please, this will not, of course, prevent our doing all we proposed to
do. We have to inform the Court that Capt. Nickerson, whose testimony we
were anxious to obtain, has not arrived, and we do not suppose we shall
have his testimony to-day. It is proper I should state, also, that we
have never regarded his testimony as indispensable in any sense, for if
we had we would not have consented to proceed with the trial without his
being present. We have, however, regarded his testimony as very
important, as giving completeness to the chain of facts which we had it
in our power to present to the Court and jury; and in this view of the
case perhaps we were anxious that the testimony should not be submitted
on the part of the government without that link in the chain; and we
were desirous of doing what, as I understand it, is the duty of the
government, of presenting all the facts that it is in our power to
present, before calling upon the prisoner for his defence. These are the
reasons which influenced the prosecution in asking for the delay which
has been granted; and we now feel that we have done all we could to
procure this testimony, in order to give the evidence such completeness
as is in our power, and we do not now feel like asking the Court for any
further delay in order to procure the testimony of Capt. Nickerson. We
are obliged to the Court for granting the delay asked for yesterday, and
we now, under the circumstances, rest the case on the part of the
government, and leave the evidence for the prosecution as it now stands.
The COURT.—It appears that Mr. Graves, the senior counsel for the
prisoner, is not in attendance, and for some reason probably for which
he is not responsible. The Court will wait a reasonable time for him.
Ex-Judge ROOSEVELT, United States District Attorney, said—During this
short interval I should remark, in addition to what has been said by Mr.
Hunt, that upon looking over this case, although I took no part in it in
open court, that the prosecution came to the conclusion that this
testimony was entirely unnecessary, though relevant; and the only reason
why any delay should have been asked, and the only reason why any delay
should have been granted, was to follow out the usage founded on good
sense and on humanity—that usage which has been regarded, not by strict
law, but by a species of courtesy, that the government, being the
stronger party, should not, at the outset, take sides, as it were, but
develop the entire case, whether they lay before the court items which
may be deemed by them not to be very important, because it might so
happen to the mind of the court and the minds of the jurors, that those
items, which we might deem not important, should seem to be very
necessary to make out the case. I did not consider the testimony of
Captain Nickerson in any other light than in completing the history of
the case. On the other side, they had a right to object to the
introduction of what Captain Nickerson had sworn to before the
commissioner, and it was perfectly proper they should do so, unless the
evidence was introduced in the regular way. On our part we have
endeavored to do our full duty to the court, to the prisoner, and to the
public. We have tried to give every element, every item of evidence in
the case that had the slightest bearing upon it; and I would now say, to
avoid any misapprehension, that it does not arise from any idea of the
weakness of the case by any means; but it is to fill out, if possible,
the usage of the courts in criminal cases. But we are unable to procure
this witness; he probably is on the ocean now, for he sailed from
Philadelphia for Boston last week, and is now at sea. If, however, he
should arrive in the course of the day, it will be for the court to say
whether it will take his testimony or not, and for the prisoner’s
counsel as to whether they will object to it or not.
The COURT.—It appears to me that this is a proper view of the case taken
by the United States Attorney. It is the duty of the government,
especially in a case of high crime—such a case as the prisoner is
charged with—to lay before the court and jury all the evidence they have
in their power, or that they are cognizant of, which has any connection
with or bearing on the case; and, as the court intimated yesterday,
whatever may be its opinions in relation to the necessity of the
evidence, such as Captain Nickerson’s might be, it would be very
improper for the court to intimate it at this stage of the trial.
Mr. SAYLES (prisoner’s counsel).—I experienced some reluctance in asking
the court a further delay for the purpose of this trial. It has already
been delayed, on the part of the government, for an entire day. I would,
however, on the present occasion, ask the court to take a recess until
twelve o’clock, to accommodate the defendant, in order that I may
ascertain where my partner is, or that I may procure counsel to
associate with me. Mr. Graves went last evening to see his uncle in
Twenty-seventh street, and I have not seen or heard of him. I would say,
in addition, that Mr. Graves has my brief in his possession.
The JUDGE said that the Court was very indulgent to both sides, in
consequence of the importance of the case, both to the public and the
prisoner, and although he is very anxious to dispose of the case as soon
as practicable, yet he would grant a delay until twelve o’clock.
On the reassembling of the Court, Mr. Sayles said he expected his
associate every minute, and he desired to consult with him as to the
production of witnesses. He would now call Mr. Commissioner White as to
the testimony of a witness named Downes, in describing the position of
the sloop.
KENNETH G. WHITE, United States Commissioner, called and examined by Mr.
