Page 598 - for-the-term-of-his-natural-life

him for this flower, offering two days’ rations for it. Hankey,
who is not a bad-hearted man, gave him the sprig. ‘There
were tears in his eyes as he took it,’ said he.
There must be some way to get at this man’s heart, bad as
he seems to be.
August 28th.—Hankey was murdered yesterday. He ap-
plied to be removed from the gaol-gang, but Frere refused.
‘I never let my men ‘funk’,’ he said. ‘If they’ve threatened
to murder you, I’ll keep you there another month in spite
of ‘em.’
Someone who overheard this reported it to the gang, and
they set upon the unfortunate gaoler yesterday, and beat his
brains out with their shovels. Troke says that the wretch
who was foremost cried, ‘There’s for you; and if your master
don’t take care, he’ll get served the same one of these days!’
The gang were employed at building a reef in the sea, and
were working up to their armpits in water. Hankey fell into
the surf, and never moved after the first blow. I saw the gang,
and Dawes said—
‘It was Frere’s fault; he should have let the man go!’
‘I am surprised you did not interfere,’ said I.
‘I did all I could,’ was the man’s answer. ‘What’s a life
more or less, here?’
This occurrence has spread consternation among the
overseers, and they have addressed a ‘round robin’ to the
Commandant, praying to be relieved from their positions.
The way Frere has dealt with this petition is characteris-
tic of him, and fills me at once with admiration and disgust.
He came down with it in his hand to the gaol-gang, walked