Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1886-07-31
MUTlNY AND STARVATION.
Five Sailors Locked Up and Nearly Stars.
ed Because They Refused TO Work on
Empty Stomachs-They Live Ninety.
two Hours on Three Biscuit.
PHILADELPHIA. July 80.

PHILADELPHIA, July 80.
The schooner John K. Louther, of Bangor,
Me-, arrived at Philadelphia, THURSDAY, with
all OF the crew. except the captain and three
men, locked in the forecastle The prisoners
were mutineers, and had been 27 hours with
out food. The schooner came into port flying
signal Of distress, and police tug went to
her assistance and took the men off, put them
in irons and carried them to the United
States Commissioners office. Capt. james
W. Boiano, the owner of the schooner. told
the following story
''On July 10 we sailed from Camden, Me-,
at 8 o'clock 2. NJ. Two hours later the crew,
which consisted of mate, second mate, cook
and five seamen, were ordered to clean up
the ship. The five men, whose names are
Carl Ferdinand Berg, Charles August Ander-
son, Swedes; Joseph Herdine, Antona Kaiser.
Germahs; and Theodore Bunster a Norwe-
gan, refused to do the work. They threat
ened my life unless | allowed them to do as
they liked. | again ordered them to work,
but the mutlneers went in body TO the fore
castle, when we turned the KEY on them, and
since that time until noon TODAY those i've
men were confined in the forrcastle and fed
on bread and water.
"rhe mate, second mate, cook and myself
worked the schooner from Camden, Me-, to
Philadelphia. Three times we had to heave
the 3OOO-pound anchor. tie work of half
dozen men. 1t was hard work and that is
Why we were so energetic in signalling the
police boat. | asked the men three times to
return to work, but thev refused, so | kept
them there, and a hungry lot of men they
must be-
The mems statement does not agree with
that of the captain. Through the bars of the
door of the lookup they told their story
which is as follows:
Hungry is no name for it," said Joseph
Herdine. who says he has a wife and child at
Salem, Mass. 1--WE are nearly starved. 1t
was because we were hungry that we refused
to wash down the decks and do lot of other
work 1t was 6 o'clock, and we had been
hard at work from 5 o'clock in the morning.
We told the captain that we were hungry, ,and
asked that we be given our supper before
being required to perform unnecessary labor.
He refused and we refused to work.
''He wanted US to keep anchor watch at s
O'clock, but we said not until he fed us. At
l o'clock the next morning the anchor was
weighed and we went into the forecastle hum
CRY. The captain turned the key on us. and
in that hole he kept US until the police came
aboard today. We had nothing to eat for 81
hours, and then the captain gave each of US
ships biscuit. Fifty three hours after We
were locked up we got another biscuit and
some water. Nineteen hours later the cap
tain gave US another biscuit. We had had
nothing but three biscuits like these (showing
a fiat, round cracker about three inches in
diameter) for 80 hours. They kept us on
three biscuit every day until the last two
days, when they gave US herring each in
the morning and small quantity of corn
meal mush for dinner. We are nearly dead
with hunger"
Commissioner Edmunds heard both sides
of the case, and decided that the crews
offence was d very serious one. He commit
them all in default of bail.