Widnes Examiner. — 1884-09-13 (Widnes, Cheshire, England)

CANNIBALISM AT SEA.— CHARGE OF MURDEE, AGAINST THE  SURVIVORS.  A Plymouth correspondent writes :—The brigantine Montezuma, of Hamburg, which arrived at Falmouth on Saturday, r(p)rted having on board three men named Thos. Dudley, of Colchester ' • Edwin Stephens, of Southampton ; and Edward Brooks, of Brightlingsea, who had been rescued after having experienced frightful sufferings at sea. These men, with a man named Richard Parker, of Southampton, were engaged to take out the yacht Mignonette to a gentleman at Sydney, New South Wales. They left Southampton on 19th May, and had a fine voyage up to the time of their crossing the line on the 17th June. From this date their , troubles commenced. Dirty weather set in, and for several days a succession of heavy gales was experienced. On the 3rd of July a frightful storm was met with, and a huge- sea , swept over the yacht with such force as to lay her right open. The captain, seeing that the yacht was rapidly foundering, , ordered the boat to be got out. This was done, but with the exception of two small tins of preserved turnips they were without either food or water. The turnips lasted but four or five days, and their sufferings from thirst during that time were frightful. They killed a turtle and drank its blood, and then for more than a fortnight they were absolutely without food. So terrible did their position become that at the end of Abe eighteenth day they deliberated as to the advisability of casting lots as to who should be killed to supply food for the others. The plan was proposed by the captain, but one of the men objected, saying it was better they should all die together, and the proposal , was not pressed. But after two days more of horrible suffering both the captain and the mate suggested that Use boy Parker should be killed, especially as his sufferings were so intense that he had become delirious. They also reasoned that he was only a lad with no responsibilities, while they were married men witb wives and families dependent upon them. Brooks declined to be a party to this act, and at first none of the others would undertake it. Eventually, however, Captain Dudley and Edwin Stephens decided to kill Parker, it being arranged that Dudley should 1 strike the blow while Stephens held the lad down. Dudley first offered up a prayer for forgiveness, and then telling Parker that his time had come, ran a penknife through his jugular vein, and the boy died almost immediately. The survivors caught the gushing blood in their tins and drank it between them, then stripped the body of its clothes, cut out the liver and heart while Tet hot from the body, and devoured them voraciously. For the next four days they continued to live on the flesh which they tore from Parker's ' dead body, and they were still eating their horrible food when, on the twenty-fourth day from the time they left their yacht, they were sighted and rescued by the German barque Montezaraa. They then presented the appearance of living skeletons, and were so weak and exhausted alto they had to be lifted out of the boat and carried on board. The mangled remains of Parker were at once cast into the sea, and the survivors receivid every kindness and attention on board the barque. On arriving at Falmouth, on Saturday, they were taken to the Sailors' Home, and later in the day they were apprehended under a warrant charged with the murder of Parker on the high seas.