MASSACRE OF THE CHINESE PASSENGERS AT ROSSEL ISLAND.

Taranaki Herald, Volume VII, Issue 345, 12 March 1859, Page 5 (Supplement)

MASSACRE OF THE CHINESE PASSENGERS AT ROSSEL ISLAND.

[From the Sydney Morning Herald,. The Chinese passenger of the St. Paul who was rescued by the steamer Styx, and arrived on Tuesday, has furnished us with the following account of the massacre of the Chinese passengers by the St. Paul, wrecked at Rossel Island, through the medium of Lr H. Leau Appa, who acted as interpreter :— " The ship went on shore during the night, and when she struck the passengers all rushed on deck, making a great outcry, upon which the captain drove them all below again. When daylight broke we landed by means of the boats on an island, where we remaiued two days without any water, when some of_ us went on board the ship again to get some, as also provisions. The captain left in his boat with some of the crew, and we were not disturbed by the natives for a month after he was gone ; they then came over from the mainland, distant about three quarters of a mile, and made an attack on us. Some of us had double barrelled carbines, but we got frightened and threw them away. The only white man left with us, after the departure of Captain Pennard, was a Greek, who, having armed himself with a cutlass, fought desperately, and killed a great many natives before he was overpowered. They then took all onr clothing, &c, which they paitly destroyed. Any valuables that they found, such as sovereigns, rings, &c, t !i ey placed in a net bag which each man carried round his neck. A watch particularly excited their attention, as they were continually opening it to observe the reflection of their faces in the glass. At night we were placed in the centre of a clear/piece of ground, and fires lit in several places, the natives keeping a regular watch over us, and during the day they would select four or five Chinese, and after killing them, roast the flesh and eat it ; what was not consumed being deposited in their nets. Their mode of proceeding was as follows: — The victims being decided on, they were taken out, and beaten all over (excepting the head) with a kind of club, and then despatched by ripping the stomach open. The body was then cut up in small pieces and divided, the fingers, toes, and brains being eagerly sought after. The bones were then collected, and either burnt or thrown away. I saw one of my fellow passengers killed in this way. On one occasion some of the Chinese took a boat which belonged to the ship, and went over to the main land at nighf to get some water, but never returned, so we thought they had been killed. Every day they brought us cocoa nuts, or some wild roots to eat, and appeared to be quite friendly with us. This state of things continued until I was taken off' the island. When I left there were only four Chinese and the Greek alive, all the rest having been killed. I 6aw th«-se five the day the steamer came in sight, but when the natives saw the boats coming on shore, they took them up the mountains. I was sick and lame and they would not carry me, so that I watched my opportunity and conttived to conceal myself among the rocks until the boat came on shore. They are very numerous, but do not appear to hive any chiefs among them. They live on cocoanutt, of which there are large quantities, and a kind of yam, which

they roast before eating ; but, beyond a few dogs, I saw neither animals or fowls of any kind." The narrator of the above horrible details is quite a young man, particularly intelligent in appearance. Several of his relations were on board, but all have perished. Captain Pennard, of the St. Paul, came up in the Styx. He states that he was 62 or 63 days on board the Prince of Denmark before being landed at New Caledonia j that he begged of Captain McKellar to take him to some place at once, so as to obtain assistance, but he refused to do so, giving as a jcason that he had a patty at an island gatbesing beche-le-inei, who would be out of provisions did he not attend to them first.