The Sun. — 1862-07-21 (London, England)

THE MURDER ON THE HIGH SEAS. John Colvin, aged 31, a man of repulsive appearance, was indicted for the wilful murder of Capt. Thomas Williams, of the merchant vessel Pasithea, on the high seas, on the 20th of April last. Mr. Montague Bere prosecuted, and Mr. Bullen defended the accused. Mr. M. Bere opened the case. lie said, if after hearing the evidence they believed that it failed to establish that vindictiveness and malice on the part of the prisoner necessary to render him guilty of murder, they then, if they believed that the wound was inflicted by prisoner, and that he had no intention of killing him, would give him the benefit of the doubt, and find him guilty of manslaughter. The prisoner was steward on board the Pasithea, and on April 20,when the vessel was about 300 miles N.E. of the Cape de Verde Islands, the captain, mate, Mr. Harris (midshipman), and Mr. Smith (a passenger), were at dinner together in the saloon. Prisoner, in his capacity of steward, was going backwards and forwards to the pantry, which was only four feet square, and during dinner time, whilst prisoner was in there, a plate was heard to break, upon which Capt. Williams expressed some annoyance, and went to see what had happened. As soon as the captain entered the pantry he closed the door, and shortly afterwards voices were heard, and a noise as of scuffling between two persons. Prisoner was heard to say, " What do you mean, Capt. Williams ?" and almost directly Captain Williams was heard to exclaim, " Oh, Mr. Bishop, he is killing me." Mr. Bishop directly went to the door and forced it open, and found the captain lying with a wound in his stomach, from which the bowels pro truded. Captain Williams was taken to his cabin, where he died in about half an hour. There was no evidence to show that the knife produced the death of Capt. Williams, but of that the jury could not entertain much doubt. Three or four other wounds were found on the person of the deceased, and a wound was also found on the prisoner at the back part of the neck. Prisoner's statement was that Capt. Williams came to the cabin, on account of his having broken the plate, with a carving-knife in his hand, and said, What do ou mean by destroying my property, you scoundrel? I will bavfili'l life." And then deceased caught hold ofby the neck with his left hand and stabbed ehim at Aensued, and the back part of the head. our na illias falling they both fell down, Ca ptai tried to wrest the on the top. Prisoner said be, knife from deceased's hand, wni_ch accounts for the s.sessiTh.e Capt. Williams fell knife being in his po fatal stab, and just en by Mr. Bishop. Now, then the door was burst on the knife and received . teoepeetabin was so extremelysquare small—being only four o.,prisoner's ao he should show that th size to have impossible•the manner he described, and it was fallen dovvli also guies,fo quite iuimpossible for the de a person deceased to have gone ith the knitsin • - would tell them that he saw the identical Bishop . the cabin w into knife lying upon, a dessert plate in the pantry before the scuffle, . far .away from the pantry door, on the other .side of prisoner, so it was impossible that the captin. could. have gone into the cabin with that knife in his hand, and it would be clearly proved that the knife seen on the plate by Bishop