FIGHT IS A TRAIN.

New Zealand Mail, 18 January 1900, Page 14

FIGHT IS A TRAIN.

TWO SAILORS SENT TO PEN AL SERVITUDE. At Gloueestshire assizes 011 November ~r» before Mr Justice Mathew, two Swedish ■ sailors,, Alvin, Petterson and Oskar Sjoba'ck, were indic-ted for mur- ! dering Andrew Anderson, their shin- 1 mate, m a Great Western railway train ; just outside Gloucester 011 May 24. On the charge being interpreted, the prison- 1 ers, who were demoded by their Govern- 1 ment, pleaded not guilty. Mr More- 1 Brown, senior prosecuting counsel, detailed tne story c-f the case, and said * the prisoners were firemen, and deceased i an able seaman on the steamship Dul- J wich. They travelled together from \ Barry to Gloucester, and at Cardiff all "'fp’T 1 ' A t.Chepstow deceased woke : up Petterson, to find the latter’s ticket 1 Petterson resented this, and shook his ! fist at Anderson the latter retaliating ] by stnking a ligkt blow. At GloS te, the prisoners were found in the same compartment with Anderson by a ! ?n°w tGl rl namc n Derr l ck » who presumably J saw deceased expire from a terrible ! wound in the neck. One witness, Guild- 1 mg, the guard of- the train, had died 1 since the Magisterial inquiry: but coun- 1 “ fTr”. h! j a™ eouise. On July 6 a knife was found near Gloucester, the stains on which Ajf-g analysed were found to be Sero „ S. mammal; in addition there £ were on it part of the skin of a human 1 bemg and some hair. This knife th n * « prosecution asserted - , was PetteiWs 1 the absence of any such instrument from ( 1113 bag pointing to that fact. c

? Counsel’s opening statement was 'sukT I stantiaily supported by a large numW •of witnesses. The defending cowo , admitted that one of tho prisoners 1 struck the blow which caused Anderson’s > death, but in the absence of any evident 1 to show any concerted actionj , should bo given the benefit of suchlfln. [ certainty. Ho also submitted the crihG was one cfi*nianslaughter, there being flk ! premeditation. The Jury found ayfev : diet of manslaughter, and each prisonei . was ordered to undergo five years’ pefial servitude. '“riv - :-’ •ij'A,'