Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-07-30

Charges Of inhuman rrcssmcnt Against tn
Captain OF . Clipper shtp


Charge. Of rnhuman Treatment Against TIE
Captain Of . Clipper ship.
The New York TiIb.ne OF today avs;
From the stories Of some Of the crew Of ths
American clipper ship J. r. Chapman, Capt.
Joseph A. Thompson must have reigned ON
board Of her with the harshness Of a pirate
king. Three seamen, it IL declared. we're
ironed at the hands and strung from the
spanker boom that their fee; barely touched
the deck. and were kept in that position for
periods ranging from ten minutes TO over sn
hour. Eric A Eklund, the ships carpenter,
has lodged a complaint against the captain be.
fore United States Commissioner Shields. who
will investigate the case.
The Chapman is a full-rigeed ship Of 2.oss
tons, and Is OF this port She carries grain
from San Francisco 20 Liverpool and on her
return trip calls at New York. She has been
commanded by Capt Thompson OF Bath. Me-,
ever since she was built. nine years ago. and he
Is also part owner OF her. She left San Francisco
IN the latter part Of January last The captain
and his son. Albert Thompson. who is the first
mate, often had words with the carpenter,
Ekiund, who somehow did not please them.
second Mate Martin said that Ekland didn't
work hard enough.
On May 2. after the ship had rounded Cape
Horn, Eklund was at work repairing q spar
which had begun 10 rot The captain came up
W nAlh "nu ASKED MIN what he was doing.
rKLUSp's STORY
The carpenter narrates what happened next
thus: Il told him that I was uending the
spar. He cursed me and struck me across ,hs
face with his half-open hand. tearing the skin
on my cheek IN three places. l tried 10 pro-
tect myself. but be and has son, the first mate
put irons on my hands. They then took me %
the mizzen mast and fastened the irons 20 the
spanker boom The boom was just high enough
from the deck 10 let my toes touch IL. Every
time the vessel rolled was DRAGGED from one
side TO the other. my toes being lifted from tho
deck.
Il suffered awful pain. I could hardly
breathe at times. and every muscle was filed
with pain from the STRAIN I couldn't help
grooming from the agony. and Jackson the
man at the wheel. at last came and cut m,
down. The captain and first mate were for
ward at the time. i told that they kent
me hanging for an hour and twenty minutes
When the ship reached Liverpool I left her and
paid my way back TO this city. WIS hurt in
ternally by the strain and have been under q
doctor 5 care In Liverpool and here"
charles Powers of Detroit, who was an able
seaman on the Chapman, corroborated Elk
lund 8 charge OF cruelty. Powers who il an
intellgent-looking man Of about twenty-one
years, shipped on the vessel at San Francisco
and remained on her until she anchored OF
Governors Island yesterday morning He said
that he himself had been treated with consid-
Grafton by all the officers. but had witnessed
the stringing up of two of the crew. He told
the following story:
The first ono to be stretched from the
spanker-boom was Thomas Chapman. who wa
about eighteen years old About month after
We left San Francisco he had a fight with the
first mate. was helping to reef the mAinsail
at the time and saw the captain and his son
shackle the lads wrists and faster him 20 tile
spanker-boom by the irons. His toes Just
touched the deck. They released linn before
We finished reefing the sail 80 1 Judge he was
suspended for about ten minutes. When we
landed at Liverpool Chapman shipped for
Quebec.
The officers did good deal Of quarreling
with the carpenter. L don't know what the
trouble was. The carpenter could not have
been drunk, because there no liquor to be
had. On that day in May was on top of the
forward house scrapIng oars aud did not see
them tie Eklund up. 1 heard him shout,
though. think he must have been hung up
for tweoty Or twenty-five minutes. 'Pilly'
jackson, who was at the wheel couldn't stand
the suffering mans cries any longer and cut
him loose while the captain and first mate were
forward. For this jackson was strung up him.
self, his place at the wheel being taken by
James Ericsson. L didn't see hum hanging
from the boom, but he told me they kept him
there for an hour and sixteen minutes.
We got to Liverpool on Thursday, June 4,
and were to be paid on the following Saturday.
jackson and Ericsson, however, received their
money on the next day and shipped at once on
vessel bound for this country. Ii was said
that they got extra money not TO say anything
about the affair. jackson said he Was going %
ship on a vessel plying in one Of the great
| lakes"
Deputy United States Marshals Van Buskirk
and Grant arrested Capt. Thompson yesterday
morning. The captain merely said that he had
already been acquitted by the American consul
at Liverpool Mr.. Shields held him for exam
animation tomorrow at III am. Ii found guilty
the captain may be fined $1,000 or imprison-
ment for five years, or both.
| Eklund is a native of Finland and is heavy
| set man Of medium height He is fifty-eight
years old and has been at sea for forty-two
years. Since 1856 he has sailed almost con-
| unuously on American ships