The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1904-02-17

Quent recurring intervals, these libel
lants were, and each of them was, sub
jected to cruel and inhuman treatment
by said officers of said bark; that said
nbellants were, and each of them was.
repeatedly and Systematically beaten
and kicked, and continually subjected
to vile and profane language and
abuse by said officers of said ship.
''These~libellants show that they are
not able to state with particularly all
the precise times and occasions when
they, and each of them, We're so beaten
and abused, for the reason that said
cruelty and abuse was continuous and
frequently recurrent; and in this be-
half these rbellants show that so bru-
tai was the treatment of the crew of
said bark. by the officers thereof. that
upon the arrival of said bark at said
port of Iquique one of said crew pre-
fact commit suicide, rather than con-
tinue any longer in the service of said
bark.
These 1ibellants further show that
the treatment which they, and each of
them, received during the passage from
said Iquique to the port of Honolulu
was not so cruel or inhuman as the
treatment they received between said
Port Townsend and said Iquique; but.
in this behalf, these libellants show
that the chief mate of said bark fire.
quently threatened during said pas
sage from said Iquique to said porS of
Honolulu, that upon the departure of
said bark from Honolulu he would
resume the cruelty and inhumanity and
ill-usage to which said crew had been
subjected while on the passage from
said port of Port Townsend to said
Iquique, and threatened to continue in
said cruelty and inhumanity even to
the extent of taking the lives of more
than one of said crew. And, in this
behalf, these hbellants show that, by
reason of said cruelty, inhumanity and
ill-usage, by reason of the aforesaid
suicide of a member of said crew, and
by reason of the aforesaid threats of
aforesaid chief mate of said bark, they
are, and each of them is, in fear and
dread for their lives should they con-
tinue said voyage in said bark
Proceeding with their declaration, the
libellants give as the reason for the
comparative moderation of the crews
in-treatment between Iquique and Ho
nolulu the fact that the captains wife
was on board in a very sickly condi-
ton and died shortly before the vessel
arrived at this port. Now they say
that the death of the captains wife has
removed from the officers of the bark
the one influence which at all re-
strained said officers of said ship from
infiicting upon these HbelIants, and
others of the crew of said ship, beatings
and woundings which would menace
life and limb
They claim that by reason of breach |
of contract arising from their ill-treat- |
ment they have been compelled to |
abandon the vessel at Honolulu, after |
having served about seven and a half |
and while about sixteen and a |
half months of the contract is unex- |
pired.
Dyer and Anderson claim $136.64 as I
wages due each, while Bayer claims |
s11S.34 and Bitner $11S.34. They also |
claim damages. which with wages
amount to $45S.72 each for Dyer and |
$395.16 for Bayer and $4OO16 |
for Bitner, together with such expen-
ditures as they are compelled to make
pending this litigation.
Under the rules the Ivanhoe cannot /
be seized until some time today, the /
libel having been filed yesterday after
noon
There may be fine points arise in the
case, owing to the British ownership of
the vessel. No criminal action could
be brought for this reason, as the
United States penal statutes referring
to cruelty to sailors apply only to
American ships.
1t is stated that one of the Ivanhoe's
however, did time in Oahu pris-
on for such an offense, being the man
whom Turk & Lewis for while con-
cealed.