Murder Will Out.

Te Aroha News, Volume II, Issue 85, 17 January 1885, Page 5

Murder Will Out.

Tiiose who believe in the truth of the old proverb, that "murder will out," may have their faith strengthened by the following story from Fiji : — About the middle of 18S0 the crew of a cutter (the Abergeldio), two Fijians and a Tongan, were washed ashore on Ovalau, and reported that the cutter had foundered with the owner, a Chinaman, on board. The cutter carried a mail, which went down in her. In the mail was a letter from the stipendiary magistrate of Vanua Levu to the ReceiverGeneral, containing a remittance of one pound notes, the numbers of which had been taken. Nothing doubting but that the notes were at the bottom of the sea, the | Government authorities applied to the Bank I of New Zealand for payment of the equivalent of the notes lost which was "made under the usual guarantee. Some three months ago, however, more than four years after the loss of the cutter, one of the notes supposed to have been lost, found its way to the head office of Auckland, amongst others sent up for cancellation. It was speedily identified as being one of those paid under guarantee, and was returned to Levuka, where tho Government were called upon to make good their guarantee. This led to suspicion being for the first time entertained of the truth of the crew's story, and inquiries were made for the men. One of them was arrested and brought to Levuka, where he confessed that the Chinaman had been murdered, and the cutter scuttled by the Tongan, the consent of the Fijian and his countryman having been secured by threats. Upon this the Tongan, Waisea by name, has been arrested, and will, no doubt, pay the penalty of his crime on the scaffold. It appears that the cutter had made a successful run, and when nearing Ovalau the Chinaman was asleep in the fore part of the vessel, when the Tongan battered in his skull. He afterwards buried the money on the beach and scuttled the vessel, and then reported her as sunk in a gale.