QSA846965 1877 Depositions of crew of the Schooner Douglas 22 February, Colonial Secretarys Office In Letters, In letter 77:757, DR63971

week last. I was sleeping in the galley and was woke up by hearing Patrick Troy's voice calling "Capt'n Harris, Capt'n Harris, we are all cut to pieces with knives and tomahawks." I also heard Laurie's voice saying Capt'n Harris we are all cut with knives & tomahawks". I then heard teh Capt'n voice saying "What's the matter. What's all this about. Also a voice from the rigging calling out Shoot him Capt'n Harris, shoot him. I could hear the voices of three blacks and I then concluded the two left on the Island had swam off. I afterwards opened the galley door a bit, and saw the body of Patrick Troy lying about four or five feet away. I remained shut up till daylight when a black came to the starboard door and it being a very hard door he could not open it. He then came round to the port side and I bolted out the other door to the cabin aft. A black with a half axe tried to cut me down, but I dived down head foremost and escaped. The Capt'n handed me a revolver, and I shot two panes of glass away to try and get a shot at the black who was on watch, and then fired another shot knocking him over In a few minutes I heard the men's voices who had been on the foreyard, down on deck and I

(9) rushed up. A soon as I got on deck I saw the body of another black lying dead on the port side of the fore rigging. The men sang out to me, fire at "Ropeyards" who is overboard. I looked over and saw the black swimming away and I fired four shots. [text struck out] The Capt'n ordered the Mate and me to take a boat and go after this black and shoot him. We went and pulled toward the rock, where he was seen to land, but could see nothing of him. We must have seen him if he had attempted to swim to the Island. We then went to the Island and found the bodies of our two men with their heads nearly cut off. We then went off to the ship. I reported to the Capt'n. Afterwards the Mate and me took the body of Troy ashore and buried it with the others above high water mark. On the following day, we shipped anchor and sailed for Trinity Bay which we reached Sunday night. [signed] Henry Thomas Fuller

Taken and sworn before us at Cairns the day and date before written [signed] D. Spence JP [signed] Edmund Morey PM