ARCHIVAL MOMENT
August 22, 1884
St. Mary’s rum is of so deleterious a character that not my unfortunate clients, but the vendors of such poison, should be placed in the dock.”
On August 22,1884 an outrage against the Catholic population in St. Mary’s, St. Mary’s Bay, Newfoundland was resolved by the courts. The outrage was considered so offensive that it made newspaper headlines internationally. The North Otago Times, in New Zealand account of the event in St. Mary’s, St. Mary’s Bay reads:
Lawlessness In Newfoundland
“An outrage was perpetrated on Saturday, June 27, 1884 by the crew of the barque Lady Elibank. The crew broke into the Catholic church of St. Mary’s in St. Mary’s Bay, and demolished the furniture and appointments of the sanctuary, destroyed the tabernacle, abstracted the chalice, and other sacred vessels, smashed the candelabra, and strewed the debris about the streets, and in various ways desecrated the church. Five men were arrested. As soon as the knowledge of this desecration of the church spread amongst the Catholic population, not less than 500 boats were manned for the purpose of firing and scuttling the vessel ; but the influence of the parish priest and the supplying merchants prevented revenge.”
—North Otago Times, in New Zealand
In Newfoundland, the local newspapers the Newfoundlander and Evening Telegram carried every detail of the story:
Newfoundlander, July 1st, 1884:
An act of monstrous desecration and sacrilege
“An act of monstrous desecration and sacrilege was committed at St. Mary’s on Saturday night last. The barquentine LADY ELIBANK arrived there a short time ago was discharging a cargo of salt. Five of the sailors – four of whom are Germans and one a Negro – broke into the Roman Catholic Chapel at a late hour of the night, knocked down the altar furniture, tore up one or more vestments, and even made away with the chalice. The perpetrators of the shocking outrage have all been arrested, and the Sacred Vessel, which had been desecrated has been restored to the Church. As far as we can remember, this is the first act of scoundrelism of the kind that has taken place in this country. As yet, there are no further particulars than those given above, and it is assumed that drink has been the prime mover. But, whatever the cause, we do trust that the miscreants may receive the exemplary punishment that the law can give them.”
The Evening Telegram, July 7th, 1884:
Latest from St. Mary’s
“Intelligence from St. Mary’s states that the magisterial investigation into the conduct of the five men, charged with breaking into the Roman Catholic Chapel there, was concluded last Thursday and resulted in the discharge of the Negro and the committal of the four Norwegian sailors to be tried at Placentia before the Supreme Court on Circuit there next month. The examination disclosed that the parties broke into the church through the window, wrenched off the altar rail, and with it forced open the Tabernacle, where they took away the ciborium and the chalice. They tore down the altar decorations, vases and candlesticks, etc, and flung them about. They even entered the vestry and from it took four suits of vestments, the censer and the monstrance. All these articles, they brought aboard the ship, were subsequently discovered, hidden away in various parts of the hold and amongst the bedding in the forecastle. The captains and officers of the Lady Elibank did all in their power to assist the officers of justice, and it was owing to the personal influence and popularity of Captain Lee that the people were restrained from laying violent hands on the authors of this piece of criminality, the worst of the sort ever known there.”
Newfoundlander, August 22, 1884 :
“St. Mary’s rum is of so deleterious a character”
It was shown that the conclusiveness of the evidence, as well as the confession of one of the accused, left little doubt of their criminality. The Grand Jury retired after two hours absence, returned a true bill against Gustafsen and Kenner who were remanded for trial. Mr. Emmerson being assigned for the defense. When the court sat on Friday, it was found that Kenner, who had from the first declared himself innocent, had confessed his guilt, and Mr. Emmerson, in reply to the question why sentence should not be passed, made a very forcible address. He spoke of them as coming from a barbarous land, of being ignorant waifs, uncivilized and uninstructed, but his strongest point being the sweeping charge made against the liquor sellers of St. Mary’s. Said the learned gentlemen:“St. Mary’s rum is of so deleterious a character that not my unfortunate clients, but the vendors of such poison, should be placed in the dock.”
His Lordship, Judge Little, correcting the learned council, showed that the accused came from a civilized and Christian land, that they were not ignorant, as both could read and write well, and that they were not drunk.
Kenner was sentenced to two years, Gustafsen to one year and ten months, both with hard labour in the Penitentiary; the imprisonment to be counted from committal in July – forfeiting, in addition, the money due them by their late Captain.
Recommended Archival Collection: At the Rooms Provincial Archives Division: Read the many great stories that is our history in The Evening Telegram: [1879-1886]-1978 Microfilm and in the Newfoundlander [1827-1835], 1837-[1846-1849, [1851]-[1855-1856]-[1858]-[1860]-[1863]-[1865]-[1868]-[1873]-[1877]-1884 microfilm