The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

246.   JOHN LYONS (22),   FRANCISCO BLANCO (23),   AMBROSIO, alias MAURICIO DURANNO (25),   BASILIO DE LOS SANTOS, alias JOSEPH SANDO (22),   GEORGE CARLOS (21),   MARCUS WATTER, alias MARCO WATTO (23),   MARCELINO (32), and   MIGUEL LOPEZ, alias JOSEPH CHANCIS, alias "THE CATALAN " (22), were indicted for the wilful murder of   John Smith, upon the high seas, within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of England.

  MR. SOLICITOR GENERAL , with MESSRS. WELSBY, GIFFARD, and BEASLEY conducted the Prosecution.

  MR. TINDAL ATKINSON appeared for Lyons, Marcelino, and Lopez; MR. METCALFE for Blanco; MESSRS. SLEIGH and DALEY for Duranno; MR. KEMP for Santos; MR. BEST for Watter; and MR. RIBTON for Carlos.

The prisoners being all represented by Counsel, the evidence was not interpreted, but upon the application of MR. ATKINSON, the interpreter to the Spanish Consul was permitted to sit near them, in order to communicate with them as the trial proceeded.

  EDWARD SHEPHERD . I am registrar of British ships for the Port of London—I have here a copy, certified by myself, of the register of the Flowery Land (This described the vessel as the Flowery Land, of the Port of London, and the owner as William Weemys Kerr, of 25, Poultry, in the City of London, merchant.)

  WILLIAM TAFFER . I was second mate on board the British ship the Flowery Land—she left the Port of London on 28th July, last year—the captain's name was John Smith—he had a brother, George Smith, who was

a passenger on board—the name of the first mate was John Carswell—the steward's name was Aboo—he was a Malay—the cook was a Chinaman; I do not know his name—there was also a boy who attended to the lamps; I don't know his name, but we called him Cassa—Michael Anderson was the carpenter—there was a Frenchman, an able seaman, called Candereau—the prisoners were all seamen, able or ordinary, on board—some short time after sailing there were some complaints by the captain about some of these men being deficient in their duty—I never saw the captain use any violence—I have heard him call them names, "Coolies," and "Sons of bitches"—the men complained about the food and water, which was attended to directly and rectified—I heard Blanco make one complaint, and that was attended to—he did not think that the scale of victualling and articles was enough, and wanted more—I remember about the commencement of September Carlos being wanted on deck—the mate and I went and asked him several times to come on deck—he would not come, and the mate took hold of him and pulled him out of his berth—he said he was sick, and wanted his watch below—all the watch stopped below with him—they were Marcelino, Marco, Watter, Blanco, and Chaucis (Lopez), Carlos, and two others; I don't remember their names—the mate and I brought Carlos aft on to the quarterdeck—all the rest turned to their work but Carlos—he would not turn to, and the mate ordered me to bind him fast to the rigging—I made him fast, and he remained bound for about five minutes—the captain then came up out of the cabin, and inquired what was the matter, and gave me orders to loose him, and he gave him some medicine, and he went below and turned into his berth for the day—some days afterwards I remember a quarrel between Carlos and Blanco—I and the mate interfered to stop them from fighting—the mate and Carlos struggled together, and the mate gave him a blow; I can't say for certain where, but he gave him one, I think—I remember the night that the captain was killed—I had the first watch, from 8 to 12—Mr. Carswell, the chief mate, relieved me at 12—his watch lasted from 12 till 4 in the morning—when I was relieved I turned in—there is a house on deck, divided into four compartments—the prisoners lodged in one compartment, on the port side; the fore compartment; not all the crew; these eight prisoners, and Powell and Williams—those ten occupied the fore compartment, on the port side—on the starboard side, were the carpenter, Candereau, a seaman, and the boy Early—on the starboard side aft was the cook's galley, and on the port side aft the boatswain's store—on going down the companion ladder, the first berth on the port side was the mate's; the next was the captain's brother, and the next aft was mine—the captain occupied all the starboard side himself—the main cabin was between, with a sky-light opening on to the poop—I turned in at 12 o'clock the night the captain was killed—I was awoke by a noise on deck, about 3 o'clock—it was a noise like a beating or hammering on the companion—I instantly ran out of my berth and tried to get on deck to see what was wrong—I could not get on deck for some person lying on his face on the companion ladder, with his head parallel with the top step—a number of persons were beating him on the head with hand-spikes or capstan bars—I recognised one of them to be Blanco—at the same time I received a blow that hurled me right down the companion again into the cabin—I took hold of the man they were beating, and tried to pull him away, but I was not able to move him—I then called out to the captain for assistance, but got no answer—I went into his berth, and found that he was gone—I then went into the main cabin; I trimmed the light, which was very dim, and I found

the captain lying dead, and a pool of blood round him—his night dress was all full of cuts on the left side—I then went into the captain's brother's berth—I found him gone also—I next went back to the companion, and examined the man who was lying in the companion, and found it to be the captain's brother by his dress—I then went into my berth, and locked the door—the noise was going on all this time, for about three-quarters of an hour—the noise ceased about five minutes after I went into my berth, and they kept calling me several times on deck—it was some of the men; who it was I don't know; I did not recognise their voices—at the end of about three-quarters of an hour a great many of these men came down in the cabin—Lyons was spokesman; there was Blanco, Duranno, Santos, Chancis (Lopez), and Carlos, and some others—the parties that I have mentioned circled round my cabin—there were some behind them—I could not see who they were, but these I am sure of—Lyons called me out of my berth—I asked him what he was going to do with me; if he was going to kill me—he answered no—he said they had killed the captain and the mate, and the captain's brother had got away somewhere; they did not know where—he said, "I do not know where"—he meant to say that he had got away somewhere, or stowed away—he did not say they had killed him; he had got away from them, or something to that effect.

Q. Just say again what he said about killing the captain and the mate? A. He said they had killed the captain and the mate.

COURT. Q. If he spoke to you he would, I suppose, say "we" or "I," what words did he use? A. Well, I think, he used "we."

