The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-07-25
FICTION PALES BEFORE THIS
MYSTERY ENSHROUDS MYSTERY IN THE HERBERT FULLER TRAGEDY.

Mate Bram May be Innocent of.the Awfuf Crimes-Brown, One of the Sailors, n
 self-confessed Manslayer-A Tragic. Dramatic Tale-The Case Almost with- out Parallel in Crimes of the Sea- Brown Possibly Insane-Inquiry by Nova Scotia Magistrate.
 Halifa1, N. S.. Iuly 24.-The magis-
 trate's inquiry into the tragedy on board the barkentine Herbert FuI,er was in progress at the city hall this ; afternoon. Sailor Brown, who manned shs wheel oa the night the three mrr-
 ders were committed. was, according
 to his own statement, at one time 8, patient in hospital in Rotterdam. where he was confined while mentally deranged. His incarceration was the result of his having fired pistol at a stranger whom he imagined was trying to take his life.
 Brown made this statement in ex- planation of the story told by First Mate Bram and Frank Lohese, another of the crew, in which they declared that Brown, who accuses Bram of be- ing the triple murderer, is himself a self-confessed manslayer Lohese says that some days before the tragedy on the Herbert Fuller, Brown told him about killing man while in holland and Of having escaped conviction on the ground of insanity
 Bram says that Lohese repeated the story to him after the wIeelman had been put in irons on suspicion of being the Derpetrator of the three murders. Bram declared that Brown always ap-s peared queer to him and that he ai- ways thought that Brown needed watching.
 This morning a reporter got long
 story from Brown about his trouble in
 Holland. Brown stated that about four
 years ago he made a voyage from Japan to Antwerp. Before leaving Japan he incurred the displeasure of the vessels mate, and during the voy- age the mate developed into an implac- able enemy. Brown by the time the vessel reachd Atnwrp was in almost constant drad that the mate would kill l him.
 Brown remained in Antwerp for some time, but fears for his life still haunt | ed him and he was ever on the alert to see that no hired assassin tried to kill him. From Antwerp he went to Rotterdam, where he put up at the.
 house of some friends, but the dread of assassination still pursued him. He 1 thought that there was something wrong with his head, but could not I tell what 1t was.
 One day, while in bed. he saw a man
 peering from behind the door of the
 room. The man disappeared when he saw he was detected. Brown jumped | up, secured his revolver and looking l out of the room saw the unknown man 1 in another room in conversation with one of the women of the house. Brown went back to bed, and a few minutes later saw the mans head appear again and look strangely at him. Brown at once discharged, his revolver.
 The bullet cut through the edge of tile mans coat and passed through the edge of his ear, but inflicted no further 1 injury. The wounded person proved to be an uncle of the woman with whom
 he had beer talking, and was peering | into Browns apartment out of mere CuTlOSlly. Brown was arrested and on examin- ation by doctors was declared to be 1 temporarily deranged. They put him
 into the hospital, and he was confined there for three weeks, when he was
 discharged without being prosecuted 1 for the shooting. The question which naturally arises now Is, was there any Arrangement of Browns faculties at the time of that horror on board the
 Herbert Fuller.
 A discovery. was made on the vessel | tonight One of the police officers placed on board found written with a
 pencil on a piece of the roof timber on | the deck load memorandum of what 1 had occurred on the night of the trag- edy. Frank Lohese, the French sailor, says he wrote it and it is not unlikely he feared further tragic events might occur before the vessel arrived in port, | in which case he intended to throw the
 tiraber overheard. The purport of the memorandum has not been disclosed.