Year: 1876

The London Standard of May fifth,


prints the following summary of the trial
of the mutineers of the Linnie: The
trIal of the prisoners accuse o. the MUIR
der of the captain, chief officer and sec
ond mate of the ship Lennie came to an
end yesterday evening, when four of the
eight prisoners were convicted and SEN
fenced 10 suffer the extreme penalty of
the law. 80 far as they were concerned
the result was a foregone conclusion.


BY the clearest possible evidence they
were shown To have taken an active part
in the preparation of the atrocities by
which their unfortunate victims lost
their lives, perishing at their posts in the
vain endeavor to defend themselves
against a set of desperadoes who had
planned deep and deadly scheme for
seizing the ship, after making off with
every portable and marketable article on
which they could lay their hands The
story IS indeed remarkable, alike from
the audacity of the attempt, the success
by which it had to all appearances been
crowned, and the singular manner by
which the authors of the scheme were
eventually brought within the reach of
offended Justice. The entire narrative
reads like modernized edition of the
most sensational of those "shipwrecks
and disasters at sea, which form 50 large
portion OF juvenile reading. Hence
forth the Lennie will rank with the
Bounty, the Flowery Land, and other
vessels which have earned an evil noto-
riety from their connection with deeds of
blood and violence. With scarcely any,
and certainly with nothing like adequate
provOcation the mutineer set upon their
officers, stabebd, cut, and shot them
down upon their own deck. SO sudden
and unexpected was the outrage that
no one OF the murdered men was
able to offer anything like effective
resistance, and had their seaman
ship been equal to their audacity the
murderers might now have been en-
joying their ill-gotten gains in some
country where no extraditiOn treaty is
in force


At time when the public mind is 50
largely exercised on the subject of un-
seaworthy ships the evidence given in
the course of this inquiry will be read
with especial interest. The Lennie was
an English ship, owned by an English
firm, commanded by an English captain.
The first and second mates were also ma
tives of this country, but the seamen
were very mixed and motley lot indeed.
Constant Won Heydonc, the steward, tells
us that he joined her on the 22nd of Oc-
tober, when there was no crew on board
Two days later she started on her voyage
with 4 "scratch crew, got together in
hot haste, and without much regard to
their fitness for the work they had to do.
Among them were Dutchmen, French
men, Greeks, Turks, Dane, and an
American. In short, they were Just such
collection of ne'er do wells of all ma
tions as might be picked up at random
in low 'longshore-lodging houses in al
most any European port, and who, as
every shipmaster knows, constitute most
unpromising materials for any captain to
deal with. For about a week all went
on tolerably well. There was no open
rupture, but, as Mr.. Justice Brett re-
marked the masters opinion of his men
was shown by his always keeping two
loaded revolvers under his pillow. At
4 o'clock on the morning of the 3lst of
October, and while the steward was be-
low, he heard a scuffling on deck. The
captain gave an order which was not
obeyed. He spoke a few words of angry
upbralding and the next moment uttered
cry which sounded as if his throat was
cut. The steward and his boy tried to
make their way to the deck. but in vain.
The companion door was fastened, and
they were prisoners, powerless to help,
and fearful of being set upon in turn.
They saw the men moving about, and
heard five shots fired in rapid succession,
as if from revolvers. After two hours
incarceration they were allowed TO come
on deck, when they were told that the
captain and mates had been finished"
and thrown overheard. From the
testimony of several other witnesses
we now know that the captain and
mates were dispatched successively in
cold blood by Lips, French Peter, Big
Harry, and Joe the cook, the four pris-
oners who were convicted. Not hand
was raised by any other of the crew on
behalf of their officers. The boatswain,
when appealed to by the second mate to
save his life, repulsed him with brutal
rudeness, and when the last of the MUIR
ders had been consummated, those who
mad stood by during their preparation
weighted the bodies with chains and
threw them overheard, washing the
blood stained deck in as matter of-fact
fashion as II nothing had occurred at all
out of the routine of their ordinary daily
duty.





enough. Its concluding portion, how
ever, savors of the heroic and the roman
tic. Among the men who had been so
ready to stain their hands with blood
there was not one competent to navigIte
the vessel In their extremity they Iell
back upon Won Haydonc, the steward,
who had no part in their crime, aud to
whom they promised the lions share of
the booty if he would but carry the ship
to some point on the coast of Greece, where
she might he quietly scuttled, after her
stores and all other yaluables had been
landed. Won Heydonc feigned compli-
ance. but directed the ship toward the
British Channel. But this pious fraud
was speedily detected. One of the pris,,
oners told the others that the steward
was selling them, as he could see by the
water they were nearing England. Won
Heydonc clustered, threatened, and gave
up the command for some days. But