MR. GIFFARD. Q. What next? A. They wished me to navigate the vessel to some place so that they could get on shore—I asked him where I was to navigate her to—I understood from him that there was nobody on board that knew anything about navigation; none of these men—the other prisoners were all in the main cabin at the time Lyons spoke to me; they were all close to him; within hearing—I had opened my door, and come out at this time—all the prisoners were near enough to hear what Lyons said—I mean those that I have mentioned; Blanco, Duranno, Lopez, Watter, Carlos, and Santos—I asked where I was to navigate the ship to—Carlos told me to the River Plate or Buenos Ayres—Carlos spoke in English when he told me that—he said it was a good country, and plenty of Spanish people there—that was all that passed then about navigating the vessel—the ship was then 19 south and 36 west—the next thing I saw was Marco Watto with a rope round the captain's neck, in the act to haul his body up out of the cabin—I begged of him to allow me to sew him up in canvas, as I did not like to see his body going overboard like that—he allowed me to do so, and I sewed him up—I went on deck about 5 in the morning—I saw Santos when I went up—I passed him on the deck—he was armed with a large knife, and he put his hand on it in a very threatening manner—about 8 in the morning all hands were mustered in the cabin—all hands came into the cabin, with the exception, I think, of the man at the wheel; I don't know who that was—Lyons spoke in English to me, and said the men wished to have free access to the captain's berth; they wanted to see what money and clothes he had got—the chief actors in gathering up the money were Blanco, Lopez, Watter, and Carlos; the others were sitting round about in the cabin, but I can't remember what they were busy about—they rummaged all the boxes and desks—when the only was all gathered up it was put on the table in the main cabin—Lyons told me to share it into seventeen parts—Watter objected to that, and mentioned eight—he speaks some few words

in English, but he spoke in Spanish—I understand a little Spanish—I objected to divide it out; I said I did not want to have any share in it—Lyons said I should have a share in it, and to divide it out amongst them—I objected to do it, and said they could do it without me, but Lyons insisted that I should do it, and I shared it out in seventeen parts—I put my share into the writing-desk, and never saw it after—the four that were the chief actors in gathering up the money gathered out the clothes as well—they did not ask me to divide them; every one took what they liked; I don't know exactly who took them; all that were in the cabin, I believe; I did not take much notice of what they did—I saw the captain's watch put into the writing-desk where I put my money; I don't remember who put it there—they put it there, they said, to sell it afterwards, they could not divide it—I saw chests of boots and shoes broken open, and each took what they liked out of them—I do not remember who helped themselves to those; I don't remember any names; all that were down there—they had not left the cabin—I don't know what became of the captain's brother—the cargo consisted of bottled beer, wine, iron pipes, and bale goods—there was some champagne; that was broached—I saw cases of it knocking about the deck, and bottles of it, and all sorts of cloth and merchandise—who were the actors then I don't know—some few days after this had happened we saw a ship standing in the same course that we were—I asked Lyons if I might speak to her, as I wished to compare longitude—he said he did not think these men would allow me to speak to any vessel or hoist any signal, but he would go forward and speak to them, and see if they would allow me—he went forward, and came aft and said I might speak to her, but not to say anything about what had occurred—I steered towards the ship and spoke to her; she turned out to be an English ship from Liverpool, called The Friends, bound to Buenos Ayres—Carlos told me to say the ship's name was Louisa, and not to say where we came from, or where we were bound to—I gave the ship's name as Louisa, from New Dieppe, bound to Valparaiso, forty-seven days out—I did that because I was afraid for my life; I gave that fictitious name because I was afraid if I did otherwise I should meet with the same fate as the captain and the mate—the other men were all on the quarter-deck at the time—after The Friends had passed there was a great noise amongst these Manilla men, the Spaniards, and two Greeks—they were talking in Spanish—I could not understand them properly, but they looked very threatening, as if they were dissatisfied about something—Lyons told me that those who did not understand English thought I had told all about what had occurred—they did not actually do anything, but they were standing talking to one another, and casting very threatening looks at me—I remember on 30th September Watter being on deck; he took a knife to the steward, and cut him through the fleshy part of the arm, and put a cut in his right side about three inches long and half an inch deep—next day I was called in to the steward's berth—Blanco, Watter, Chancis, and Lyons were standing outside the door; Duranno was also there—I had got the steward to get all the captain's papers into his berth for safety—he had done so, and they were tearing them up and heaving them overboard—the steward was a Malay—they asked me if I knew anything about the papers and the gold watch—I said, "No"—Chancis spoke—he said they were looking for the gold watch they had lost—I told him I did not know anything about the watch—we made land on the morning of 2d October—we were about ten miles from land when we first sighted it—when we sighted land I could not get the crew to speak to me;

they did not seem as if they required my services any more—they tacked the ship and stood off all day—when they had got about thirty or forty miles from land they scuttled the ship—about 8 o'clock at night Blanco came down into the cabin, and ordered me on deck—when I came up on deck I found they were clewing up the sails and getting the boats over—I asked Lyons what he was going to do with the ship—he would not speak to me—about ten minutes afterwards Marcelino passed close to me—I asked him what they were going to do to-night, or if they were going to kill me—he said he was not, but he thought Blanco was—that was all that passed then—about three-quarters of an hour after that I got into the boat—there was the cook, the steward, Frank Powell, Watter, and the boy Early; that was all that were in that boat—the other part of the crew were some on board and some in the boat astern of the ship, made fast to the ship—the boat in which I was pulled away from the ship, about a hundred yards—we were called back by somebody from the ship; I could not recognise the voice—Powell, the cook, Early, and Watter were pulling—nobody in the boat wished to go back with the exception of Watter; he ordered Powell to pull the boat's head round, which Powell did not wish to do, and Watter used he oar to him and made him do so—the boat was then pulled back alongside the ship—Lyons spoke in English, and ordered us to come on deck—I did so—when I got on deck I saw Lyons and Duranno throwing bottles of champagne down into the boat—I heard the steward singing out some time afterwards in the water; he was singing out-to Lyons for help—he was in the water swimming—he never came ashore—I then went into the boat astern—I was ordered in by Lyons and Blanco—I stayed there about an hour and a half—several things were passed into the boat, but by whom I don't know; it was dark, and I could not see—after that hour and a half Lyons, Duranno, Chancis, and Blanco got into the boat; they were the last to leave the ship—the others were in the other boat; some were in the boat with me while these four men were on board—I saw the ship go down; she went down the very minute these men left her—I did not see the cook land ashore, or the lamp-trimmer, Cassa—we steered for land, our smaller boat being towed by the larger one—we landed at 4, P.M. on 3d October—when we landed Lopez said I was to say it was an American ship from Peru, laden with guano, for Bordeaux, in France; and that she had foundered 500 miles out at sea, and that they had been in the boats five days and five nights; that the captain and the other sailors had got into another boat, and we had lost them during a heavy breeze of wind, and which way they went they did not know—I did not state that to anybody; I never got anybody to inquire of me; there was no one to speak English to—that night we stopped at a farm-house of a man named Corria; he afterwards drove me to a place called Rocha—that was on the 5th—I found out that there was a man in the camp who could talk English; that was some miles distant—I and Canderean got into a cart—we found a person named Manuel Ramos, a storekeeper, who could speak English—we had to go twenty-one miles—none of the prisoners knew I was going, nobody but Candereau—we made a communication to Ramos—after that I went before the Naval Court at Monte Video.

