16 
ST. HELENA. 
he had made, through the disorderly and riotous conduct of the 
soldiers which followed ; accordingly he changed his policy towards 
them, and having secured Sergeant Tooley as a prisoner, he proceeded 
with the men of the main guard to the barracks to confront the 
mutineers, hut only to find, on arrival there, that the larger portion 
of the garrison had betaken themselves to the high land with the 
view of gaining possession of the Alarm House, a position which 
commanded the town, and where there was a small guard with several 
guns. Major Graeme, by the Governor’s directions, proceeded imme- 
diately on horseback, by way of Side Path, to gain the Alarm House, 
if possible before the mutineers, who had taken the route directly 
up the steep, rugged hillside. At one part of Major Graeme’s perilous 
ride— for he took the shortest way that a horse could possibly travel— 
the mutineers were very close to, and fired several shots at him ; 
but be succeeded in arriving at the Alarm House guard before them, 
and, with the assistance of the six men on duty, fired several rounds 
of grape shot from the field pieces stationed there at the mutineers 
as they advanced. It was then dark, and they cunningly evaded the 
discharge by throwing themselves flat on the ground at the time, 
then surrounding Major Grseme, they pursued him for a considerable 
distance, firing at him several times. He escaped back to James- 
town late that night, but in the meantime the Governor had 
despatched Major Bazette with a detachment of seventy men, who, 
taking a circuitous route, approached the mutinous party in the 
rear, but found they had fortified their position on all sides with the 
Alarm House guns, and received him with a shower of grape shot. 
Major Bazette’s party, however, made a dash at and secured the 
gun from which it proceeded, scattering those who had worked it, 
and, following up the attack with the aid of musketry, eventually 
overcame the mutineers, many of whom, taking advantage of the 
darkness, deserted their own, and joined the Governor’s side, while 
others took refuge in the Alarm House. Two of Major Bazette’s 
men were killed in this attack, while several of the mutineers were 
wounded, and one hundred and three taken prisoners. These were 
tried by court-martial, and, with the exception of four, all sentenced 
to death ; eventually, however, nine only of the leaders were put to 
death. 
On the resignation of Mr. Corneille, Mr. (afterwards Colonel) 
Robert Brooke was appointed Governor in 1787, and it was at this 
