The Sun. — 1858-08-26 (London, England)

BAROMETER, 30.11. WIND, North-Westerly ; light, with fine weather.  It is high time that masters, or, as they are termed, "captains," in the mercantile marine service, should profit by the many painful lessons they have received of late years, and learn that, though necessarily entrusted with great power, they cannot abuse that power with impunity, or vent their wrath on innocent persons, whether they be passengers, or even seamen under their command. For a long time they had it all their own way—could indulge in any amount of brutality, without any dread of being called to account ; or, if brought before a " court for some great atrocity, the indiscretion was charitably ascribed to excessive zeal, and they escaped on payment of a mere nominal fine, a matter that never in the slightest degree influenced their future conduct. The conviction and execution of Captain ROGERS at Liverpool, and the transportation of his two:mates, produced a very salutary effect, showing that if death followed, if an unfortunate victim perished from continued ill-treatment, whether produced from personal animosity or rough practical joking, the perpetrators would be had responsible to the law, and that the obsolete cant respecting the necessity of preserving discipline would no longer be tolerated in a court of justice. Since the execution of Captain ROGERS, another captain in the merchant service has been sentenced to penal servitude, and several have been called to account for driving their victims to suicide. This, however, is a comparatively safe game, for though morally murderers, being responsible in the sight of GOD for the deaths of the miserable sufferers, they could only be punished for common assaults, and even in such case the full machinery of the law was seldom, if ever, put in motion. It is not often, however, that these " Vikings" attempt to attack or insult gentlemen of rank and position who may chance to be passengers in the vessels of which they may be masters. They know that such cases cannot easily be hushed up—that they will eventually be called to a strict account for their " sayings and doings and that, although it may be very pleasant to exhibit spite towards pt_rsow immeasurably their superiors in social position, education, and everything that constitutes a gentleman, it is rather a dangerous game to play, and may prove to be a very expensive luxury. Besides it may give the ship an ill name. C:Ttains too prone to put passengers into irons, or in any way abridge their liberties, will not  find many, able and willing to pay a fair price In  their accommodation, anxious to sail under suzh sinister auspices. For their own sakes, then, they would avoid such manifestations of ill-humour, but sometimes bad temper outruns discretion, and they vent their malevolence reckless of future come quences. Such a case has been recently tried at Bristol, in which a gentleman named Km:pa was plaintiff, and Mr. HALE FRANKLIN, master of the ship Undaunted, was defendant. Mr. Kaosi was an advocate of the Scottish bar, son to an eminent member of the House of Assembly at the Cape of Good -Hope, from which place, unfortunately for himself, he came as passenger to England on board the Undaunted. It happened that Captain FRANKLIN had serious differences with some of his military passengers before arriving at the Cape, and that in consequence many of them had kept him at a " civil distance," giving only formal replies whenever addressed by him. He seems to have resorted to petty annoyances in order to avenge himself for what he was pleased to think their contumacy; and, accordingly, one evening at eight o'clock he ordered the lights to be extinguished' when a party of officers were engaged in a friendly rubber of whist. The usual time for so doing on board the. Undaunted was eleven o'clock, but Captain FRANKLIN chose to anticipate the time by three hours. Mr. KROG was not in any way engaged in the game, but on hearing the extraordinary order, and ',feeling that he was better acquainted with the law than any of his fellow-passengers, he declared that the steward had no right to remove the lights ; whereupon the captain, in his elegant phraseology, asked :‘ Who the devil areTyou." On replying that his name was Km)°, the captain repeated it in derisive and insulti'.9g tone;, adding that he was captain of the ship, and Tvould have the lights put out. Mr. KROG said, " You sre captain of the ship and the crew, but the passengers are different as regards them; the ship is a sort of floating hotel, of which you are the landlord." This could not be borne—the indignant captain threatened to carry him. to England in irons, and, what is more, carried out the threat, for Mr. KROG was kept in irons ten days in a close cabin, seven feet by six, until the doctor of the ship declared that he could not answer for his life were he longer kept in confinement.  In this extraordinary case the jury gave the plaintiff £375 damages, not as a punishment for the brutality of the captain, but as compensation for the unmerited sufferings he had endured. The defendant himself, by his evidence, completely negatived the defence set rip by the pleadings, that it was "to prevent a mutiny" that he had strained his authority to such an extent. He also admitted that he bad threatened to pull Lieut. ARMSTRONG'S nose, was in a passion because his wife " because he was in hysterics. He threatened Captain HUNT, and told Captain GREEN that he was ready to meet him at 12 paces ; but then cg he was annoyed!" He had an cer seriously j altercation with Dr. VILtLE, an wounded at Lucknow, and off eered him on account of his wound. And this is the man empowered by the certificate of the Board of Trade to wield the authority which be has already, through mere petulanCe, so grossly abused ! We have no personal feeling against Captain