Cross-examined by MR. TINDAL ATKINSON. Q. Was the captain, when he left England, in the habit of drinking a good deal? A. Not a great deal—he was not a temperate man, still he did not drink to any excess—there was a complaint made to the captain about the want of water—they were allowed three buckets a day—Blanco made a complaint

about the quantity of water allowed—I did not hear the captain say, "Drink salt water then"—the watch on deck were allowed the privilege of sleeping under a sail on deck when we did not want them, so that they could lie down and rest themselves there—they were supposed to be always handy, but sometimes they would not be awakened all night in warm weather—I never heard them complain that they were not permitted to sleep in their berths, but were compelled to sleep under this sail—Lyons was the man that spoke the best English on board; next to him Carlos—I am not aware whether Carlos usually talked Spanish among the crew; I think they always received our orders in English; they always understood us in English—Lyons and Powell gave them orders in English—the orders were given to Lyons and Powell by the captain, the first mate, and myself, and by them translated to the others—that practice continued after the death of the captain, as far as the navigation of the vessel was concerned—when I wanted to communicate anything to the crew I communicated to Lyons.

Q. After you heard this dull sound of something going on on deck, when you saw the parties there, you say you saw Lyons; had he not a cut across the face, and was he not bleeding very severely? A. Yes; that was next morning, when he came down to call me out of my berth—that was the first time I saw him after the death of the captain—I did not see him go on deck afterwards to have his face dressed—it was a severe cut; he was bleeding very much—when I came out they said they were not going to hurt me—I remember going to Lyons and putting my hand on his shoulder; I rested my hopes upon him—I cannot decide upon which of the words he used, whether he said they had killed the captain or" we have killed the captain"—he spoke to me in English—I can't say which it was—everything I had got to say relating to the crew or the navigation of the ship I always communicated to Lyons—I could not say that amongst the men who took possession of the vessel there was any one man more prominent than another—I don't know anything about where they slept at nights—I never came on deck of a night unless they came and called me, or there was something serious that wanted me on deck—sometimes they used to come down and sleep in the cabin—when we sighted The Friends, and the men looked threateningly at me, Lyons interfered between me and them, and seemed to be explaining to them, so as to shelter me from their anger; I understood so by his looks, but he was talking in Spanish—I believe he was doing so, and I believe he succeeded—he was the principal assistant to me in the navigation of the ship—I do not recollect, on leaving the ship, saying to him, "Do you want to kill me, Joe," nor his replying, "No, certainly not, we have been like brothers together"—it was he who ordered me into the boat astern—he showed every anxiety to save my life; and I have not the slightest doubt but that he did save my life.

Cross-examined by MR. METCALFE. Q. Was the first mate harsh with the men at all? A. No; not very harsh—it was not he who tied Carlos up; I did, by his orders—he had previously pulled him out of his berth—he was a strict man, but we had to be strict—he wanted his work done, of course—I never saw him use any violence; I have heard him use violent expressions.

Cross-examined by MR. DALEY. Q. What countryman is Lyons? A. I understand he belongs to some small island close to Manilla—I don't know whether he is a Moor—I don't think he is an Englishman—he does not speak English grammatically; he can speak pretty good English—I should call it broken English, as a foreigner would speak it—at the time he said,

"They," or "We have murdered the captain" he spoke in English—I don't remember that Duranno made any observation to me at that time.

Cross-examined by MR. KEMP. Q. I believe Santos is one of those men who cannot speak English? A. Yes—the men were divided into two watches—all the prisoners were not in the same watch—Santos was in my watch—I should think it was about an hour after I went back into my cabin before I got on deck—when the money was divided in the cabin all the crew were present except the man at the wheel—I don't know whether Santos was the one at the wheel; I do not recollect who was at the wheel—I cannot undertake to say that Santos was in the cabin at that time; my memory does not enable to say for certain—the English portion of the crew did not receive different rations from the others; they were all treated exactly the same.

Cross-examined by MR. RIBTON. Q. Was any distinction made either in speaking of the men, or in addressing them, between the blacks and the other men? A. No; they were never styled "blacks"—all that I heard the captain call them was" coolies "and" sons of bitches"—I suppose coolies would be termed blacks—I don't remember who he was addressing when he so styled them—the quarrel between Carlos and Blanco was after Carlos had been tied up to the mast; I don't remember how long after—it was not a severe struggle between them—the mate and I interfered, and stopped them—they had not time to struggle much; one had got a knife, and the other a hand-spike—I don't know what it was about—I don't remember ever seeing Carlos quarrelling with any of the other coolies—I cannot say it did not occur, because I did not see it to my knowledge—the captain used to talk to the coolies in Spanish—I don't know what language they spoke among themselves—Spanish was the general language that was spoken on board amongst them—Carlos slept in the same compartment with the blacks; I have seen him there—I never heard of his objecting to sleep there; not that I remember—I never remember his speaking to me about it—he did not tell me that he did not wish to sleep in the same compartment with the blacks—he was not in my watch—I won't say he did not complain, but not to me that I know of—I have been about eight years at sea—white men do generally object very strongly to be put in the same compartment with the blacks—I do not remember that Carlos very seriously objected to being put in the same compartment with them after his quarrel with Blanco—the captain was pretty kind to Carlos—he exhibited great humanity on the occasion of his being tied up; he desired him to be taken down from the mast—he was not tied up; he was standing quite comfortable—he was tied to something—the captain desired him to be be loosed, and to turn in, and to have medicine given to him—I don't remember that the captain's brother was kind to him—I never saw him show any kindness to him—I left the watch on deck at 12 o'clock—I do not know whether Carlos was at the wheel at that time—I never took particular notice—it was Carlos who told me to go to the River Plate or Buenos Ayres—that was on the morning of the 10th of September—he told me that in the cabin, close to my berth door, the morning that the captain was murdered, after I had been three-quarters of an hour shut up in my berth—it was dark at that time; it was not quite day-light, just—I don't remember how many men were down there; I have mentioned how many I saw—I was very much alarmed and excited—I am sure it was at that time that Carlos told me to go to the River Plate—he told me to go to the River Plate, that it was a good country, and there were plenty of Spanish people there—I mean to say that

