Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-07-13
MURDERED TIE GREW
FEARFUL DEED OF A BLOOD
THIRSTY NEGRO AT SEA.
Twelve Persons Killed for the Purpose
Of Robbery-only a Woman Es-
capped and That Miraculously.

One of the most shocking stories OF muir.
der. with robbery as the motive. In the
annals of crime was brought to New Or
leans by Capt Hans Holm OF the Nor
wegian fruiter Bratten. which plies between
New Orleans and Honduran points. 1t was
subsequently confirmed by the officers Of
the fruit steamer Rosina, which came In
later in the evening with additional details
The little island Of Utilla, lying of the
Honduran coast, whose population is an in
discriminate mixture of whites. Caymanites
and Caribs, was the scene of the tragedy.
in which twelve lives were sacrificed The
captain OF the little trading schooner
Olympia was about to make a trip to Rua-
tan. Truxillo, and Belize. He had about
81, 400 and was to buy cattle at Truxillo TO
sell at Belize. She carried a crew OF four
and quite a number of passengers, making
the total list of people aboard number thir-
teen. Among these were two women and
two children.
Crew Aroused by Shot.
The vessel left he harbor of Utila at IL
o'clock Friday night. June 3, and after
she had been under way less than hour
everybody was aroused by a shot. and
rushing on deck found negro armed with
Winchester rifle shooting down the men
one after another. This negro was Robert
McGill, and. as it afterward developed, he
had slowed himself away aboard with tie
intention of robbing the captain and then
swimming ashore. After he had killed all
but one of the men, he ordered the last
survivor to go below and scuttle the ship.
When the unfortunate man reappeared on
deck and reported the negro shot him dead
He then put the two women. MISS Elsie
Morgan and her sister Mrs. Walter Rose,
In the dory, with Mrs. Roses six-weeks-old
infant, and left the boat, steering for the
the mainland. He changed his mind about
allowing the women to live, and khied MRS.
Rose and her infant. Then he began shoot
Ing at Miss Morgan and wounded her in
the arm. She Jumped overheard and started
to swim back to the island.
Left Woman for Dead.
He fred at her Intellectually, but his am
munition evidently gave out for he prom
ised her immunity from harm If she would
back to the dory. She started back. and
when within oars length he struck her
on the head with oar, stunning her. Be
lieving she was dead, he rowed away to-
ward the mainland
Miss Morgan swan back to the island,
where she was thrown on the beach by the
waves in exhausted condition. She
feared that the negro would follow her, so
she hid in the bushes, and for two days
suffered from the heat and exposure until
found by a woman from the neighborhood
and rescued from starvation.
In the meantime the dory had been
washed ashore, ana tnere was excitement
| on the island. and 1t was believed the
Olympia had gone down with all hands.
When Miss Morgan told her story I'M
| mediate search was instituted for McGill,
and the authorities on the mainland were
notified.
They caught him at Ell Portvinir, a little
town on the road to Ceba, and there was
quite a demonstration, but he was pro-
tected. His life saved through the
presence on the coast of President Bonila,
who was on an inspection tour The Hon
duran warship La Tumbla, which has fig
ured in SO many revolutions, was brought
into service and the murderer placed aboard
and sent back to the island.
Up to last Sunday he was still alive,
though it Is firmly believed that he will be
tortured to death. The laws of Honduras
prohibit capital punishment, but the people
will take the case into their own hands.
Miss Elsie Morgan, the only survivor of
the terrible experience, visited New Or
leans three years ago, and is a wel-edu-
Gated refined young woman of twenty-five