The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-11-15
. SOUTH SEA ROMANCE.
FIGHT o a PARDON OF BROTHERS
CONVICTED OF PIRACY.

of Seven Murders On n Vessel In tho
south P~ncinc-E6orta In France nnd Bel
ginm TO Free Them-Their Defence.
A French prison has hold for nearly four
years two brothers who are either pirates and
murderers OF the most desperate type. or else
innocent men who have been the victims of an
astonishing chain OF circumstances. A strong
petition has Just been presented to Precedent
Faure by many prominent Belgian Government
officials asking for their release. and II marks
the latest step In the long and unremittinR fight
for their pardon, which commenced with their
conviction. Tho career of these two brothers,
opening with deeds of brilliant seamanship and
closing with alleged piracy and murder among
tho islands of the South Pacific, makes n ro-
nance.
The brothers. Leonce and Eugene de Grave.
were first sentenced to death by the Maritime
Tribunal OF Brest as guilty OF the murder OF
seven men, but the DE Grave family is powerful
among the Belgian and French bourgeoisie, and
the pressure was so great that the original
sentence was changed to life Imprisonment. Of
the brothers crime. II the testimony Of one man
10 to be believed, there can be little doubt. But
that man has been shown to have been a disso-
Lutte maritime vagabond of the South Pacific.
Leonce dc Grave was born at Ostend in 1854.
He enlisted In the Belgian army, and during his
term OF service and afterward. while acting as
pilot at Antwerp. saved several people from
drowning at the risk OF his own life. for which
exploits he received medals from the King of
Belgium. At thirty-one years of age, while he
was in command OF an English steamer, whose
port of entry was Ostend. he rescued on three
separate occasions. with great daring. the crews
of three wrecked shlns in midocean, and for do
ing SO he and his brother received the Bel
Rian order of the Grand Cross.
In January. 1890. the events leading up to the
South Sea drama began. Leonce and his
younger brother went to London in search Of
berths. as the steamer they had commanded
had been burned at sea. The brothers spoke
English. French. and German equally well; so
they had little trouble in securing the certif-
Gates of two English sailors-Alexander and
Joseph Rorick-Leonce passing himself Off for
Alexander and Eugene as Joseph. This was
necessary. it is claimed. as there was n strong
feeling against foreign sailors in England at
that time and masters and owners wero refus-
Ing to employ seamen who were not members Of
the English Maritime Union. 1t was under
these assumed names that the brothers passed
through all their South Sea experiences and
were condemned for murder and piracy. Az
British subjects they shipped on board the
steamer Umlazi, bound for Natal, South AZ
RIGA. From Natal they went to. Australia.
thence to the Island of Penrhyn. where they
engaged In pearl fishing. becoming expert
divers. At Raratonga, the largest Of the Cook
Islands. they set up as tropical merchants.
Their business grew to large proportions, and
they amassed considerable wealth. Leouce,
known rs Alexander Rorick. established him
self on the Island Of Kankura. while Eugene
settled in Tahiti.
Into the harbor of Kankura one sunny morn
Ing sailed the Kanaka schooner Ninorahiti.
Eugene de Grave was on board. Tired OF COM
merce with savages, lie had returned to his old
ove-the open sea. Gibson. the owner of the
little schooner. the son of a Yankee father and a
kanaka mother. made him the Ninorahiti's
first mate and acting captain: The Captain in
title was q, Kanaka named Tehae. ,Leonce re.
cetved his brother with Joy and readily agreed
TO GibsOn's proposal that he should sail on the
Sinorahiti as a passenger on her voyage among
the islands.
When the schooner left Kankura the crew
and passengers consisted OF Tehae. the Captain;
Graves. n Kanaka journeying to Tahiti. and
four sailors Ten men In AL started on the
These three told two different stories at the
trial. Mirey. the cook, related a tale Of muir
Graves set IN as their defence a story OF
strange condolences. Mirey's narrative Is by
1t WAS on the evening of Jan. @. 1892. he said.
and the Ninorahiti was tRcking between the
lie ls'w watch bet w"en my : and midn%iriSt H +
brother remained beside him on the deck talk
Ing earnestly. Gibson had gone below TO sleep.
Mirey and Gibson. who were in their cabins,
were suddenly awakened ny two revolver shots.
Gibson sprang up. ordering Mirey to remain
below while he went OIL deck to see what the
trouble was. Leonce de Grave called to bim:,,
There Is nothing the matter. but l would
like 10 see you on deck directly
AS Gibson came up Leonce shot him dead. A
moment later, when Mirey raised his head above
the hatchway, he felt the cold steel or u pistol
barrel held by Eugene touching his temple. =,
Rem below; II you come up will kill
The cook almost fell down the stairs in his
efforts TO escape. Up on deck. while the vessel
DlOughel her way through the mDOnlit sea the
two brothers threw overheard the bodies OF Glib
son and the south Sea Captain. At whom the
washed the blood from the deck: keeping at the
sam" time the crew well forward.
What was the moving cause of these crimes
and those that followed, according to Mirey's
story, will never be made known. 1t could
brothers had already accumulated Il large for
tune in pearls and gold. II Mirey's account is
agery in these men. transmitted. perhaps. from
some long dead ancestor,
terror, keeping their vigils with cooked revolvers
in their hands. The day following the tragedy
that the KanaEa passenger was iii. At once
Leo,ce sent him a bowl of water. into which he
the passenger died ir great agony. and his body,
over II. was cast into The STA.
All was quiet then for five days when, of a
sudden, a new act in the drama was evolved.
Leonce de Grave sent the cook. ,Mirey. TO his
cabin for a bottle OF rum, and ordered him to
give each OF the sailors adrink. The h'lmsmrn
drained n glass without hesitation. out when the
liquor WAS offered to the other sailors. who were
standing in IA knot forward. two OF the three
shook their heads: the third raised the bottle to
his lips and drank deeply. despite the fact that
his comrades tried TO prevent him with fright
ened words that there was death within. An
hour later the two men who had drunk the
liquor fell dead upon the deck. To their COM
panions Leonce said lightly that the men had
succumbed to a contagious malady. quick and
terrible in its effects. He then threw the bodies
into the sea.
But one more act OF the drama was to be
PLAYED. Its time was a week later. Mirey WAS
sent To the cabin for u bottle OF beer and the
two remaining sailors were ordered out ON the
bnwsprit to take in sail. While they were there
Mirey says that he heard this through a port
holcl. Eugene walked toward them, brandish-
ing mis- revolver aud crying:
IF you don't work faster III shoot you"
In the extremity OF fear the seamen threw
themselves into the water, and the schooner
swept by without an attempt being made to
rescue them.
Tahiti was now near at hand. but to make that
port was impracticabls. In the first place there
yyas M GRAY and II was nnt IN he anpnna.I thut