he told me that in the cabin that morning—I remember his speaking to me about it on one other occasion on the quarter-deck; I don't remember how many days it was after the 10th September, I am sure it was not Lyons who told me to go to the River Plate—I remember saying to Carlos, after something had been said about Buenos Ayres, "If we go there, I shall be punished first, as I am in the command of the ship"—I don't remember the date of the month that I said that; it was some days after the 10th; it was after they had requested me to navigate the vessel; it was said on the quarter-deck; I believe we were alone—I don't remember that he was then complaining about the blacks; he might have done so—he said that Buenos Ayres was a good place to land, and all that, because there were no English authorities there, or anything of the sort—I don't think I said, "I shall be punished first if we go there;" if I did say so just now, I did not understand you—I remember Carlos saying something like, "No, we shan't be punished, as we had nothing whatever to do with the murder"—I might have used words to the effect that if we went there I should be punished first, as I was in command of the ship—Carlos might have mentioned in reply, "No, we shall not be punished, as we had nothing whatever to do with the murder;" I can't give you a decided answer whether he did or not; I had too much to think about—I can't say yes or no, whether he did say so—I went ashore in the boat with Carlos after we left the vessel—if Carlos was in the other boat which left the vessel, and then went back, I did not see him—it was Carlos who told me to call the ship the Louisa—he was then on the quarter-deck—some of the blacks were there; I don't say that they were close to him—they were within a few paces of him, within hearing—I don't know whether they had been speaking to him before he told me that; I was looking at the ship; I don't know whether he came by their orders or not.

MR. GIFFARD. Q. You have mentioned that a number of men came down on the morning of the 10th, and Lyons asked you to navigate the vessel? A. Yes—I did not direct the ship's course for Buenos Ayres exactly that day; at least I did not do so directly; I did it that day—we were originally bound for Singapore—on the morning of that day Carlos told me to navigate the ship for the River Plate—he spoke to me afterwards about its being a good place to land, but I can't say how long afterwards; it was some days; I don't recollect his words exactly—he was talking about the place; that it was a good place; that there were no English people there, they were all Spanish, and they could get away, or something of that sort—I don't remember what I said in answer; I very likely agreed to his words then—it did not matter what they said to me, I said yes to it—the quarrel between Blanco and Carlos, when the mate and I interfered, was about 1st September—that quarrel had nothing to do with Carlos being tied up; the quarrel was some days after that.

  JAMES EARLY . I shipped on board the Flowery Land as ship's boy, in London in July last—the prisoners were part of the crew—they also shipped from London—I remember the morning of 10th September—about 2 o'clock that morning I was on the look-out on the forecastle—Mr. Carswell, the chief mate, was walking on a bridge that came from the poop to the forecastle—I heard him sing out, "Murder"—I saw Duranno near him—(MR. DALEY submitted that as the indictment upon which the prisoners were being tried was for the murder of the captain, any inquiry as to what happened to the mate was irrelevant to this inquiry. MR. BARON BRAMWELL considered it was important, as tending to show the existence of a common

design)—Duranno was striking the chief mate with a hand-spike—I went and spoke to the mate, and the mate told me to go and call the captain—Duranno heard the mate speak to me, and he told me to go into the house—he struck him again when I told him to come away—I was going to call the captain, but he stopped me, and told me to go into the house—that was the house on deck—I went in, and called the carpenter—the carpenter went out, and stopped about five minutes—he then came back again, and said that one of the men had struck him—after that he and I remained in the deck-house—about half an hour afterwards Watter came down and called Candereau, the Frenchman, out of his bed—he was in his bed at the time—I saw Watter; he had a capstan-bar in his hand—he told Candereau to come on deck, and take the wheel—Candereau said it was not 4 o'clock; he would not come on deck; the time of his watch had not arrived—he went on deck along with Watter—Watter made him go; he was standing in the house inside the door—I don't know what made Candereau go, except that he was afraid of Watter; he was standing there with the capstanbar in his hand—Candereau went on deck with Watter; I don't know whether he went to the wheel or not—I went on deck about half-past 5 or 6; I don't recollect exactly—Andersen, the carpenter, went on deck with me—I saw blood on the main-deck, and blood beside the cabin door—I went down into the cabin, and saw the captain's body lying there—it was wrapped up in canvas at that time—I saw Taffer, the second mate, sitting in the cabin—Lyons was speaking to him; Taffer was sitting crying, and Lyons and several of the other prisoners were with him—there were Chancis and Watter, and others—Lyons was telling the second mate that he must navigate the ship to where they wanted to go, and the second mate said he would do it if he could—they said they wanted to go to the River Plate, close to Buenos Ayres, and he told them he would go there if they would spare his life—that was all I heard them say—I saw Chancis put a rope round the captain's body—I did not see anybody help him—I don't remember what part of the body he put the rope round, under the arms I think—he sung out to them on deck to pull up, and they pulled it up out of the cabin, and throwed it overboard; that was the last I saw of it—I was standing beside the wheel that morning, and Blanco called me down into the cabin; he said they were going to share out the money—when I got into the cabin, I found there all the crew, except the one at the wheel; I do not recollect who was left at the wheel—the money was lying on the cabin table, and there was one watch or two—I do not recollect whether there were two or not, but I saw one—Taffer was there, and I heard Lyons tell him that he was to share out the money in seventeen shares—he said, no, he did not want to have anything to do with the money—Lyons told him that the rest of the men wished him to share out the money—Watter said it was only to be shared among eight—Lyons said that they should all have a share—I got a share—I had 4l; 1l. 10s. was in money, and the rest was in moidores—I saw nothing of the body of the captain's brother; I never saw it at all from that night—I never saw the chief mate after I went into the deck-house—I heard Blanco say that he was singing out for the second mate in the water when he was thrown overboard—he said so that morning—he said when he throwed him overboard, he was singing out in the water for the second mate—About three weeks after that we made the land—I remember the boats being got ready to go off; I assisted in getting them ready—I saw the first boat that went over the side of ship—the second mate, the steward and cook, Watter, Powell, and myself, got into that boat—when we got into the boat,

we pushed a little way from the ship, I took one of the oars, and rowed off—when we had got some distance from the ship, the party that was in the other boat began to sing out to us to come back, and we came back—the other boat was then fastened to the ship; some of the crew were in the boat, and some on the ship—when our boat went back to the ship, the second mate and Watter went on board the ship again—Lyons told them to come on board—I went aboard also—I don't believe any of the men were below in the hold when we came on board again—they went down into the hold before we went into the boat; they were down in the hold when we first went into the boat—I could not see what they were doing—it was the carpenter, Lyons, and Carlos, who went below—they were below in the hold when I first went into the boat—when we came back they were on deck—I don't remember any more going down into the hold besides Lyons, Carlos, and the carpenter—when we came back, I went on the deck of the ship; they did not all go out of the boat; the steward would not come out, and Powell stopped in the boat—Lyons asked the steward to come on deck, and he would not—Lyons and Duranno then began to throw bottles of wine at him, and they struck him with some of the bottles, and he went out of the boat—I don't know whether they knocked him out of the boat or not—he got into the water—I heard him crying out to Lyons for help when he was in the water—Lyons said he would not help him, for he had deceived him before, and he said it was too easy a death for him—he was drowned—I went down into the boat after the steward went out of it, and I did not go on board any more—I went on shore in the same boat that I first got into.

