New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-02-15
ON THE THAYER
TERRIBLE WORK OF TWO COOLIES
HOLDING THE SHIPS CREW IN TERROR FOR
TWO DAYS.
CRUEL sTRATAGRM on MANILA INDIANs-THE CAP
TAIN's LIFE SAVED BY THE DEVOTION OF
WIPE


TAINs LIFE SAVED BY THE DEVOTION OF
HIS WIFE.
lFRoM An OCCASIONAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIDUSkJ
SAINT HELENA Jan. 1S.-The following is plain,
unvarnised statement of the tragedy that occurred
on board the American ship Frank n. Ihayer' on
January 9. 3 and 4, about 700 miles southeast OF
this island, all of the facts having been gleaned
from eye-w illnesses in an investigation just maze
by the United States Consul, James A. Macknight'
at this place. However incomprehensible or III
credible the story may seem, 1t Is the unanimous
testimony of the captain and his wife and OF the
fourteen seamen who survived and reached here
early on the morning of the 11th in an open boat.
The Frank n Thayer was fine wooden ship of
! coo tons built in 1878 at Newburyport, Mass,
hailiug from the port of Boston where her prln-
cipa owners live. She sailed from Manila Tor
New-York on November l, 1885 with full cargo
of hemp valued at S35O,000, and with a crew of
twenty-five men, including two Manila Indians and
two Cinnamon The only Americans were the cap
tain, Robert X. Clarke, of Long Island, and the
mate and second mate, E. Holmes and w. Davis.
The Others were Germans and Scandinavians
few davs after leaving Manila one of the Indians
complained of sickness. but VIXEN the captain
decided that he needed physIc, and offered him
dose of salts he made WY face and rejected It,
upon which the captain took up ropes end and
gave him cut two over the shoulders, and after
this persuasion he took the salts. Absolutely
nothing occurred in connection with the Indians
that is remembered by any of the survivors from
that time until midnight on January 2-nnless IL De
that the mate gave of them slap with his hand
at the pump early that evening or two of the
men rather feebly allege The names given by the
Manilamen at shipment were, X. AgOsto and I.
Sierra and they were of the common type oil the
Indian coolie of the Philippines short ana wry and
n able TO make themselves understood IN any
tongue except their patois of the Spanish
Saturday night, January 2. was one of those
glorious nights that common in the track OF thc
southeast trade winds from a short distance north
of the cape to this island. The sky was clear and
densely spangled with stars, and the breeze was
steady and all sails set. At 10 D. M, the captain
and mate were talking on the poop-deck about the
splendid time they were making, and remarked
casually that they wuuld not call or signal at 81
Helena but press on while the wind was so fay Or
able Seeing all we'll at that hour. and having no
more suspicion'of trouble on board than of running
against Lands End that night. the captain
went below and turned in. He was soon soIast
asleep that he heard nothing of the change OF the
watch at midnight. A few minutes after the
change, however, he heard some one call captain
Clarke Captain Clarke" and sprang up supposing
that the mate was calling him to look at a vessel
they had been rapidly gaining on during the even
ing Half asleep and in his night clothes he ran
up the after oompanionwav. and when he reached
the top received blow with knife on tie top
of his head. lie saw that one of the Indians was
his assailant and began to fight him as best as he
could with his naked hands, but the savage
pressed him so closely that he was obliged to back
down the steps. The captain had struck the
ruffian several blowsn the face, and prevented him
from making his thruSts with effect, but as the two
reached the bottom of the steps graphing with each
other the captain slipped in the blood and fell!
The Indian then plunged his knife into his victims
left sde and up the steps leaving hm for dead.
The captains wife was aroused by his fall, and in
a moment saw HIM enter her loom covered with
blood. He merely said that he was hurt, and arm
1ng himself with a revolver returned to tie door.
He called to the man at the wheel, Malone. telling
him 10 shut the upper door of the companionway.
81 can't. sir" said he
@Why not ~ asked the captain
@Theres somebody theIe" said Malone,
KILLING THE MAN AT TIE WHEEL.
Captain Clarke then shut and locked the cabin
door leading to the cOmpanionway. and went
through the forecabin to shut the doors leading
onto the half deck AS he did so he found his sec
ond mate ". Davis, lying dead at the door of his
room and hastily closed and fastened the outside
doors oppressed by the vagueness and uncertainty
of the danger which had fallen upon him and his
charge As he re-enterel the atteI-cabin lie heard
man at the door, 1t was a sliding panel so he
showed it back a short distance and white
man, one c. j. Hendrcsen, standing in
the passage He covered the man with
his revolver and demanded what |
he wanted there The cried
HIDE me- Captain, hide me-" But the captain !
was not reassuIed aud demanded what he wanted, |
if he belonged to the mutineers etc. but the man
only repeated " hide me, hide me- Failing rap
idly from loss Of blood from his wounds, aud fear
A. tb ha wuuld giy ma
of himself, the captain told him to go away, and
again shut and locked the door. Hcndrlcsen then
entered the bathroom, the door of which opened
upon the companion way, and locked himself in.
He had scarcely done so when the Indian from
whom he bad retreated traced him to his hiding
place and tried to induce him 10 open the door.
Foiled in this attempt he went back up the steps.
and Hendricsen him stab Maloue, the man at
the wheel, aud throw him overheard moment
after the death moan and the struggle of Malone
were heard by the captain, the Indians smashed III
one OF the cabin windows, and one said TO the
other " Go in." The fellow was about TO obey
when the captain fred two shots in rapid sue ces
son puttingtthem 10 flightiwth voey of Oaths and
curses their lips. They then Shut and fastened
the shutters of the cabin windows and lashed the
outside doors fast Mrs. Clarke now began TO
dress the wounds of her husband as he sat bTaced
in a corner whence be could command the doors
and windows with mis- revolver His head and
face hacked to pieces, and from the cash in
his left side inst below the ribs the lower lobe of
his lung protruded some distance. Who shall de-
scribe the sensation OF that captain and his wife at
that dread hour The little daughter clung to her
mother. dumb with fear. and the poor wife,
fragile and timid woman under ordinary circum-
stances directed her best efforts with coolncss and
delIberati0n TO the stOppage of the prOfuse
bleeding which she knew must soon
end her husbands life. While they
were thus occupied, they entirely
ignorant as to who was engaged in the mutiny