The Sea-Law Rebellion: How Seattle Sailors Won Their Freedom

The ten seamen who deserted their ship, the Alex Gibson, last Monday and were arrested at the instance of the captain of the vessel, were released from jail yesterday on a writ of habeas corpus, signed by James Hamilton Lewis, attorney for the Coast Seamen's Union. At 2 o'clock, the case was heard before Judge Hanford in the United States court. The names of the sailors are Frank Wilson, C. L. Jensen, Bondo Thompson, John Daley, A. Alstrom, Andrew Johnson, William Hope, J. Hendricksen, R. Kenny, and Charles Hensen. They were committed Tuesday by Commissioner Allen in default of $100 bail for each and were held in the prison on McNeil's Island. On the hearing of the case, Mr. Lewis argued that the law making desertion a misdemeanor does not apply to coastwise trade but only to foreign ports where vessels ply between home and foreign ports, or between Atlantic and Pacific ports where they have to round Cape Horn. Judge Hanford, after examining the law, said: 'It seems to be very clear that these men cannot be held as deserters unless they signed the contract and were shipped before a shipping commissioner... as the penalty attaches only in this case, they cannot be punished for desertion.' The petitioners for the writ of habeas corpus will be discharged.