Cross-examined by MR. ATKINSON. Q. You say the steward was drowned—was the wind in towards shore at that time? A. Yes; I did not see him drowned—the vessel went down shortly afterwards—when I saw Lyons talking to the second-mate, I saw that he had a cut across the face; he was bleeding a little—he had two cuts—I don't remember on which side of his face—he had one on his face, and one on his lip—it was a cut with a knife—when I saw Lopez in the cabin there were others there—it was near 6 o'clock when I saw the rope put round the captain's body—I am quite sure that it was Lopez did that—Lyons was there at the time—I don't recollect any others besides those two—I was standing beside the captain's body at the time—the second-mate was sitting in the cabin—he could see what passed—Lyons assisted the second-mate in navigating the ship—Lyons seemed to have the command of the ship amongst the men—he seemed to be spokesman—he was the only man amongst them who could speak English properly.

Cross-examined by MR. RIBTON. Q. When you left the vessel in the boat, who was in the boat with you? A. Andersen, the carpenter, Powell, Watter, Chancis, and Marcelino when we left the ship to go ashore—when we first left the ship, the second-mate, Watter, Powell, the cook, the steward, and myself were in the boat; not Carlos—he was not in the boat—I saw the carpenter, Lyons, and Carlos go down into the hold—that was not long before we left the vessel—they did not go down into the cabin—they went down forward, down the fore-hatch—I was then on the main-deck—I don't recollect what I was doing—I don't remember who else was about the fore-hatch—I don't remember seeing any—I don't remember who it was that called our boat back—somebody called out of the other boat for us to come back.

Cross-examined by MR. DALEY. Q. At the time the bottles that you speak of were thrown, where were you? A. I was on the deck; there was a good deal of confusion—they were making a noise—I was not leaning over the side—I was standing close beside Lyons after I had come out of the

boat—I saw where the bottles fell—I was standing close to the ship's side, close to the bulwarks—I could see into the boat.

MR. SOLICITOR-GENERAL. Q. Were you able to see whether any of the bottles struck the steward? A. Yes, they did—the fore-hatch that I saw Lyons, Carlos, and Anderson go down, does not lead to any berths, or apartments; it leads down to the hold of the vessel.

MR. ATKINSON. Q. In what language did Lyons speak to the steward when he was in the water? A. He spoke in English—the steward was not an Englishman—he was a Malay—I know Lopez well (pointing him out)—he did not assist in the navigation with the second-mate, that I know of.

  FRANK CANDEREAU (through an interpreter). I am a Frenchman—I was a seaman on board the Flowery Land—I was in the habit of sleeping in a house on the deck—I slept in the same part of the house as Andersen, the carpenter, and Early—some days before the captain was killed, I received a communication from Frank Powell—I communicated that to the captain—I recollect the morning that the captain was killed, but I don't know the date—I was woke up about 3 or half-past 3 in the morning by the carpenter and little Jemmy (Early)—they were quite trembling, and the carpenter was crying—they did not give me any direction, they only told me to go to the wheel—I did so—when they came and awoke me, I asked them if it was 4 o'clock—they said, "No; but you go to the wheel"—as I was going to the wheel, I saw the prisoners all together in a lot, but as it was dark at the time I could not exactly distinguish, but everybody was there—seven or eight of them had hand-spikes or capstan-bars in their hands—I did not speak to them—I only spoke to Frank Powell—he told me that two were in the water; the captain's brother and the first-mate—I asked after the captain, and he said, "Look here; there is death in the cabin;" pointing with his finger—I looked down in the cabin where they were in the habit of eating—I looked through the little window which is close to the compass, close to where the man at the wheel stands, and I saw the captain, dead, lying stretched out in the room—Frank Powell had not any weapon in his hand at that time—I afterwards went into the cabin when it was daylight, and saw the body of the captain wrapped up in canvas—a rope was thrown over some part of the body, and it was hauled up, and thrown into the water—I helped to haul it up, and Watter, and another; I don't know who it was—Watter said to me, "If thou dost not lend a hand, take care of thyself"—at that time a great number of persons were in the cabin, but I can't say who they were—the room was full of blood—after the captain had been thrown into the water the cabin was washed a little, and then the boxes were all broken open to see what they contained—I observed three persons doing that—Marco Watter, Joe Catalan (Lopez), and Ambrosio (Duranno)—I saw some money taken out, and put upon the table—Joe Catalan said the second-mate was to divide it; to share the money—he said he was to divide the money amongst all the persons on board—I did not hear any of the others say anything about the division of the money—afterwards the second-mate was told to share it into seventeen parts—the money was then shared into seventeen parts; after that, all the day long, eating and drinking went on—after that it was the second-mate who navigated the ship—I know that three days after the murder he was spoken to about it, but I do not understand English sufficiently to know what was said—some days after the captain was murdered, I was in the room where I slept, and Basilio Delos

Santos came in—that is him standing up now—he sharpened his knife, and said, "In two or three days I kill thee"—I will say it in English—he said, "That is a knife; in two or three days we kill thee"—I said, "Well; kill me"—he said nothing more then, but he once told me, "This knife will serve thee as they have done to the captain"—he only said that once—he spoke in Spanish—I remember when land was seen—I can't exactly say at what time it was, but it was dark; it was not daylight—we turned the ship about—she was brought back again—I got into a boat—that was about midnight, I can't say exactly—Santos and Carlos were in the boat with me—nobody else at that moment—a little while after, Cassa, the lamp-trimmer, came down into the boat—those who were in the ship called him—I heard them—Lyons was one, Joe Catalan, (Lopez) Ambrosio Duranno, and Blanco—they called him on board the ship again—he went up on board the ship—I remained in the boat—I heard Cassa cry out in English, "Finish me quick"—he was down in the cabin when he said that—Lyons, Joe Catalan, Blanco, and Ambrosio were on board the ship at that time—I afterwards saw the steward in the water—after we landed, the second-mate and I went to Rocha, and found a great quantity of Frenchmen there—we went to the camp—the prisoners did not know of our going—we met with a man who could speak English.

