The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1875-10-07
A TRAGEDY OF THE SEA.

The facts in the case of the mutiny on
the schooner jefferson Borden, as
brought ont on the trial now pending in
the United States District Court in this
city, form an exciting tale of perilous
adventure On the ''dark blue sea, which
lacks only the element of romance to be
as thrilling and fascinating as any in the
books of Captain Marryatt or Mayne
Reid. The dark-browed and bloody
handed sailors who killed the two mates
of the vessel in the darkness of mid
night and threw them overheard, and
marked the captain for slaughter, but
dealt with him so bunglingly that he
suspected their intent and escaped their
deadly purpose, We're apparently an
mated only by brutal hate for their Of
ficers, who had been forced to use harsh
measures to suppress insubordination.
They had for a leader no hero of wicked
ness fired with secret love for the Cap
tain s wife and poetical ambition to
make her the queen of some tropical is
tivity for them to release and make the
idol of their savage worship in the caves
and Businesses of some unfrequented
coast; neither had they wild ambition
to skirrnish along the Spanish main as
bold buccaneers, plundering rich
argosies that travel the highway of the
sea.
There is not CLEAN of poetry or To-
nance about this dismal tragedy. The
vessel itself was most unpoetical craft,
a schooner laden with cotton-seed oil
cakes, bound from New Orleans to
London. She was in cargo of Captain
William Patterson, a part owner whose
brother was the first mate. The Cap
tain's wife shared the dangers hardships
of the voyage, and four seamen, the Ste
ward and a boy, constituted the crew.
Some of the men seem to have been ug
ly specimens. Scarcely had the schoon-
er got out of the port of New Orleans,
when they began to show bad temper
and to exhibit a disposition to disobey
orders and defy the authority of the
Captain. After awhile one of them was
punished by being put into irons for
twenty-four hours, in spite of violent re-
sistance. From that time, he seems to
have cherished the purpose of revenge.
In the darkness of the night of April
Goth, after the Jefferson Borden had
been wandering on the Atlantic for more
than six weeks, and was about two-thirds
of the way across, Captain Patterson
was awakened from sleep by Miller, the
ring leader of the mutineers, who tired
to get him to go forward, on the pretence
that some one was hurt. He refused to
go, and by keeping wary eye on the
sailor defeated his intent, which was
evidently mischievous. He could get
no information regarding his mates, and
during the rest Of the night kept watch
on deck, armed with his revolver. In
the morning, the mates did not appear,
and the three mutinous sailors were at
bay behind the forward house of the
schooner. All day the captain and the
steward, with revolvers and double
barrelled gun, tried to force them to
surrender, and fired upon them when
ever they exposed any part of their per-
sons to sight. They returned the fire
with stones, pieces of iron and other
missiles, but though severely wounded
refused to give themselves into the
hands of their officer or make any answer
to his questions and demands. The
next night, IN the loneliness and dark
ness of that distant sea, the captain kept
his watch supported by the faithful
steward, both armed and ready to meet
any violent movement of the mutineers.
In the morning they were found to have
entrenched themselves below the for
ward hatch in the forecastle. Holes
were cut into their stronghold, guns fired
through the openings, and buckets of
hot water poured in to bring them to
terms. Finally they found it was use
less to hold out and surrendered, submit
ting their hands to be ironed at the
windows of the forecastle.
This was certainly strange conflict
to be carried on for two days on a frail
schooner drifting at the mercy of the
elements in the middle of the broad
Atlantic. After the surrender of the
three men, they made inconsistent and
contra Il otorx confessions f,Or, ,,,bi5 h II
is gathered that Miller and Smith murd-
cred the two mates with piece of iron
and captain bar and threw them over
board, and intended to kill the captain
also, run the schooner near to land and
scuttle her, having first bound the cap
tain s wife to stanchion in the fore
hold to sink with the vessel. No mo-
tive but revenge is apparent in the
whole diabolical proceeding. The men
evidently expected to escape detection
and leave it to be sIlrmised that the
schooner had been lost with all on
board. Their purpose was defeated and
they are now arraigned for murder on
the high seas.
This is another illustration of the aw-
full risks of crime There is nothing
more foolish, from the point Of view of
pure selfishness, than violation of the
laws made to protect the community
against violence. We suspect that the
captains way OF treating his men, which
excited such deadly hatred, must nave
been far from kindly, but the crime of
Tho o,, 40 N l. ar,l1,- 81