The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

589.   JOHNNY ,   SIDER CAUN ,   ANTONIO FRANCISCO , and   ANTONIO FERNANDEZ , were indicted for conspiring to charge   Thomas Dixey Finney with the murder of Butler John .

FRANCIS HOBLER. I am clerk to the Lord Mayor. I received this paper from Johnny, the serang .

(The depositions of the different witnesses brought before the Lord Mayor by Johnny, the serang, to support the charge against Captain  Finney , read.)

CAPTAIN   THOMAS DIXEY FINNEY . I was the Commander of the Ship Caroline, of Bombay ; she was built in that Country, her burthen was four hundred and fifty tons.

Q. Is this a correct part of the aft part of the ship - A. Yes; it appears to me to be a perfect model; the model represents my cabin and Captain  Woodhouse 's cabin; the partition between my cabin and Captain  Woodhouse 's cabin, is about three quarters of an inch deal; what passes in one cabin must be heard in the other cabin; our ship is steered by a wheel; my crew were the greater part Lascars, except six or eight Portuguese. The prisoner, Johnny, was a Lascar , he was the serang, the boatswain , he is the man that engaged the whole of the ships crew, and pays them; he has the complete command over them; his duty on board is similar to a boatswain; the tindal is the next man, he is the boatswain's mate; we have other persons on board, who are called sea cunneys, they are Portuguese, who steer the ship.

Q. You had a little boy of the name of Dagoo, who attended you - A. I had.

Q. What was your steward's name -  A. John Decrase , he went by the name of Butler John; he was recommended to me by a very particular friend of mine; he is the object of enquiry; I engaged him to come to England; a very few days before the voyage commenced, I entrusted him with three thousand eight hundred rupees, which is about five hundred pounds, to furnish a stock of vegetables for myself and passengers, it was quite sufficient for the purpose.

Q. When did you sail - A. Finally on the 24th of June.

Q. When you had sailed a little while, was a complaint made of the stores that had been purchased by Butler John - A. Yes; he never gave me any accompt of the money; I applied to him for an accompt of my money; I never could get it; he always said I should have it to-morrow. I never got that accompt. Finding the supply of vegetables short, I became more anxious for the accompt. I had him tied up to punish him, seeing him so indifferent; I had him loosed, and said it was of no use to punish such a man as that. I told Butler John that he had disgraced the character given him, and that I would turn him on shore at the Isle of France. On the morning of the accident, I was in the cabin, the table stood opposite of the cabin door, so that as I sat at the table with my back to the cabin windows I could see all that was done on deck. Butler John came to me with several papers, without any vouchers to his accompts; I was by no means satisfied. I pointed that the charge was large, and there was nothing forth coming to answer to it. I said, he must see himself that he had wronged me very much; I told him, I would over look it if he would tell me how the money had gone; I repeatedly asked him; he seemed in a state of apathy, he would return no answer. I slapped his face with my hand, and told Dagoo to fetch me a cane; when Dagoo was gone for the cane, I was sitting at my table; I thought Butler was sitting in a chair behind me, in the mean while Dagoo was. I did not speak to Butler John, or strike him one blow. I heard a noise at the corner window of the cabin, which I cannot explain, was the first thing that attracted my attention, on turning round instantly, I saw nothing but the legs of a man at the window; I rushed out immediately, and ordered the man at the wheel to put the helm right starboard, the ship was going at the rate of eight knots an hour, all the canvas was set; I immediately ordered the boat to be put out, in order to save the man; all was done as fast as it could to save the man, he perished.

Q. Do you know if any man whatever contributed to the loss of his life - A. Certainly not, by no means whatever; I, myself, bore not the smallest resentment against him at the time; I have no other reason to think he came by his death but by accident in going to look at the vegetables that were stowed over the cabin windows. I arrived in the River on the 27th or 28th of November, the ships crew were put into Mr. Gold's barracks. I first heard of the death of this man that a complaint had been made before the Lord Mayor by Johnny, the serang; that is the first time I heard my conduct was called in question; I attended before the Lord Mayor on the Thursday, after the information reached me on the Friday; when I appeared before the Lord Mayor, Johnny appeared as prosecutor; at the second examination, Sider Caun attended; Dagoo, my boy, said that Sider Caun had said what he had said before the Lord Mayor at the instigation

of Johnny, the serang, I asked Sider Caun if he had any objection to go to Mr. Harmer, the solicitor, and state that; he said, he had not. I put Dagoo and Sider Caun into my coach, and took Sider Caun to Mr. Harmer's.

  JAMES HARMER . Q. You are the solicitor for the prosecution - A. I am; between the second and third examination the prosecutor, Dagoo, and Sider Caun, came to my house about the 11th of January, that I might hear the confession of Sider Caun as to what he had said at the last examination; I had my clerk present to reduce my questions into writing, and Sider Caun's answers to my questions.

(Read.)

  ABRAHAM GOLD . Q. You are superintendant of the East India Company's service - A. I am. I remember the arrival of the ship Caroline; the Lascars came to me about the end of November. I asked Johnny, the serang, whether he had any cause to make any complaint; Johnny, the serang made a complaint that the Captain had used him ill, the Captain had put him on duty not common for a serang to do. I asked the whole of the sea cunneys if they had any cause of complaint; Francisco said he had been punished during the Voyage; the sea cunneys complained generally of ill usage from the Captain. They made no complaint of any man losing his life by the Captain, nor I never heard of such a complaint until I attended at the Lord Mayor's.

  ESTHER REBECCA ASTLEY . I was servant to Mrs. Woodhouse in the voyage; our cabin adjoined the captain's cabin, it was parted by a thin partition of wood, we could hear loud talking and a noise in each other cabins; on the day this accident happened, I heard no loud talking, or blows or quarrelling in the captain's cabin. Francisco had been cleaning out our cabin that day.

CAPTAIN WOODHOUSE. I was a passenger on board the Caroline.

Q. Do you recollect the day on which this accident happened - A. I do, after the accident the captain came on deck, ordered the ship to be stopped, and the boat to be lowered, in order to save the man's life; the boat was put out immediately, and every thing was done that could be done to save the man's life; the Captain was very humane and kind; he would make the men do their duty, occasionally they were not willing to do their duty; he made the serang work, and he complained of it; I never heard any complaint that the Captain was the cause of this man's death not till I was in England eight or ten days,

JOHNNY, GUILTY , aged 39.

Confined two years , and fined 1 s.

SIDER CAUN, GUILTY , aged 24.

Confined one year , and fined 1 s.

FRANCISCO, NOT GUILTY .

FERNANDEZ, NOT GUILTY .

London Jury, before Mr. Common Serjeant.