The Hawaiian gazette., 1902-09-16
HARD LUCK
FOR LEUBE
lie Had TO Kill a
Sailor to Save
Himself.

long story OF nafuShlp anu uhubl'
which he experienced In South Africa.
lie was convicted OF killing Greek
sailor on the American bark Palmyra,
while that vessel was lying in Port
Elizabeth, and up to four months ago,
has been serving time for his crime in
Breakwater prison at Cape Town.
Leube was for two years agent for the
Matson Navigation Company at Hilo,
and is well known to everyone connect
ed with the inter-island trade.
Today Leube is in fairly good health,
although when he left the South Afri-
can prison he was wasted greatly from
the powerful man he was at the time Of
his conviction. He had made four trips
to South Africa as first mate of the
Palmyra from Puget Sound and was
well liked by the owners OF that vessel
Then on arrival for the fifth time at the
open roadstead at Algoa Bay, where the
big shipping disaster recently happened,
there was trouble with the crew. Ow-
ing to the dangerous position that the
ship was in and to the fact that the
vessels cargo had to be lightered to the
ports wharves, Leube ordered the SAIL
ors to cease smoking while they We're
working the cargo in the hold. The
men rebeled at this order and openly
stated that they would Kill the mate II
he dared to go down in the hold while
they were at work Leube heard OF
these threats, and knowing that he had
desperate men to deal with, armed him
self with revolver on the occasion or
his next visit to the men at work In
the hold. When he got down below the
mutinous crew made threats that they
would kill him and became so abusive
that he decided to put them in irons.
He ordered them from the hold. Then
they showed fight. The Greek sailor
had a lumber pick which he tried to use
on the mate. Finally, in the face of the
mates threatening revolver. he left the
hold, shouting at the mate that he
would fix him" Thinking that the
Greek was the most dangerous man in
the lot and that he was then seeking
arms the mate decided to put him in
irons first He followed him to the
fo'c'sle but found that the man had
barred him out. He called out to him
TO come out, but the sailor refused.
Then, with a revolver in his hand,
Leube tried to break the door in. He
feared to go aft to get help as he
thought the sailor might shoot him in
the back on his way to the cabin. The
sailors refused to assist him. Finally
the door gave way, and the mate fell
in on top of the Greek. The revolver
went off at the same time and killed
the sailor.
Leube was arrested and tried for the
killing. Every man in the crew gave
evidence against him. The jury sat or
the case for an hour and a half, heard
all the evidence in that time and
brought in "A verdict of guilty without
leaving their seats. A judge, since
dead told the mate. in sentencing him
that he hated his job. He wished that
Leube could have been tried in ar
American court He declared that ht
disagreed with the verdict. but that he
must do his duty, and SO would SEN
tence Leube to five years Imprisonment
at Breakwater prison.
Leube's imprisonment occurred just
at the outbreak of the war when al
kinds of criminals We're being slowed
away" by the Cape Colony police in the
terrible Breakwater college" Every
nationality could be found within the
prison. During the war there We're two
parties there, the one siding with the
Beers and the other with the English
and feeling ran high among the con-
victs over the subject
The Yankee sea dog" was looked
over by the governor of the prison on
his arrival there, and with a remark
that the new convict had come from the
sea, gave instructions to give Leube a
chance to continue working at his trade
by allowing him to make the canvas
mail bags used by the Cape Colony de-
partment of posts and telegraphs.
Leube' was well known to every sail
ing ship owner on the coast, and as
soon as the news reached them that the
mate had been sentenced to five years
Imprisonment for what appeared 10
them as Justifable homicide or accident
they Immediately set schemes going 10
secure his release. They secured evil
dence of facts in the case quickly and
then forwarded a petition to the gov
ernor of Cape Colony, asking for
Leube's release. This was in December
1901, and after the matter had been re-
ferred to the cabinet OF Sir Walter
Hely- -Hutchison, that official decided tC
reduce the sentence to three years
granting his release on May 10th oi
1902.
At this point Mate Leube declared
that Consul Bingham at Cape Towr
took hand in the affair. Bingham Is
Kansas man, a farmer. and ii is sale
that after securing his appointment III
rushed away to the South African
metropolis without even waiting to tax,
the straw out of his boots or the chat
from his hair At any rate Cape TowI
had good time with the Kansas maj
and set him down as a rustic. Bingham
learned OF the coming release of Mat
Leube. He knew that the convict wa
a sea-faring man and that he mad
his living by making trips across tn
briny, yet he wrote him a letter advis
ing him the mate to Immediately SEN
home for money to pay his steame
passage back upon his release. Wit
dozens of ships in port and all anxiou
to get men Leube declared that tn
Kansan perpetrated one of the bes
jokes he had heard for a long time.
On being released from prison Leub
got place on the following day a
second mate of the ship John Currie
and made a trip to Newcastle in tina
vessel. At Newcastle he left the vess,
and became first mate of the Jane
Tuft.
Leube has many friends about the Is
lands and few believe that he intention
ally shot the Greek in Port Elizabetl
and they consider that an innoceI
man was unjustly punished.
Supt. McVeigh of the leper settlemer
reports the conviction at Molokai ,