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Mr. Ferrers said that the prisoners were standing on the threshold of life -lives just beginning and which in God's mercy might yet do good. The jury's duty was a very grave one. The prisoners were not persons who did not choose to earn a living by honest labour; they were people who were only too anxious to get work if they could. They wanted to get to Singapore, where it would have been possible for them to live. It was impossible for them to get anything to do in China; they had either to resort to fraud or face starvation. Mr.
Ferrers drew on the suffering the prisoners must have gone through when destitute in Hong. kong before being driven in desperation to try and leave in a sampan. It was fearful for a white man to have to crawl about the streets of Hongkong in this condition, knowing himself to be of the superior race, yet any of the Chinese could get their rice while he
Was threatened with starvation. The more he looked into the case the more hopeful he became. It was in the power of the Jury to bring in a verdiet of man- slaughter.
His Lordship-If the facts justified it. Mr. Ferrers, continuing, said it would be an insult to the intellect of the Jury and his own
that the prisoners had not committed a crime which deserved severe
to
say
punishment, but they did not deserve the greatest of punishment. The sailors were absolutely destitute in Hongkong, and deter- mined to get out of it. He asked them just to consider what that meant to go to sea in an open boat without food, water or provisions. Mr. Ferrers drew at length on the terrors of the sea in an open boat, saying it was not as if they did not know of it -they were sailors. He did not know
any-
thing more terrible than the exposure these men were about to submit themselves to, but these men considered it to be even more terrible to be on the beach in Hongkong. They would rather run any risk than remain on these shores. The Government of Hongkong had a duty to- wards white inhabitants. It was awfulto consider the position these men had been in. When once they got here they were just as firmly in prison as if surrounded by a granite wall-how were they to get out of it? If the money then being spent by the Government in their defence had been devoted to helping them to do this, the prisoners could have got to a white-man's country. Any work they could have done, a Chinaman would have done for half the money. The Government did nothing. Only a few days ago some people tried to walk to Shanghai- this was desperate enough. For these people it was
a very inhospitable country, where ninety-nine per cent. "of the people, accord- ing to their view, were practically savages. The prisoners were driven to their crime. Mr. Ferrers concluded his address by re- ferring to the season, making & pathetic appeal to the jury for mercy. He also spoke of Nason's relations in America anxiously longing for his return.
Mr. Calthrop, after endeavouring to show that it was a case of manslaughter and not of murder, suggested that prejudice bad been displayed by the Attorney-General when he had said that the men belonged to a class which was becoming Colony.
men were being tried not for being beachcombers, but for murder. He concluded his remarks by an appeal for
mercy.
The
A
curse
to
the
The Attorney-General repeated the remarks he had made in his opening speech. The three prisoners set out with a common unlawful pur- pose of stealing a sampan and overpowering the crew, resisting, if necessary, any opposi- tion on the part of the crew. The death of the sampan woman and her child clearly occurred in the prosecution of that purpose, and this constituted murder. He commented
on the absence of any attempt being made at rescue on the part of the prisoners. He then went into the details of the case, treating each prisoner's statement separately.
The Chief Justice, in summing up, said it was unnecessary for him to say that the jury were not to be prejudiced by the fact, if it be a fact, that the prisoners belonged to the class which is known
|
of murder.
associated
[December 26, 1904. His Lordship, before passing sentence of death on the prisoners, said that they had said everything, and everything that could be said for them bad been said. It was extremely sad to see three young men in the position they occupied. Their ac's had perpetrated in the annals of the Colony. Each been of the most outrageous that had ever been
man was a disgrace to the country to which he belonged. He could not deal with the recom- mendation of the jury, but he would for. ward it to the Governor to exercise his preroga- tive of mercy. It was his duty to tell them. however, that he could hold out no hope.
MARINE MAGISTRATE'S
COURT..
i
Friday, 16th December.
BEFORE HON. CAPT. L. BARNES-LAWRENCE
R.N. (HARBOUR Master),
ALLEGED CONTRABAND.
British ss. Craigearn, charged twelve men Bertram Conway Edmonds, master of the
with wilfully disobeying his lawful commands on board the said ship, and with refusing to proceed to sea since the 15th inst., in Victoria Harbour.
refused duty by reason of his ship conveying, Complainant stated that the defendants
as they alleged, contraband of war. Six of the work on the morning of the 15th and the men, five firemen and a donkeyman, refused remainder yesterday (Friday) morning. The cargo consisted of rice, sugar, oil cake, castor oil, brass, cotton and other small items of general merchandise. He had no suppose that any of these goods were intended for warlike purposes,
A statement had been
the cargo was not intended for a belligerent given to him by the charterers showing that
power.
