THE HOPEFUL PRISONERS

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 452, 8 March 1890, Page 4

THE HOPEFUL PRISONERS

A Brisbane cablegram of recent date stated that the Hopeful prisoners had been released. Additional particulars are now to hand by mail. Some weeks ago one of the largest signed petitions ever got up in New South Wales was presented to the Governor in Council, praying for the release of a number of prisoueis undergoing various terms for atrocities said to have been committed by them during the labour cruises of the notorious schooner Hopeful to New Guinea. This petition was refeired by the Governor to the Ministers, and tliey, in their turn, asked the Chief Justice to report upon the whole of the cases. HisHonor did this in the course of an exhaustive report, and the Minister for Justice also reported exhaustively upon the matter. These reports were perused by each of the Ministers, and subsequently in Council, and were discussed at a meeting of the Executive Council when Bis Excellency the Governor was present. The prisoners incustody are:—Neil McNeill and Bernard Williams, sentenced to death for the murder of Polynesians, the sentence subsequently being commuted to penal sepvitudefor lifp;andLevvisShaiy,mastermariner, Thomas Freeman, mate, James Preston ap'd Edward Rogers, seamen, convicted of kidnapping Polynesians. Lewis Shaw and Harry Schofield, who died January, 1886, wore sentenced to penal servitude for life, the first three years in irons ; Thomas Freeman to ten years’ penal servitude, the first tvvo years in irons ; and James Preston and Edward Rogers to seven years’ penal servitude, the first year in irons. The decision of the Governor in Council was that the prisoners should be released,