the way. The
natives were at times very hard to get hold of. This
sort of thing was done at several islands. The
Carl went to the island of Bougainville-the north
ernmost of the Solomon Islands. The natives were
in the habit OF coming out in great numbers in large
canoes. III they came alongside they were treated
in the manner | have described. There would be
about IL or IA men in each of these canoes. They
were all strong and powerful men. They were
usually armed with spears and bow and arrows.
We bore up to Bouka Island, just adjoining Bou-
III " leland No q thar IN M Iunu nn I
board. We kept these men in the hold at night,
and allowed them to come on the deck during day.
We tried them to see if they would keep quiet first.
This was the 18th or 18th September, or there
abouts. On that day there was q disturbance
heard below during the night, and we quoted it by
firing a pistol over their heads. We heard no more
of it then. On the following night, the disturbance
again in earnest, and the man on the
watch fred a pistol over the h~atchway, and shouted
to them to brighten them, as on the previous night.
Other methods were tried to quiet them, but all the
failed. Tae men below appeared to be
breaking down thebunks, or sleeping places, and
with the poles so obtained they armed themselves
as with spears, and Gercely attacked the main batch
way. They endeavOred to force up the main hatch
way with these poles. The row now appeared to
have started in a fight between the quiet natives
the wild ones. Most of the wild ones were
battering at the hatch.
"The attempts to pacify the men below having failed
the crew commenced to fire on them. There was q
general rush to arms, the danger being then immi-
nent. The firing was kept up most of the night. l
think every one on board was more or less engaged
in the firing into the hold. Whenever the natives
fighting below we stopped firing too. Mr..
Morris was loading the guns all night. This firing
asted for about eight hours. 1t was daylight before
t was all over. The natives were divided in the
mold; the Bougainvile natives were in the middle,
md the other (quieter) natives in the fore and after
PATCHES. During the night, by way of directing aim,
Mr.. Wilson, one of the passengers, threw lights
Town into the hold. At daylight all appeared to be
Iuiet, and it WAS considered advisable to save what
The matches were then thrown open, and
hose who were alive were invited to come up. They
lid 80. About FIVE came up without help; the re-
nainder were more or less helped up, being wounded.
There were about 10 badly wounded, and above eight
IT nine slightly; 10 or II went on with the ship
afterwards. In the hold there was n great deal Of
blood with the dead bodies. The dead men were at
thrown overheard. The 10 badly wounded
men we're also thrown overheard. 1t was done by
he crew. The passengers were also there close to
he spot whilst the wounded men were being thrown
They were on that side of the ship where
t was done. When l understood that the general
opinion was that these men should be thrown over
| said, " do not care to look at it, and /
an forward to the fore cabin. l did not say l OBJ
ected to it. There was a discussion as to what
hould be done with these men, and the general cry
cover with them at once" l endeavored to
them throwing the wounded men overheard, but
hey continued to do so. | saw that the men so
brown overheard were alive when they were thrown
There were about 16 of them. We were
hen several miles from land. II was impossible for
he men, in the state that they were, to escape to the
and. Some Of the men thrown overheard were tied
" the legs and by the hands. This was done by
of the people in the group l have mentioned.
after this the hold of the ship was thoroughly cleaned
nd whitewashed, every trace of the late event being
emoved. On our voyage toward Apii we met the
Rosario, which oyerhauled us. One of the Junior
Ulcers came on board, and seeing nothing particular,
ct US go. l was very ill during all the second ,
oyage. I eventually returned to Levuka very i'll, :
imost dead. On my recovery l gave information to
he Consul, Mr.. March. The vessel was seized and
be labor men who had not been disposed of were
AIKEN back. l was repentant in what 1 did, and did
for the honor of God, as the only atonement that l
ould make. In doing what l so did L voluntarily
Uttered very great pecuniary loss.'' :
Much regret will naturally be felt that DR.. Murray
as not been placed in the dock with the prisoners,
ut he was received as Queens evidence by Mr..
Iarch, the British Consul at Fiji, and the New
outh Wales Government has respected the promise
f protection so given to him. Mr.. Justice Faucet,