reason to
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND as beachcombers. That was not to the point, nor was it at all to the point that the Govern ment of Hongkong, if it was a fact, did nothing to relieve the necessities of the floating population called beachcombers. It was altogether beside the issue, which was whe- ther or not the prisoners brought certain per- sons to their death in Hongkong harbour under such circumstances that amounted to the crime It was also absolutely immaterial that they were, as stated, below that age which the law assigned as exempting prisoners from criminality. One of the prisoners was of full man's estate-22-the other was 20 and the third 17. It was undoubtedly sad to find persons of such tender years in the position of having to answer for their lives upon the charge preferred against them, but that again was a matter entirely foreign to the practical part the jury had to play in the case. The prisoners were quite old enough to know right from wrong. It was also beside the issue that they bad been called upon to try the case at Christmas time. The duties of the jury were precisely the same at Christmas as at any other time. What season of the year it happened to be should have no effect upon them. They were to give their verdict according to the evidence and not according to the reason, The fact that the prisoner Nason, if it was a fact, as alleged by the Counsel, had parents thousands of miles away actually waiting his return should not have been put to them. It would have been equally improper for the Attorney-General to remind the jury that the sampon man stood on the Praya waiting the return of the sampan and his family. All they had to do was to consider the facts in a clear calm mind, free from all emotions whatever. The Attorney-General laid down a very clear exposition of the law that bore upon the facts that had been proved in the case. He had told them that when several persons gether for an unlawful purpose, intending
themselves to at the time to resist by force all who opposed them when carrying out that purpose, and the result was loss of life, then it was murder and not manslaughter. Any other view of the law would render the lives of people in a community in which such a reading held force insecure in the extreme and there would be a direct incen. tive to the perpetration of cases of violence in the furtherance of unlawful
purposes. To say that a burglar who broke into a house in the dead of night intending to steal money and who subjected a persou to such violence that he either died on the spot or, in fleeing from it, killed himself-was not to be found guilty of murder because he only set out to rob would be to state a proposition which would be a premium upon crime and render life absolut-ly insecure. Such was not the English law. The law of England and the law of this country was that which had been put before them by the Attorney-General. It was absolutely necessary for the safety of a community that such should be the law. If it was true that th se men did what the evidence showed, they were guilty of murder. It was immaterial whether the prisoners actually threw the woman and child overboard or whether they jumped overboard; it was not necessary to take the child up in arms and throw it overboard. If it fell over by fright it would be quite sufficient sustain a charge of murder. Supposing the boy, after his struggle with Nasou, had jumped overboard and had not sufficient strength to cling to the rudder of the steamer and was drowned, would anyone in his
Capt. Barnes-Lawrence (to senses say that Nason would not be guilty of his plainant) -Before dealing with your men I put murder? The plea that the deaths were due to before you the position in which your accident disappeared instantly, when they stands. Your vessel is chartered to convey remembered that the men made no attempt certains goods 10 to rescue the people. If he (His Lordship) Kobe
two ports in Japan, and Yokohama. Certain of these frightened a child into the water and hoisted goods, such 88 rice and sugar, may be his sail and went away there would regarded as "conditional " contraband. That be only one conclusion as to his intention, is to say, they are not considered and surely that was that he intended the contraband if the transaction in regard to child to take its chance of swimming or not. their use is a purely commercial one and That was the only opinion to arrive at not done with intent of assisting in the with regard to the prisoners.
war, but simply for the purposes of gain. To create an offence a belligerent destination is essential. In this instance I hold in my hand a statement from the charterers to the effect that the vessel's cargo is consigued to private individuals and firms in Japan, and is not intended for the use of the belligerents.
to
After being absent from the Court for about five minutes the jury returned a verdict of guilty, recommending that mercy be shown to the prisoners.
The prisoners had no reason to give why Bis Lordship should not pass sentence of death.
The statement which was handed in and filed read
&S follows:-With reference to the cargo of rice, sugar and general merchandise, shipped by your steamer hence to Kobe and Yokohama, we hereby declare that the whole of same is consigned to private individuals and firms in Japan, and not to any belligerent power.
(Sd.) HOONG FAT AND CO., Charterers, Continuing, witness said he had had no other trouble with the crew. By the articles of agreement they were bound to serve within 75 degrees north latitude and 60 degrees south latitude to any port.
One of the defendants, P. Lasites, carpenter of the ship, speaking on behalf of them all, said that they did not refuse to do their duty, but refused to carry contraband of war because they did not sign for that purpose. They refused to go to a war country.
By the Court the man said that under the circumstances of the Captain's explanations regarding these goods the five able seamen among the defendants were willing to return to duty if the master would undertake to guarantee them the loss of their clothing and personal effects in the event of their losing them.
The other defendants claimed similar treat- ment.
The complainant said that there was nothing whatever in the agreement as to making good the loss of effects. He was not willing to accede to their request.
Hon.
com.
case
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