THE OUTRAGE ON AN ENGLISH MISSIONARY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XX, Issue 6824, 1 October 1883, Page 6

THE OUTRAGE ON AN ENGLISH MISSIONARY.

THE STORY OF MR. SHAW'S TREATMENT. Regarding the detention of the English missionary, the Planters' Gazette saya : — "We have obtained from Mr. Shaw himself all the particulars of his arrest at Taraatave, and his captivity on board the French man-of-war. We purpose laying them before our readers in the same language which the rev. gentleman used when interviewed by one of our reporters. Mr. Shaw, who is considered one of the most successful agents of the Loudou Missionary Society, has accomplished a large amount of work in Madagascar during tho last five or six years. He was the first missiouary appointed to Tamatave. He had spent several years as a missionary in the interior of this island, and enjoyed the esteem of everybody who knew him. On the 16th of Juno last a detachment of French soldiers called at his place, and the officer in command told him he had received orders from his superiors to arrest and convey him to Tamatava Fort, whither Mr. Shaw was taken immediately. He waa iuformed that he would be kept under arrest till his servauts arrived at the Fort, as they appeared by their names to be Hovas. i.Mr. Shaw denied the fact, and stated that they were Belsils. He was then placed in a tent under the guard of five arm-.d soldiers, and was iuformed that if he endeavoured to escape he would be fired upon. For breakjaat he'received a piece of bread and meat. No utensils were given him. Although his servants came to the Fort a few hours afterwards, he was on tue evening of the same day placed in the centre ox the squad of soldiers, marched through the town, to the landing-place, and sent on board the French man-of-war Nievre". Hia servant and three other Europeans were released the following day. His treatment on board the vessel appears to have been very bad. Mr. Shaw stated that he was fed with the sailors; the rations were served in a bucket without a knife or &c. Shortly afterwards he was seized with a serious attack, of fever. While still suffering the steamer Taymouth Castle came ( into Tamatave, having ou board a good number of passengers, among whom was Mrs. Shaw, his wife. The reverend gentleman, on being informed of this, asked as a favour that his wife, whom he had not seen for nearly two years, might ba allowed to see him for a few minutes on board the Frenoh veseel. The request was bluntly refused, nor was Mr. Shaw allowed to go on deck to wave to hie wife as she passed alongside the Nievre, while on her way to ask the permission of Admiral Pierra to have a few minutes' talk with her husband. Eventually the Taymouth Castle left for Mauritius without Mr. Shaw having had an opportunity of speaking with his wife. Mr. Sbaw obtained after hie illness a little amelioration in diet through the good offices of the doctor of the Nievre, and appeared also to have been better treated than at the beginning of his confinement. Fifteen days after his arrest, Mr. fahavr was examined for the first time. He was accused of having tried to poison French soldiers, by placing poisoned claret in the vicinity of his house. He was fortunate enough to be able to prove by witnesses that several bottles of wine had been scattered by tbieves.Mr. Shaw had no difficulty in demonstrating that on the same night when wine was dispersed, he was not in his house, but was at- a place a mile off, where he was keeping watch with hia servants. Other people further indignantly denied that any wine had been poisoaed. After the examination of Mr. Shaw he was transferred on board the flagship Flore, where hie confinement was made still more severe. He was put in a cabin, on the third deok, the door of which was kept closed, and an armed sentry was placed outside, who kept watch day and night. The prisoner was not allowed to leave this cabin except for an hour a day, nor was he permitted to speak to any one. He was only allowed to take a short promenade from the gallery to the gangway, and not beyond that, and he was always followed by-an armed sentry. After twentytwo daye the prisoner was again examined, when Mr. Shaw found the charge against him altered. He was now accused of having not exercised sufficient prudence to prevent the French soldiers from being injured by drinking wine and other medicinal drugs which had been taken away from the mission dispensary, and which were found lying about the garden. The rev. gentleman, in answer to this charge, explained that the dispensary and the collar had both been broken open by pillagers, and that bottles of medicine had been scattered in the garden. After about eleven days and subsequently be was advised to write to M. Pierre, offering to come to the Mauritius on parole, to retnrn fur the courtmartial when sent for. He complied with this advice, and waited some days for a reply, which never came. The day before the man-of-war Nievre vras to sail for Reunion, he was iuformed that as there was not sufficient evidence to warrant his being brought before a court-martial, and besides taking into account his nationality and other circumstances outside the case, he would be Bet at liberty; still, he wa3 not allowed to go on shore at Tamatave, but was offered a passage in the Nievre to Bourbon, which he ultimately accepted, and from that time he waa entirely at liberty." ,

