WRECK OF THE MIGNONETTE.

SUFFERING OF CREW MURDER AND CANNIBALISM. [From Anglo-New Zealander.] One of the most terrible stories ever told of privation and suffering at sea reached Falmouth on Saturday evening, 6th Sept. Briefly the circumstances are these: Three men and a boy set sail for Australia in a yacht. Unablo to weather a storm she founders in mid-ocean ; there ia only time for the crew to launch a small punt, and take with them two tins of preserved food. On this meagre fare, with the addition of a turtle which they caught, they existed for twenty days and nights. Then, in the desperation of starvation, they killed the boy, quenched their thirst in his blood, and ate his liver and heart and some oE his flesh. Finally, they were picked up ia the last stage of exhaustion on the twentyfourth day by a passing German vessel. Such are. the leading facts of this terrible story. The details sound more like fiction than reality. The survivors were brought to Falmouth on Saturday by the German brigantine Montezuma, of Hamburg, and are na^med Thomas Dudley, Edward Brooks, and Edwin Stephens. Dudley is a native of Colchester, and thirty-two years old ; Stephens, of Southhampton, thirty-seven years : and Brooks, of Brightlingsea. about the same age. Dudley and Stephens are married, wi h families ; Brooks is single. These three men, together with a lad named Richard Parker, nineteen years old, and belonging to Southampton, were engaged to take the yacht Mignonette to Sydney for a Mr. Henry J. Want. The yacht was of a yawl rig, 52ft. in length, 12£t. beam, and 52 tons burthen. She was owned in 1883 by Mr. S. Hall, and belonged to the Welsh aad New Thames Yacht Clubs. They left Southampton on May 18 last, Dudley being in command, with Stephens ' as mate, Brooks as able-bodied seaman, and Parker as the boy. Previous to taking command of the Mignonette Captain Dudley was in charge of the steam yacht Myrtle, which Sir Charles Strickland had engaged for a Mediterranean cruise. The Mignonette was joined at Tollsbury, Essex, by Captain Dudley, with his wife and child. They left Southampton on the 19th, and arrived at Madeira on June 1. After staying a short time there they proceeded, and on the 14th they boarded the Bride of Lome, of Liverpool, Captain Fraser, who treated them kindly and took their letters. The line was crossed on Juno 17. From this date trouble commenced. Dirty weather began on the 18th, when they took down their topmast, the wind blowing hard from the S.S.E. By the 20th the weather had become very heavy. A strong beam sea was running, with the wind blowing hard. They were then obliged to take in a double reef in mainsail and foresail, and to shift jibs. The wind changed round to the N.W from the 25th until Monday, the 30th, when it went suddenly back again and blew a gale which departed as suddenly as it came, for on July 2 they were becalmed. By the 3rd they were once again before a storm. In the afternoon they had to reef the mainsail and squareaail, and the captain made up his mind to heave to and wait for better weather. About four o'clock he called the watch and had the squaresail in. Stephens (the mate) was then steering. Captain Dudley heard Stephens cry " Look out ! " and looking under the boom he saw a great sea coming on him. He clung to the boom / until the sea had swept past. On turning round he saw all the lee bulwarks aft were gone. Stephens cried out "My God, her side is knocked in ! " And such was really the case, for on looking over he saw her butt ends open. Captain Dudley realised in an instant that the yacht must founder speedily, and it was therefore their first object to get the boat out. The punt or dingy, which is 13ft. long, and made of mahogany (and which is now at Falmouth on board the Montezuma), was with great difficulty got out. Dudley told Parker to pass up the breaker of fresh water, which the boy did, pitching it overboard in tho hope of picking it up again. The captain tore the binnacle compass from the deck and got it into the boat. Stephens, Brooks, and Parker having taken their places in the boat, Captain Dudley dropped them astern. Recollecting there was no food in the boat, the captain rushed to the cabin, which was full of water. Seizing the chronometer and sextant, he threw them on deck. Those in the boat were then shouting to him that the yacht was sinking. He grasped some tins of what he supposed was preserved meat, and rushing on deck tumbled into the boat, all but two of the tins slipping from his grasp. They had just managed to row the little punt a length astern when the yacht went down, only about five minutes having elapsed from the time she was struck until she finally disappeared. HORRIBLE SUFFERINGS OF THE CREW. They searched for the breaker of water, but it was not to be found, though its stand was floating about ; with this and the binnacle and bottom boards they constructed a sea anchor. Their