Patagonia Bookshelf
Contacts between ships and natives groups, as reported in the English-language press
PROPONTIS [1871]
| Article title | Cannibalism | Ship | Ship, brigantine, Britain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source | New York Times, 12 July 1871 | Date of event | 1871 |
| More info. | None | Location | Port Gallant, Magellan Strait |
| Article | Transcript | Informant | Algernon Lyons, Captain H.M.S. Charybdis |
Abstract: Captain Barnes of the Propontis and three crew members went ashore at Port Gallant to collect wood and water. When they did not return, a search party found the captain's mutilated body, but no trace of the others. Being menaced by canoe natives, the survivors went to Punta Arenas. Hearing of these events, Captain Lyons of HMS Charybdis attempted to capture the suspects, delivering one native to the Chilean Governor. The prisoner's defence was that his group was attacked by the Propontis party.
Assessment: The Governor's statement that he intended to punish the natives responsible for the murders had one stumbling-block (as Captain Lyons discovered) — one must first find and capture them. There is no information about whether such retaliation occurred. In any case, subjecting natives to the white man's justice would only have served to exacerbate animosities. Questioning of the captured native would have required the presence of an interpreter — possible, perhaps: his "confession" of cannibalism is likewise subject to doubt.