Colony of Connecticut Hartford County ssー
Be it remembered that on this fourth day of March in the Year of our Lord one Thousand seven Hundred and seventy six personally came and appeared before me Titus Hosmer, Esqr one of his Majesties Justices of the peace for said County Captains George Starr and Giles Sage both of said Middletown in said County, and being duly sworn to declare the Truth upon their Oaths depose and say, and first the said George Starr saith that in May last at said Middletown he carefully examined the Brigantine polly Burthen about One Hundred and Ten Tons then owned by Messrs Matthew Talcott Esqr and Jeremiah Wadsworth with her appurtenances, being upon a Treaty for the purchase of the same and that he then judged her to be worth Five Hundred and Fifty-pounds lawfull Money and that he verily believes that at the Time she is said to have been taken; on the ー 20th of September last by the Nautilus Man of War, making proper Allowance for her Wear and Tare on her voyage betwixt said Months of May and September that she was well worth Five Hundred Pounds lawfull Money, and further he saith not. and the said Giles Sage upon his Oath deposeth and saith that sometime in the Month of May last he was appointed by said Talcott and Wadsworth Master of their said Brigantine, the Polly, and on the 12th day of June last sailed in her from the port of New London with a Cargo of Horses, provisions and Lumber, shipped partly by said Owners and partly by sundry other persons for Kingston in the Island of Jamaica in the West Indies where he arrived on the 6th day of July last; That he continued at Kingston from that Time till the 20th day of August following and in that Time sold the Cargo of said Briga, and laid out the neat proceeds in the purchase of the produce of sd Island and other Merchandize, & laded the same on board sd Briga, cleared her out at the Custom House for New York, and on sd 20th day of August sailed from Kingston for New York ー the Deponent farther says that on his passage from Kingston to New York on the 20th day of Septemr Last being in Soundings & not far from Land, about South West from Montauk; and South from Long Island, standing In for New York, we fell in with his Majesties Ship Nautilus, Commandd by Capt John Collins who immediately fired three Guns at us to bring us to, and hoisted out her pinnace and sent her with a Number of Armed Men on board the Briga, took said Briga into his possession, & took this Deponent, and all his Mariners, the mate excepted out of sd Briga, & put a prize Master & Seamen on board in their stead and then stood away for Newport Rhode Island with said Briga in Company.
This Deponent also saith that he judged said Brigantine and her Appurtenances at the Time she was taken as aforesaid to be well worth Five Hundred pounds lawfull Money, and that her Cargo consisted of the several Articles particularly enumerated & sett down in the foregoing Account on this Sheet of paper,
that the same were the property of the several persons therein mentioned, and that, to the best of his Knowlege and Belief, the same would have ben worth the prices thereto set and affixed amounting in the whole to twenty five Hundred thirty four pounds nineteen Shillings and two pence lawfull Money had he been permitted to carry them into the port for which said Briga was destined.
This Deponent farther says that at Newport the Mate Josiah Lee, was by Order of Capt Collins taken out of sd Briga and confined in Irons on board the Nautilus, and continued loaded with Irons eleven Weeks afterwards, & then was put on board his Majesties Ship the Boyne, and sent to England. ー The pretence for this Severe Usage was an Information from a Mariner put on board the Briga that two other of sd Mariners had sollicited him to join with them to rescue sd Briga and likewise told him that sd Lee would join with them, which Charge the accused Seamen d~nied & declared sd Lee never did say anything to them upon the Subject, & sd Lee likewise denied that he had any Knowlege of a Design to rescue sd Briga or that he had ever said any thing upon the Subject to any person whatsoever
The deponent farther says that after the Arrival of said briga in the Harbour of Boston, she was libelled before Nathl Hatch Esqr Deputy Judge of the Admiralty, and after a long tirrie condemned, but for what Cause this Deponent is ignorant, it was indeed given out that some Cotton wool he had on board was not shipped agreably to the provisions of the Act of Navigation, but of this the Deponent was ignorant, he having cleared out sd Briga in Jamaica, as he had usually done in former Voyages, when no Exception had been taken either in the West Indies or here in the Custom Houses on the Continent
The deponent farther says that he continued & was detained in Boston till about the 10th day of December last, when upon being informed by Capt Collins that he had Orders from the Admiral to put him on board the preston then bound for England, as soon as the sales of the Briga and her Cargo were closed, he found Means to make his Escape to Dorchester point, and from thence returnd Home
finally this Deponent says that the Crew of said Brigantine when taken consisted of Josiah Lee, Mate, Eleazer Treadwell,
Jabez Perkins, John Pike, John Hall, Noadiah Bailey, Jeremiah Fullerton, and this Deponent; of which sd Eleazer Treadwell & this Deponent have made their Escape, and the rest are yet detained in Captivity ー and farther this Deponent saith not.
Sworn the Day and Year above written before Me
Titus Hosmer, Justs Pace
