THE BOOTLESS INLET TRAGEDY.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2657, 12 October 1882, Page 3

THE BOOTLESS INLET TRAGEDY.

[Melbourne 11 Argus,”!

The French man-of-war D’Estrees has returned to Sydney from Noumea. Since leaving Sydney after her last visit she ha# been cruising about tho South Seas, but the only incident of her cruise was the punishment of the Natives of Santo for their unprovoked murders of French traders recently, ijpen arriving off the coast of Santo the D’Bstreea gave the Santo savages a couple of hours’ bombardment, in the course of which about 200 shells were thrown into the villages, driving the natives from their hiding places, and apparently taking good effect, judging by tho manner in which the savages flung away their weapons and hurried off for shelter into the interior. Prom what could be seen at the distance, the cocoanut groves were very much out up, and the dwellings levelled to the ground.

New* has been received from the Bav. W. G. Lawes, stating that all the mission stations in New Guinea, from Cape Possession to China Straits, have been visited by the missionary schooner Ellangowas, and there were everywhere signs of improvement and progress. There has been continued potty warfare between two of tho Native tribes iu the Marshall Group. The men, women, aud children, numbering nearly 2000, take part in the war.

The Eev. W. G. Lawes, writing from Cooktown, reports a tragedy at New Guinea. He says that a “ Captain Webb, of the Pride of tho Logan, had been engaged beohe-de-mer fishing at Port Moresby, when, on the 20Lh June, be moved a little way down the coast, and anchored off a small island in Bootless Inlet. The Natives from the neighboring village of Tupuselai veiled him constantly, taking fiab for sale and helping him in various ways. Some of them slept regularly at hi# station, and the best of term# seamed to exist between tho white man and the natives. On the night of July 24th we were alarmed by a report that several natives of Tupuselei hod been shot by Webb. On the next day Mr Chalmers went to Bootless Inlet, and visited first the village and then the Pride of the Logan. In the village there was great wailing in one house over the dead body of a fine lad of twelve or thirteen years of age. Ho had been shot in the back, the ball coming out at tho chest. In another house was a young man badly wounded in aide and arm. Captain Webb asserts that ho fired two shots only, and he could’nt understand how anyone could have been hit. He also said that when he was at Port Moresby last, leaving his mote in ohargo, twenty-five canoes came round the ship, evidently with some evil design. This was more than a week before. On inquiry from the natives, we found they had been fishing (no uncommon number, thirty and forty often going out together), but were unsuccessful, 1 and wore quite unarmed.