Defendant in Alleged Stabbing Aifray Dismissed The last chapter of the exciting voyage of the str. Eastern Admiral was told at the U. 8, Court on Thursday, before the Commissioner, Mr. F. J. Schuhl, when F, Swensen, a trimmer, was charged with wounding his shipmate, Rice, with a razor in this port. Rice, who is now in hospital, is alleged to have been concerned with the other two men, Duskin and Sheehan, who were on Wednesday committed for trial on a charge of violently assaulting the ship's second engineer, Mr. C. A. Thorpe, at Miike.
Sensational accounts of what happened before and after the stabbing affray were told by members of the ship's company, but as none of the witnesses saw the actual wounding, and the man was. proved to have been fighting in self-defence, the case against him was dismissed.
The Chief Engineer, Mi. Jennings, said he was in his room reading when the door was burst open. Rice came in and said he had been "ripped open." When witness saw Swensen, the latter's advice was not to get near Rice, the victim. Later somebody shouted that Swensen had jumped overboard, and there was a chorus of "Jet him drown."
Cross-examined by Mr. Schoenfeld, defending, witness said accused was a good-tempered man.
E, Taylor, 3rd officer, spoke ing seen nothing of the cutting with the razor. He described the drunken state the engineers' men had been in for some while. They were drunk all day. From his room witness heard sounds of trouble, missiles such as buckets were being thrown about the deck and presently some one said, "Get a gun." The manager at the Standard Oil wharf where the ship lay alongside called the police, om being asked to do so by witness. The fighting in the forecastle must have continued for half an hour.
Tue Quiestest MEMBER OF THE CREW.
Mr. Shoenfeld—Did you gather that defendant was picked out and bullied Yes.
In answer "to further questions, witness said Swensen was of Finnish nationality, The others were Trish-Americans, who disliked him intensely.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.