I Take Hop Bittern three times a day, and »j-ott trill have no doctors' bills to w- See.

AFFAIRS IN MADAGASCAR.

The Mi M. steamer Sydney, which arrived at Adelaide from Marseilles on September IS, brings the following news from Madagas-, car up to the 12th of August:—No change has taken place in the respective positions of the belligerent parties. The French were still holding Tamatave. The Hovas were renewing their night attacks upon that place, without being more successful than before. Admiral Pierre left St. Denis on the loth instant, on board the Caledonian (s.), for Marseilles. The cause of the French Admiral's sudden departure is hot known. The Reunion newspapers say that" he is going back to Europe, owing to the bad state of his health. Before leaving Reunion Admiral Pierre published in the official Moniteur a note, in reply to a telegram published in all the Mauritius papers concerning the doioga of the French in connection with the case of the late Consul Pakenham. Admiral Pierre denies emphatically the accuracy of the news [ given in the telegram alluded to. He states in the first place that Andrianica, the alleged secretary to the British Consul, was a Hova, and not a Britannic subject, acd that Mr. Pakenham was never ordered to leave Tamatave, but that the French authorities conI tented themeelves with warning the friends of the Consul that, if the latter persisted in I having open communication with the Hovas, I he would then be invited to ler.ve Tamatave ; but owing to the state of Mr. Pakenham's health, such an order was never given. The English officers were invited to attend the funeral of the English Consul, and were never prevented from returning to their ! vessel. News from the capital of Mada- | gascar, reoeived up to July 20, states that the Queen of Madagasar is dead, and her successor had been proclaimed. The correspondent of the Planter's Gazette writes from Antananarivo, on July 11, five p.m., as follows :—"The red flag was hoisted to-day over Antananarivo, and the twelve holy mountains. The soldiers are nocking to arms, and, as far as I can judge, it will be war to the knife. No advice of E"glish missionaries or others urging submission to the French, would bs listened to. Our latest dates from Europe are to May 20, and the French finances, Tonquin, and other difficulties, are well known here, and also encourage the people to resist. At this morrfent the lives of the British subjects, Americans, and others, are safe here, and, apparently, will be safe as long as the Prime Minister holds his own." All was quiet at Antananarivo on July '20. Since the expulsiou of the Frencji the remaining foreigners ■ —British, American, and Norwegian, with the German, are treated with the greatest respect. All communication with Tamatave and the outside world is cut off. About two a.m. on July 13, Antananarivo vibrated under what seemed to be an earthquake shock, aud when day came it was announced that Queen Ranavalona 11. had died during the hours of darkness, her successor being at once proclaimed the title of Ranavalona 111. The new Queen is the widow of Prince Katrimo, who la:ely died. She is young acid pretty. Everybody is in mourning, and all work, except the work of defending the country against the French, is at a standstill. The Prime Minister is still master of the situation. He sa.?B he will resist the French to the last. The greatest order prevails. The French refugees, JeauitJ and others, who were expelled from the capital, are said to have entered Tamatave on or about June 22. They had a most bitter feeling against the English here, to whom they attributed their expulsion, and the bitter feeling- said to exist at Tamatave between the French and English must have been accentuated by the arrival of these French refugees.