The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-04-07
THE MUTINY OF 1912
TIME RECALLED By THE
MAINE INCIDENT.

vau-Of-War SOmers and to Turn
~. INTO a Pirate-What Became of
-. vessel and the Chief Particle
pants.
From the Philadelphia Ledger.
.rs, nresent excitement of the public
- over the report of the board of in
-.,;-,. ,f the Maine disaster, and the great
'-.,~ssr shown last week all along the
lie taken by those having the report
- cbaree. recalls as thrilling a time in
~. history of the United States, during
,,e presidential term of John Tyler.
Tn The beginning of 1913 the public mind
ms Suddenly astounded and Mortified at
che news of a mutiny on board of a ma
,ionaj ship-of-war, with a view to con-
,srt it into a pirate and at the same
,too excited to admiration and gratitude
ot the terrible energy with which the
commander of the ship had suppressed it.
The vessel on which the mutiny occur
red was the United States man-of-war
somers. under command of Alexander Sill
/ dsu Mackenzie with a crew Of 100 all
/ tod 90 of whom were apprentice boys
/ She had gone out on one of those holiday
/ excursions which are now the resource
of schools TO make seamen. She had
4 crossed the Atlantic and was returning
1 to the United States by way of the West
indies when the mutiny was discovered
4 II was communicated by the purser's
steward to the purser by him to the first
lieutenant, and by him to the commander.
Three of the ringleaders were hanged on
4 the spot and twelve others were brought
home in irons, the rest being restrained
bv the undaunted front which the officers
assumed and the complete readiness in
which they held themselves to face a re
volt
It was a season of profound peace, and
the astounding news was like claps of
4 thunder in a clear sky. 1t was an unpre-
4 cadented event in our navy, where it had
been the pride and glory of the seamen to
4 stand by their captain and their shin to
the last man, and to die eXultingly TO save
either Unlike almost all mutines@it was
not a revolt against oppression real or
imagined, and limited to the seizure of
the snip and the death or expulsion of the
officers, but vast scheme of maritime
depreciation, in which the man-of-war
converted into a piratical cruiser. was TO
roam the seas in quest of blood and plum
der preying upon the commerce of all ma
tons, robbing property, Strengthening men
Fl and carrying terror in its wake.
what made the event more startling and
Fl impressed it deeper on the public mind
Fl with a new aspect of danger was to find
that son of a cabinet minister, and him
81 self an officer, was at the head of the ap-
"a paling design. Every aggra walton seemed
a to attend 1t and the horrifYing intelligence
came out in a way to magnify it's terrors
and TO startle the imagination as well as
4 10 almost oVerpOwer the Judgment
The vessel was the bearer of her own
news and, arriving on the coast, took a
reserve and a mystery which lent a ter
A rAc force to what leaked out She
stopped off the harbor of New York. and
remained outside two clays, severely inter-
o.cting all communication with the shore
simple notice of her return was all that
was made public An officer from the YES
sci proceeded to Washington bearing a
sealed report to the Secretary of the NAVY
ne public. having been led to believe bv
M me many reports in circulation that some
FL ming OF startling importance was about TO
E be made known, was worked up to the
ri highest pitch of excitement and expecta-
Hoh' me contents of the report went direct
INTO the government official paper. and
thence flew resounding through the land
i. was the official and authentic report of
the fearful mutiny.
mere resides in this city at the present
ume an employe of the postoffice who is
Intimately acquainted with the stirring
events in that awful drama. His story of
me affair is most interesting.
Inc purser of the ship who made
Aao"n 10 Lieut.. Gansevoort the conspiracy
'ial was being Matched to capture the
vessel, was w. j. Wales. The ring
-eader Of the conspiracy was Philip c.
SPENCER midshipman, and the son of
secretary of War John c. Spencer
IOuHg spencer was regarded as of a very
VIA disposition, and an inveterate reader
u cheap literature bearing on pirates and
o7H adventures. On the morning of Nov
", I94-, as the ship was approaching the
Isl 1hdies from The coast of Africa
"ales, whom Spencer had taken into his
,9i4uehce, unfolded the plan by which the
snip was to be captured. Wales stated
Ia spencer had completed a list of four
'S'tdlh ana ten doubtful associates, with
eH'eeh assistants who were to be forced
-'o me business, and then they were 20
Ioam the sea with her as a pirate. first
'1n.As at the Isle of Pines (Cuba) for
confederates.
AZ evening quarters all the officers were
tNsIed 10 lay aft on the quarter deck
@cepting the midshipman stationed on
"9 lorecaste. The master was ordered
take the wheel, and those of the crew
''-O"eu abaft sent to the mainmast
oiIinahder Mackenzie approached Spen-
NJ ana asked him if he had not tolG
aIes mat he had a project to kill the
iiillander, the officers and a consdera-
e portion of the crew of the vessel, and
convert her into a pirate. Spencer re-
'eu mat ne may have told him so, but
was merely as joke. Spencer was at
~ arrested, placed in double irons
+.0cuIed ana confined in the stern
~ close watch was placed over him
suards being ordered to put him to
'aHt death if he was detected speaking
hohIlng communication in any way
1 any Of the crew. Later he was also
7aeu' For six days and nights he was
o. oohhned. his irons being examined
every half hour.
sr,a,, searching the locker of Spencer a
"a" paper was found rolled In another
"zof case on which were Greek thar
Another midshipman, Henry Rod
-. VINO Was acquainted with Greek
yea them TO be well-known names
dI the crew. The certain and the
''iu!' as well as those who were TO
whether they would or not, were
o''-4u IN separate rows. Those who
20 10 the work of murder in the va
.partments, to take the wheel to
All 'ne arm chest about thirty names