Cross-examined by MR. KEMP. Q. Can you speak Spanish? A. No; I understand a few words—I do not understand any conversation in Spanish that is addressed to me—when the conversation took place between me and Santos, he addressed me in Spanish; both times—all he said was in Spanish—I could understand all that he said to me—I understood sufficient Spanish for that—I can tell you the words he made use of (repeating them in Spanish)—I do not speak Spanish well—I had no other conversation with Santos—I remember the distribution of the money—Santos was not present on that occasion.

  MICHAEL ANDERSEN (through an interpreter). I am a native of Norway—I was carpenter on board the Flowery Land—the captain did not like the crew—I heard him say so on deck, because they were not able to do their work—I have seen the captain strike some of the crew, the steward, the cook, the lamp-trimmer, and Marco Watter; he struck Watter with his flat hand at the side of the head—I did not see that more than once—the captain said to him at the time, "You are come aboard my ship as able seamen, and you cannot do your work, and when you are in China you will expect your pay"—I have seen the first-mate strike Basilio (Santos) with a rope; not so as to hurt him—I remember when the captain was killed; about 2 o'clock that morning the boy, Early, came and woke me up—I went on deck—I saw the chief-mate lying close to the step leading to the poop—he asked me who I was—I told him I was the carpenter—he asked me to help him into the cabin—I got him on the poop—I found that his arm was broken, and his face was smashed to pieces—he asked me to go and fetch the captain—as I was turning to do so, I received a blow on the head with a hand-spike, or capstan-bar—I could not see who it was that struck me—Marcelino afterwards spoke to me about being struck—he said, "Me strike you"—I can't remember how long that was after I was struck; it was not the same morning—I had a stiff neck for two or three days from the effects of the blow—I fell by reason of the blow, and I then went into my berth—I was called up again about half-past 5 or 6—I saw some of the captain's clothes ransacked in the cabin—they were all there then, except the man at the wheel—I saw the captain's body thrown overboard—Blanco and Watter, and I believe, the Frenchman helped in that—before I came on deck after

I had turned in, they came and told me that they were going to kill the captain and the second-mate—they were outside the door at the time they told me this—the door was open—I saw Watter, Basilio, and Carlos—there were more, but I can't say who they were—they are all I now recollect.

COURT. Q. Who was the first person you mentioned? A. Francisco, Blanco, Marco Watter, and George Carlos.

MR. WELSBY. Q. Bid you see any person pulling the rope up the companion ladder? A. I did not see it—the rope was down before I came on deck—I saw Francisco, Marco Watter, and the Frenchman hauling it—one of them called upon me to help them; I don't remember which—it was not the Frenchman, it was one of the other two—I did not help them, because the rope was covered with blood—as the body was being thrown overboard they told me it was the captain's body; they said, "There goes the captain, he will never more call us sons of bitches"—I don't remember who it was said that—it was either Blanco or Watter; it was not the Frenchman—I was afterwards called down into the cabin—I saw money on the table—I saw it shared by the second mate into seventeen parts—Watter told him only to share it into eight parts—Lyons said that it ought to be shared between the lot—there were some desks broken open before I came down—I broke open a chest by the direction of Watter and the lot of them—I believe it was Watter who gave me the direction, but they were all round me—there were boots and shoes in the chest, and they took and helped themselves—I remember when we spoke the English vessel, the Friends—on that day I saw five or six of the prisoners sitting on the fore-hatch talking together in Spanish—they were Lyons, Watter, Blanco, and some others; I cannot name the others—I believe they were quarrelling—I could see by their behaviour—I could understand that they were talking about the carpenter and the second mate—the Spanish words for them are "carpentero" and "piloto"—shortly after that I heard Lyons say in English, "If you like to kill the second mate and the carpenter you can do it; I shan't do it"—Lyons was speaking to the lot of them when he used those words—Lyons afterwards told me that I must look out sharp, and do what these men told me to do, if I wanted to be safe—on a subsequent day I remember Basilio and Watter coming to my room to sharpen their knives on my whetstone, and they told me in a very short time they would kill me—the pair of them said so—they said they were going to kill the steward and the Frenchman as well—Watter told me that he had killed sixteen before—I remember the morning that we first made the land—on that day I received orders from Lyons to have my tools ready, besides a candle and matches, to make a hole in the ship—the lot of them were all together at the time—they had told me about a week before that I was to scuttle the ship—they were all together then—in consequence of that being said to me, I had got a lot of oakum and a lot of plugs ready—I thought they were going to leave me in the ship, and to save my own life I was going, after they left the ship, to stop the holes in the ship—on the night that Lyons gave me the orders to make the hole, Carlos had first given me the order between 6 and 7 in the evening, but the other men said it was too soon—between 10 and 11 at night I received orders from Joe Lyons to go down into the hold—about five of the prisoners went down with me—there were Carlos, Lyons, Blanco, Mauricio, and Frank Powell—they had got sling shot and two knives each, and I think they had got the captain's revolver—I know the men were in possession of the captain's revolver—I bored some holes, four forward and four aft—after that had been done we all went up on deck—Lyons told me to go in the boat as soon as possible—I did so—I

heard persons calling from the ship to the steward to come on deck—on that same afternoon, before I scuttled the ship, Lyons told me to fasten down the hatchways and everything that was loose on deck—he told me to use long nails—I did not fasten the things down—I cut all the lashings off, so that they might float—I did not use long nails; I took them as short as possible in order that if anybody was below they might come up—I remember our coming up with a steamer—the prisoners were very frightened if the steamer should see them—Joe Catalan [Lopez] said if the steamer should see them, the best thing was to jump overboard.

Cross-examined by MR. ATKINSON. Q. How long was it after the death of the captain that Lyons said, "If you like to kill the second mate and the carpenter you may do it, but I won't?" A. I believe it was the same day that we spoke the English ship—I believe that Lyons assisted those two men not to be killed.

