The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-07-19
CRUELTY ON THE MEADE
Is ALLEGED BY ONE OF HER
SEAMEN.
Claims That Nineteen Were Kept in
Irons For one Hundred Hours
Fastened with Backs to Stanchions.

The Star has received the following
communication in regard to the treat
ment of seamen and others on board
the transport Meade When this vessel
was in Honolulu there were reports of
troubles aboard. Some of the firemen
left the vessel and their places were
filled by Others from this port
The communication is under date of
Hong Kong, June 8, 1901.
EDITOR STAR; Permit me to state
on behalf of myself and dozens of
others aboard this transport Meade"
that the ugly rumors set afioat while
this ship remained in Honolulu, in re-
gard to trouble aboard between the Of
ttcers and men and which the former
tried so hard to suppress and deny were
only too well founded; but which,
though it ended in the death of one
victim in the hospital in Honolulu, was
insignificant compared to the abuse and
scandals since disgracing the record of
this transport.
l have been one of many others who
can testify before any court of justice
that | have seen men kicked almost to
inSenSibility by both the ships surgeon
and the officers and that without any
reasonable cause or provocatiOn. The
few Portuguese who took the places
of the fremen and coal passers at Ho-
nolulu We're the chief sufferers and VIC
Tins of this abuse and punishment. But
on
| have shared i'm many of the horrors
with which the good name of this ship
is sulied have been bullied and insult
ed by brutal officers | have suffered to
be in irons for 100 hours fed on bread
and water and been denied even a rag
or a pillow to relieve our discomfort
while thus lying handcuffed around
stanchions night and day. More than
that, | was only one of nineteen others
who were thus treated since arriving
here. And not satisfied with handcuff-
ing us around stanchions, they added
torture to our punishment by standing
us up against the stanchions our backs
turned to them and our hands thus
handcuffed behind us.
Needless to add, this position, so
strained and unnatural called forth
most exquisite and graduated pain and
agony while it lasted
We held out as long as nature could;
but there is a limit to endurance and
the cries of suffering men thus tortured
and terrOriZed that night seems like an
echo from the dark ages when the In
QUESTION Courts We're fashionable
Any why or for what reason were
men, sober, peaceful men thus i'll treat
ed and abused? Simply for this cause.
That we protested to the Captain
against the abuses that had become
more irons for those who ventured to-
COmplain), nineteen of us left the ship
one day while she lay in dry dock here
and went to ask the Consul as a last
resort for an inquiry and redress of
greviences. He heard our complaint
and promised to look into it the follow
ing Monday. We called on him Satur-
day. one week ago yesterday, and
turned back to our ship. Alas for con
sular promises and their fulfillment, Gf-
ter a Captain and a United States
Quartermaster Captain have seen"
him later!
What care he if nineteen men were
kept in irons in a foreign port, they are
only sailors or tiremen anyway. What |
matters if they are treated as not even
murderers and thieves are treated in |
pals and penitentiarieS in the |
United States. He didn't interest him |
self in our case. He must have known |
how many hours these men We're in !
irons. We sent him notes and they were |
left at the consulate. We begged a !
hearing and he was the proper man to
appeal to and from whom an inquiry |
might be expected and bear good re- |
suits. We got no hearing nor redress, !
so we will bde our time till we reach /
the home port and trust to fare better
then.
So conscious of the power the press |
I'll ask no better friend to delp us than
a full ventilation of these facts by a |
fearless press.
SEAMAN