Our government has taken a forward step to arrest these free-booters in their blood-thirsty projects, and no doubt the expedition which was under the command of that gallant officer, Commodore Porter, has done much towards putting down this nefarious practice in the West-India seas.
The crew, 8 in number, of the ship Kate, Captain Purdy, landed in the island of Guadaloupe, on the 24th of January, 1821. They slept on the beach that night, and next morning a planter in the neighbourhood came to them, and brought them to his house. Their story was uniform, all said they belonged to the American ship Retrieve, Capt. Jacob Hawes, belonging to Messrs. Suydam & Wyckoff, merchants, of New-York; that after 6 weeks boisterous weather, not being able to keep the ship free, she being very leaky, the Captain had given orders to get the boat in readiness, and that they were doing it, and getting into the boat about 10 o’clock at night, when the Captain’s son, about 10 years old, fell overboard in trying to get into the boat, and that the Captain threw himself into the sea to save him, but both perished, and the ship went down; that after one night and two days in the boat, they reached the beach near the Mole, with great hazard of their lives.
They were afterwards escorted to Point Petre, where they were examined by the Judge, and persisted in the same story; except one French lad, who privately disclosed the truth to the attorney general.
They had with them all their baggage, and considerable money. Among the baggage was a Bible, with the label, “Presented by the Merchants’ Seamen Auxiliary Bible Society, to the ship Kate, of London—Gravesend, 11th May, 1818.” This, the mate, Thomas Murdock, said was given to him by a fellow lodger in New-York. The Judge, however, availed himself of this circumstance to interrogate them a second time. Calling on Murdock, he said—“There is the Bible belonging to the ship Kate, of London, Capt. George Purdy, and upon that very same Bible you swear to tell the truth, and nothing but the truth.” Murdock, much embarrassed, said in broken words, that he was not accustomed to swear on the Bible, and resisted some time, when the Judge observed to him, that if he would not answer to the questions, he would pronounce him guilty immediately; for to refuse answering the questions of the Court was declaring himself guilty. Murdock then kissed the Bible. “Since I have taken an oath, (said he,) on the Bible, I will speak the truth,” and related the real story, in substance—