Cross-examined by MR. METCALFE. Q. You say you heard some men outside your berth; how many were there altogether? A. I cannot tell; it was dark, and I was hiding myself in the corner—Watter came and called the Frenchman out, and Francisco stood at the door alongside of Watter at the time—the Frenchman was with me, and Watter came in and called him out—I saw Basilio there too—they were passing backwards and forwards by the door—I said there were about four—I do not understand Spanish—I understand a little English—what was said about going to kill the captain was spoken in English.

Cross-examined by MR. KEMP. Q. Santos cannot speak English, can he? A. I don't know—I don't know that name at all—Basilio speaks English very little—when Santos and Watter spoke to me, they always talked English to me—when they said they were going to kill the steward and the French-man, that was said in English—I cannot remember the English words they made use of—I can undertake to say that the threat was that they would kill me—they said, "By and by we will kill you"—I don't remember the words they used about the captain and the steward—it was Watter and Basilio who said, "By and by we will kill you"—it was not the same day; one said it one day, and another the other—Basilio said it first when he sharpened his knife—I can't remember how long that was after the captain had been murdered—no one was present on the occasion—I had no other conversation with Basilio.

Cross-examined by MR. RIBTON. Q. You speak about the persons coming to your berth, do you recollect Carlos knocking and asking for admittance? A. No—I have very often sat with Carlos in my berth for a considerable time—I did so the morning the captain was killed; he was in and out—he did not sit with me for some considerable time—he did not come into my berth to hide from the other men—I did not hear any of these men desire Carlos to throw the chief mate overboard, and he refused to do so—he was in my berth that morning for two or three minutes; then he went out, and then he came in for two or three minutes, and then he went out again—I and Carlos were not alone in my berth—Early was with me—I can't remember whether the door was shut at the time—I cannot remember whether he was there considerably more than two or three minutes—he told me he was afraid—he did not tell me that he had been desired to throw the mate's body overboard and had refused to do so.

MR. WELSBY. Q. Was it you who told Carlos you were afraid, or did Carlos tell you he was afraid? A. I don't remember that I had any conversation with Carlos at all that morning, except that he told me he was afraid—that

was after the captain was killed; after the carpenter had been and assisted the mate to the cabin; after the mate was killed—he told me that he was afraid that the other men would kill him.

COURT. Q. How many names do you remember of those who came to your door and said they were going to kill the captain and second mate? A. There were Watter and Francisco, who told me about it, and Carlos—I cannot remember any more that told me about it, but I remember I saw Basilio there—I remember four—there were those four there, but I cannot say which of them spoke—that was after the first mate was killed—I believe it was before the captain was killed—it was after the first mate was killed that Carlos came in and out of my berth, and after he told me they were going to kill the captain—I could not give an alarm to the captain because I was struck down.

Q. What was it that Carlos said to you? was it that the other men were going to kill the captain, or that he and the others were going to kill the captain, how was it? A. He said he was afraid these men would kill him—I cannot remember who of them told me they were going to kill the captain and the second mate, but I expect it was Marco Watter.

  JOE WILLIAMS (through an interpreter.) I was an ordinary seaman on board the Flowery Land—I was in the second mate's Watch, from 8 to 12—I kept the watch from 8 to 12 the night the captain was killed—I went to bed as soon as my watch was over—I don't know many persons were in the deck-house when I went to bed, because it was very dark—Powell, the Austrian, was there; I saw him in bed—I was not awoke by anything during the night—I heard no noise in the night—I got up at 6 in the morning—I was awake about an hour before that—I remember Duranno coming into the deck-house—he said, "I killed the mate"—that was about 5 o'clock—I did not hear the mate—I did not hear any one in the water—after saying "I killed the mate," Duranno went out of the deck-house, and I went out—I saw Francisco and the rest—they were saying, "We are going aft to kill the captain"—he had nothing in his hand when he said that—I did not see any of them with anything in their hands—I did not see what they were doing; they went aft—Francisco told me something that same day—he did not say it to me, but he was saying it to the rest—he said, "I stabbed the captain three times, and the captain's brother also; I stabbed him three times;" and Marco Watter was saying the same—he said, "Three times I stabbed the captain"—Chancis said, "I have done the same," or "I helped them at the same time"—Lyons was not then present; he went into the cabin; I did not hear him say anything about it—I have told everything that was said—Chancis told me, "1 struck the fire to see where the captain was"—he did not say where he struck the light, or where he got the matches to strike the light with—Watter said, "The captain's brother was very light, because I threw him overboard with my own hand"—I don't know who gave orders after the captain was killed.

Cross-examined by MR. ATKINSON. Q. Where did the conversation take place between Lopez and the other two men? A. In the forecastle; the house on deck—I am quite sure I have told all that was said—Lopez did not say, "I helped to take the captain out of the cabin when he was dead."

Cross-examined by MR. METCALFE. Q. Were you taken into custody on this charge? A. Yes; I was sent over to this country in custody—I did not come the same as the others—I came in the same vessel, but I was on deck—I was in custody—I was alone on deck—I was taken in custody to the Police-court, and then discharged—I was not asked to give evidence

against these men after my discharge—I don't know who asked me to give my evidence—I don't know where it was taken—I don't know the name of the house I went to—I was asked to say what I knew about the matterthat was about a week after I was discharged from custody.

Cross-examined by MR. SLEIGH. Q. Were you not in your berth, in the house on the deck, and did not Duranno come to your berth, and call you out? A. Yes—he did not shout out for me to get up; I was up—when I came out of my berth, I did not see that Duranno was in a state of great excitement and alarm—I don't know whether he spoke as if he was alarmed and frightened—he did not take hold of me and pull me, or ask me to follow him on deck—I did not follow him on deck—he went out; I don't know where he went—I did not find the mate alive on deck when I went on deck—I did not see him at all—I saw nothing.

Cross-examined by MR. BEST. Q. When the conversation took place which you have told us, and it was mentioned that two persons had stabbed the captain three times, was anybody else present except yourself, or the prisoners, or some of them? A. There were more persons there; Marcelino, Watter, Carlos, Santos, Ambrosio, and Chancis—I think nobody else; I could not tell.

