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Grey River Argus, Issue 75, 5 July 1866, Page 4

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(From tlie Home News ) ' Jntelligeuce from {Spanish Town by the^Jefa&to, which has arrived at Soutfcr states that th.c labors of the, Royal Commission are well nigh ovjrj| so far as relates to the taking of evidence. On the 24th of March the. Com? mission had adjourned " sine die,'' and it was anticipated that one or two other sittings would close the proceedings, Mr Eyre has appeared a second time before the" Commission, in order tp supply them with information which, at his first examination, he was unable to afford; The evidence which he had now to give occupied a day and a-half in its reception. It consisted mainly pf the reading of letters and other cpni- / munications received by the Qovern- :■■ ment from different parts of the colony, either before the occurrence of the dis--; turbances,_ or after the riot at Morantj Bay, and before the proclamation 6\\ the amnesty, and was intended |o show* - the information upon which his. Ex-f pellency and his .advisers acted in their (estimation of the character of the original outbreajc, and : the -opinion which they aftei*wards formed of the ganger of its spreading tp : other parts of the island- With reference to the conduct of BrigadierJGeneral Nelson, he desirpd to record Jus fullest . couyiction, founded upon the experience which he acquired during his stay in the eastern district of the -. island, which extended to October 20, that all that officers proceedings, and all ,the : instructions which were given by him to. those who were acting under hirn^ were characterised by the utmost consideration and humanity. The commissioners intimated that that. was a question of which they were to judge., and - upon which they could not accept Mr ■ : Eyre's opinion, or to allow it to appear upon the notes/ In concluding his .^evidence, Mr Eyre tpuchpd shortly upon the Gprdon case. ' He said it was reported to the Government that shortly before the outbreak, George W. Gordon had travelled through the island, and that Bogle had accompanied him. R&? . feningtethe peried which elapsed between the sentence and the execution^ - his Excellency said there was nothing which either he or the officers concerned wished to be concealed on that point, and he handed in a letter to Brigadier Nelson, dated " King's House, Sunday evening, Octpber 22, (3 p.m.," in which he said :=— " Your report, arid the proceedings relative to William Gordon . have just reached rje the Gbrieral, an4 l am returning them tp him with ythe : expressioripf my entire the justice of the sen? in the policy of/ carrying it - in^;iefiect. t J believe the. moral influr V. ' ence which the punishment of such a man will; have upon the whole community will- be. very great, and will do more to check sedition than all we have yet, I should think that in a few Relays you will b^. able to report that the ' chief rebels are either captured^ or slain, \- and that the time has arrived for offering an opening to all others except actual murderers to come back to their allegiance." • ' ; This letter was received by Brigadier VL Nelson before Gordon was hung. In H-eply to gii! Hemy Stocks, Mr Eyre ! said tMt the proceedings' and finding jn the Qordon case wero received by MajoivGeneral O'Connor, shown ■ or read by him to Mr Hosack arid Mr Westmorland, members of the executive committee, and were then trans^ mitted without any Col[Q^asgJ^f^^y had issued a HP^nint for Gordou-s arrest, but he did know what had become of it. ,No 'questions, were put to Mr Eyre by the learned' who appeared for Mrs Gordon, and other sufferers by the acts pf '.the Government or the troops, in, pi^der that they might in no way prejudice any future proceedings which against him. Provost-Marshal Ramsay, who was arrested on a charge of murder, and dismissed by the: magistrates, was rex larrested at the instance of the -At-torney-General, and held to bail in the sum of to answer the charge. Mr Ramsay has appeared twice before the ; ; " cbtriinission, but it was only to hand in ■y docunrehtSj and he was.mpt subjected -—■~ to any examination. Most conflicting >? : etatements have been made respecting i • the riegrp. Marshall, who was hung by fp[r R/inisay's order at Moi-ant Bay after Ijbeing flogged. The reason given for 'hanging liim was that ho had used .i threatening ; ; .^ngnagp to Mr Ramsay while being flogged, On the other hand, • ; "' some witnesses who were present declared that hje never spoke a woi-d, Exclusively of the investigations .■': which have been separately conducted by Mr Gurney and Mr .Maule, in difr ferent districts of '■ St, Thpmas4n-the-<s■ East, the commission has : sat about 0: . fifty days. Nearly 1000 witsegs'es;h,ave |1; been examined in the cpurse' qf tjje i\ir |- '.quiry. Three shorthand .writers' liaye., |? been kept fully employed . siiic^ '% .yfo |^- ; a foxu-th had recently from England when tl^.mail ?r^flpft ; and the notes transcribed by these • r :i had been printed in the colony, though the printers haye not been able to keep> :..- pace with the stenpgraphers, % ; i-The'total nuniber pf houses destroyed; I;;. IM^i^e Ji"oops and special constables i^^cismng toartiivl Jaw was exactly 1000. j^^MEr-- Earry, iJie Government engineer HMnd surveyor, estimates the total value properiy at J4436. following is a list of persons flogged, and .. inijuisoned, &c,,

'at Morant Bayj Manchioneal,'-and Port Antonio, during the outbreak : — " Morant Bay.— l^9 executed ; 8 sentenced and pardoned ; 42 flogged||^^^[uitted and released; 3 inip|iSpi^; total, 245. Manchioneal J executed ; 2 flogged and impri- ; 1 imprisoned ; total, 36. Port Antonio — 54 executed ; 1 sentenced to^eath and pardoned; 3 flogged; 58 flogged and ipjprisoned^ 1 acquitted and released; 12 imprisoned; total, i J3g, Gi-and totals, 276 executed ; 9 sentenced to death and pardoned; 45 flogged; 60 flogged and imprisoned; 4 acquitted and released; £3 imprir soned— .4l7,

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