Year: 1866

Messrs. Quincy and Manlo, the Royal Commits
soneTs to Jamaica, had arrived home but nothing
official had transpred to the nature of the report
they would submit Of their investigations.
RESULT OF THE INVESTIGATION


From the London Times. May l.


In putting down dangerous revolt what has been
times be adopted without scruple; order must be
restored first and grievances redressed afterward
put then atm time soon comes when. armed resistance
been punished, the duty of putting all end to the
wild justice Of military law is equally perersptorv
NOW, Is quite certain that most of the seventies
both judicial and extra-judicia inflicted upon per,
sons suspected Of complicity with the Morant Bay
rioters inflicted after this stage had been reached


Those who were hung or logged after the first week
by order OF courts martial of individual officers
might safely have been reserved for the ordinary civil
tribunals, or for special Commission such as that
winch subsequently, tried many persons charged with
IKE offences; This consideration specially applies
reasons for arresting Gordon so as to oyerawe his
supposed followers but there were none for hurrying
him OH to court-martial at Morant Bay instead of
Keeping him IN jail or on board the Wolverene. The
most searching inquiry ranging period of fifty
days mas failed to elicit any proof of Gordon having
1nstgated the nrqerOus assault on the court
Tnat he was mischievous agitator, perhaps an un-
scrupuous agitator. admits of no doubt we NAV
even go so Tar as to say that but for him that crime
would probably never have been committed. StilI,
there was no evidence against him upon which any
but military court would have yentured To convict
prisOner-thatS evidence that was not consistent
with his of the charge brought against him


The truth is, that in Gordon's case as in too many
Others the accused assumed to be guilty unless
he could prove himself to he innocent, and we are
compelled to add that Gordon, at least was deber-
ateiy cut OH from the means OF doing so Upon this
cruel ana unScrupuouS act well upon the reck-
less disregard of human rights, ifnot the nhumanty
displayed by several military officers we may expect
the CommIssloners to pronounce decisive condem-
nation. The alleged enOrmties of Mr.. Ramsey hay-
ing been virtually removed from their cognzance by
the indictment against him for murder will rail- for
no special comment, A more delicate and difficult
task will be that of awarding the proper degree of
of censure to the conduct of Governor Eyre


A man who acts with energy and under a sense of
duty, IN terrible emergency, is entitled to great al
IoWance Tor any errors that he may commit. On the
other hand it is among the first obligations of Gov
ernor to be above colonial passions and partisan
ship and to oppose the extreme counsels which at
such times will be forced upon him. Lord Canning
proved equal to this office; Governor Eyre has proved
signally unequal TO it. He directed with corsidera-
Bile skill the military operations which he might
well have left to General 0ConnOr, and then yielded
to the panic OF his advisers where he ought above
all to have maintained calm judgment. 1t will be
impossible for the Commissioners to escape the pain
full duty of submitting this to her Majesty, but the
further duty acting upon 1t will of course devove


The total number of "rebels" shot Or hung during
the continuance of martial law has been carefully
ascertalned by the Commissioners and, we believe,
amounts to 433. This is stated to include all who
sentenced to death by court-mariia shot in the
bush, or on the march, by soldiers hung without
form of law. About 800 persons found to have
been hogged, and (what is more startling no less
than 900 houses of the peaSantry, afordng shelter
for some 1000 souls, were burnt down. We may ex
press hope that protest will be made by the Com
missioner against tn last proceeding and that the
fogglng OF women, avowed by officer, and proved
TO have been inflicted elsewhere will be strongly
reprobated


The evidence indeed, will be in the hands of all,
and hardly be less valuable than the report itself
but trust the Commissioners will not have shrunk
from drawing their own conclusions from it on all
material points 1t was to enlighten public opinion
no less than to inform Her Majesty's Government,
that the inquiry instituted and this object would
be only halt attained if should be left TO ourselves
to grapple with chaos OF disputed facts.