  FRANK POWELL (through an interpreter.) I was a seaman on board the Flowery Land—on the night of 10th September, I was on the first watch—I turned in at 12 o'clock—the first mate succeeded me, and came on—I don't know what time it was when I got up next morning, but I think it was about half-past 3—I got up so early, because I heard some noise on deck—it was a noise of somebody screeching on deck—nobody called me—when I got up I saw the chief mate on the starboard side, on deck—he was groaning—I did not go up to him—Andersen, the carpenter, came up—the chief mate was then lying in the same place—the carpenter went to him—the chief mate told him to help him into his berth—he did so—I saw somebody run after the carpenter; I could not tell who it was, because it was dark—he had a hand-spike in his hand, and I saw him strike the carpenter with it on the back of his neck—the carpenter ran forwards, and I ran after him, under the gallant forecastle—I went to the wheel soon after that; about 4 o'clock—Candereau was at the wheel at that time—I was with him for about ten minutes; after that I went to the cabin—the whole of the crew were there—I did not see Taffer, the second mate, there then—I heard him afterwards crying in his own cabin, and I heard Lyons call him out—he came out and said, "What are you going to do with me? are you going to kill me?"—Lyons said, "No"—I did not hear him say anything else—I heard him afterwards tell him to take the vessel to some port where they could get clear—that was on deck—I did not see the captain's body hauled up, or know who hauled it up—I remember the money being divided—after it was divided I heard the men talking in the forecastle—I heard Francisco Blanco say, "I have killed the mate," and Duranno said, "I had a heaver; I first struck him and felled him on the deck"—it was then that Blanco said, "After I saw you strike him, I took the handspike and struck him on the head"—Watter said, after they killed the mate he was in the cabin with Joe Lyons, Francisco Blanco, and Joseph Chancis; they struck a light to see where the captain was sleeping; Joe Lyons was keeping the candle, and Marco Watter, Joseph Chancis, and Francisco Blanco, they stabbed the captain, the whole three of them"—when that was said by Watter the whole gang was in the forecastle; they could hear it—the whole of the prisoners were in the forecastle—Lyons was there; the whole of them

that were sleeping in the house on deck; Lyons, Blanco, Duranno, Santos, Carlos, Watter, and Chancis, I don't know the name of the other; it was Marcelino; he was there—I also saw Marcelino in the cabin when they went to the second mate—at the time Watter said what I have stated, these men did nothing; only were laughing—I heard Lyons tell the second mate to take them to some port, so that they could get clear—the mate asked him, "Where do you want me to take the ship?"—he replied "Wherever you think it is better"—I remember going into the boat.

Cross-examined by MR. METCALFE. Q. Were you also brought as a prisoner to this country charged with this offence? A. Yes; when they took these prisoners they took me—I was taken to the Police-court—I had a share of the money, and the clothes—I drank the champagne every day almost—they had it on deck, and it was there for any one to drink; every one had it; not the second mate; the carpenter did—the conversation about killing the mate and the captain was in Spanish—I understand Spanish—Watter spoke in Spanish (the witness repeated it in Spanish.)

Cross-examined by MR. SLEIGH. Q. Can you write? A. No. Adjourned Thursday, February 4th, 1864.

MR. METCALFE submitted that the indictment was not sustained, inasmuch as the jurisdiction of the Court was not shown; the jurisdiction would depend upon whether or not this was a British ship; for the purpose of proving that, the prosecution had put in a certificate of registry, under 17 and 18 Vic. c. 104, sec. 107; that certified copy, he was prepared to admit, was to be received as proper proof of the contents of the registry, and if it had recited that this was a British ship, or that the owner was a British subject, it would be sufficient; but it nowhere did so; section 18 provided that no ship should be deemed to be a British ship unless she belonged wholly to natural born subjects, to persons made denizens by letters of denization, or to a body corporate; if either of those classes of persons was shown to be the owner, it was to be deemed a British ship provided it was registered; but the registration did not make it so; that was a sine qua non; upon the face of the certificate itself, it appeared that the ship was built in America, and for aught that appeared the owner might be an American; his name and address only was given, without any description of him as a British subject or a naturalized person; the certificate also showed that the vessel was the subject of a certificate of sale, and he contended that even if it was a British ship at the time of registration, the prosecution ought to go further, and show that the power of sale had not been exercised in favour of any but a British subject; upon both these grounds he submitted the prosecution had failed to show any jurisdiction in this Court. MR. RIBTON urged the same objection, and MR. KEMP further submitted that there was no evidence to show that the certificate referred to the identical ship on board which this mutiny took place. MR. BARON BRAMWELL.—"I am of opinion that there is nothing in the objection, but that there is abundant evidence to go to the Jury—to say nothing of the presumption that a ship could not be registered if it had not been a British ship, and that the authorities had properly informed themselves of that matter, the owner is described in the certificate as" Wm. Weemys Kerr, of 25, Poultry, in the City of London, merchant; "that is a British name, and the name of a person residing in the United Kingdom, and surely if John Jones or John Smith is described as living in a certain place in the City of London, there is a presumption that he is a natural born subject. But besides that, there is abundant evidence; she sails from the Port of London with an English name on her, with an English captain on board, with two English mates, and an Englishman, the brother of the captain; at least, persons bearing

English names, and speaking the English language. In addition to that, there is a piece of evidence furnished by the prisoners themselves on this subject, viz., their request that the ship may not be taken to any place where there were English authorities; which would imply that such a place would be one where they would be most in danger. I am of opinion, therefore, that there is abundant evidence (whether it is inevitably proved is another matter) upon which the Jury may find that this was a British ship. As to the other objection, that there is no evidence that the Flowery Land, named in the certificate, is the Flowery Land in question, that is for the Jury: we have it that this particular ship was a British ship, in addition to which it has been held over and over again, that identity of name is abundant evidence of identity of the thing. The only thing I was about to look at further, was whether there was any statement in the certificate of who the captain was; I do not see it; but it is a matter of perfect indifference, because, independently of that, there is abundant evidence, to my mind, that the ship is the ship named in the certificate, and independently of the certificate, there is other evidence upon which the Jury might well come to the conclusion that this was a British ship. However, if the Solicitor-General entertains any doubt upon the matter, and desires to give further evidence, he can do so." The SOLICITOR-GENERAL considered the evidence as it stood perfectly conclusive; but as the managing owner of the vessel was in attendance, he would call him.

  JOHN HARRISON SMITH . My private residence is at 49, Inverness-terrace, Bayswater—I managed the vessel while she was here—I know the owner Mr. William Weemys Kerr, perfectly well—his office is in London—he is a Scotchman.

Cross-examined by MR. RIBTON. Q. How long have you known him? A. Twenty or twenty-five years—I believe he was born in Scotland—I am quite certain he was not born in New York—I have heard him say he was born in Scotland, and I have heard so from his relatives.

LYONS, BLANCO, DURANNO, SANTOS, WATTER, MARCELINO, and LOPEZ.— GUILTY .— DEATH .

CARLOS— NOT GUILTY .

Friday, February 5th.