fragile boat was taking in water faster than they could bale it out. They found the leak, filled it up, and managed to bale her out with one baler and tho halves of the chronometer box. The two tins proved to contain only preserved turnips — lib. in each. They had not a drop of water ; night was coming on fast, and the sea was raging around them. To add to the terror of their situation, a shark came alongside about midnight and knocked against the boat, but fortunately did no damage, and went away soon. In this miserable plight they existed for four days on one of the tins of turnips. On the fourth day they succeeded in catching a turtle, which was floating on the water. They then finished the second tin of turnips and killed the turtle. Their thirst was fearful, and they drank some of the turtle's blood, saving the remainder of the blood in the case of the chronometer, but it was spoiled by tho salt water. Once or twice it rained a little, and they tried to catch some of the rainwater in their oilskins. With their oilskin coats spread over their arms, the poor creatures waited with burning throats and stomachs, praying the Almighty for water in their extremity. But alas 1 these endeavours were defeated by the sea-water getting mixed with the fresh. On the eighth day they drank their own water, which they continued to do until rescued. Fifteen terrible days passed away without an incident to relieve the monotony. On that day they set to work to make a sail of their shirts, with an oar for a mast. On the eighteenth day, they having had no food of any kind for seven days, and no water for five days, and their condition having become awful, they began to discuss the advisability of casting lots as to who should be killed for food for the others. This was suggested by tho captain, but Brooks would not agree to it, saying it would be better for them to die together. MURDER AND CANNIBALISM. On the morning of the nineteenth day no sail appearing, and their starvation driving them frantic, the captain and mate suggested killing the boy Parker. Their reason for selecting him us the victim was because ho waa suffering tho most§? having

drunk salt water, the others obtaining moisture by safer but more horrible means mentioned above. They also reasoned that he was only a lad, with no responsibilities, while they were married men, with families depending on them. Brooks declined to be a party in the matter. Then was enacted one of the most fearful and heartrending tragedies ever committed. Each of the men made signa to the other to do tho sickening deed, but none at first had the heart to do it. The wretched lad was lying in a state of utter exhaustion in the bottom of the boat, with his face- on his arm. The captain and the mate ultimately decided jointly to kill him— it being arranged that Dudley should strike the blow, while Stephens should hold tho lad in case he moved. Captain Dudley, having offered up a prayer for forgiveness for the act, went to the boy and said, " Now, Dick, your time is come ! " Parker faintly cried, " What ? me, sir ! " Dudley replied, "Yes, my boy;" and thereupon ran a small penknife into Parker's jugular vein. The lad offered no resistance, dying almost instantly. Their maddest craving was for something to drink, and they therefore caught the gushing blood in the tins, and divided it between them — Brooks, who, during the stabbing of the boy, had gone to the bow of the boat and covered his face with hiß hands, so that he might not witness the deed, taking his share with the others. The three of them then took off the poor boy's clothes and cut out his liver and his heart, which they devoured while they were yet warm. On the nineteenth day they succeeded in catching a few drops of rain water, which they eagerly drank. For the next four dreadful days they continued to live on Parker's body. RESCUE OE THE SURVIVORS. On the twenty-fourth day the joyous sight of a sail greeted Brooks' eyes while they were eating their horrible food. They all fervently prayed that the passing ship might see them, and they tried with what feeble strength remained to row towards it. Their joy was unbounded when they discovered that they were seen, and in about an hour and a half after they first sighted the sail they were by the side of the German barque Montezuma. They were in such utter prostration that when f they got alongside the ship they required to be assisted on board. Captain Simmonsen, of the Montezuma, states that on the morning of the day they discovered the boat on looking across the horizon ho thought he saw a small speck; he looked at it through the glasses, and saw that it was something floating on the waters, although at the distance he could not distinguish it as a boat. As they neared it, however, they were astonished to find it was a small punt with human beings in it. They presented a most frightful spectacle, looking like living skeletons.