Sayles, deposed—My impression is that a witness named Downes was before
me on the preliminary examination; I cannot recollect the particulars of
his testimony without referring to my minutes. (Minutes produced.) I do
not see in my minutes any designation made by Mr. Downes as to where the
vessel was; there are two marks on the chart, one of which was made by
Mr. Downes in court.
EDWARD BARNES, called for defence, deposed—He resides in Keyport; knew
Capt. Burr; gave him $100 for oysters; this was on the 15th of March; I
gave him the money in quarters and halves, and ten and five cent pieces;
I do not know what amount of money he had with him; he told me Mr.
Simmons gave him $200.
The COURT said that was not evidence.
He put it in a bag; it made the bag about half full; I cannot identify
the bag.
Mr. SAYLES then said they had no other witness for the defence, and he
then proceeded to address the Court and jury on behalf of the prisoner.
He commenced by describing the sensation created in this city by the
intelligence of this transaction, and that the public press had given a
description of and directed the eye of the community to this one man. He
then suggested that this tragedy may have been perpetrated by river
thieves who have been driven to the lower bay by the Harbor Police, and
who, perhaps, committed a similar one on another sloop on the same
night. Counsel said, in cases of admiralty this court had a limited and
special jurisdiction, derived from the laws of Congress passed under the
Constitution of our country, which gives power to define and punish
felony and piracy on the high seas. This court, therefore, had so much
power, and no more. It had no common law jurisdiction. (He then cited
several authorities.) He claimed that a portion of that act of Congress
was unconstitutional; that Congress had no right to define and punish
felonies on the high seas; it has no power to take away the rights of
individual States to punish the crime for which this man stands charged.
It was committed beyond the jurisdiction of the court, and it had no
power to punish for this felony. He then read a reported case where an
act of piracy had been committed in Boston harbor, and in which it was
held that it should be tried in the courts of that State.
The COURT remarked that this was not a question for the jury, but should
have been raised on demurrer, or might be brought up on a motion in
arrest of judgment.
Mr. SAYLES submitted that the jury were the judges of the law and the
facts.
The COURT.—Not on questions of jurisdiction. Those questions are always
for the Court—for its decision.
Mr. SAYLES contended that “on the high seas” meant either in the harbor
of some foreign country, or beyond any portion of a coast where the sea
ebbs and flows.
The COURT remarked that this was the opinion of English lawyers, but did
not apply to American laws.
Mr. SAYLES said—We have adopted the English common law.
The COURT.—Only to a limited extent.
Mr. SAYLES then cited from “Chitty’s Criminal Law,” vol. iii., which
says, “that the piracy must be distinctly proved to have been committed
on the high seas, or the defendant is entitled to an acquittal.”
According to that law the admiralty had no jurisdiction within the
limits of any county or city. The counsel then proceeded to appeal to
the reason of the jury, and lay the facts before them. It was a case of
great importance, not only to the federal government and to the
community, but also to the unfortunate prisoner at the bar, and he
called upon the jury to elevate their minds above outside prejudices. A
supposed tragedy had been committed in the lower bay, and the government
had undertaken to show, by circumstantial evidence, that this is the man
who perpetrated it. Counsel referred to the nature of circumstantial
evidence, and alluded to the recent case in this court, where some half
dozen witnesses swore positively to a man named Williams for post-office
robbery, and subsequently swore as positively against another man, who
was convicted.
Mr. HUNT, in reply, directed the court in support of the jurisdiction of
the United States courts over the lower bay.
Mr. GRAVES, for the defence, referred to the case of the two Bournes, in
Vermont, who confessed to the crime of murder, but were afterward proved
to be innocent. The evidence against Hicks was entirely circumstantial,
and of such a character as to render it very uncertain; but the most
astonishing thing about the prosecution was the charge that this one man
should kill these three men, powerful as they were, and not receive a
single scratch. There must have been a terrible struggle; blood was
spattered over the ceiling, blood everywhere, but no blood on him, no
mark of violence on his person.
Mr. HUNT remarked that the only questions of law upon which there had
been any dispute, were ruled upon by the Court, and he had nothing
further to say.
Mr. DWIGHT then proceeded to sum up on the part of the government. He
had hoped that there might have been some chance of the innocence of the
prisoner found in the course of the trial. But he had been disappointed;
nothing which had been asserted by the witnesses for the prosecution had
been contradicted. No attempt had been made to break any one link in the
chain of the evidence. The defence would endeavor to induce the jury to
believe that Capt. Burr parted with his watch, which he had carried for
nine years, to a pawnbroker; that Smith Watts had parted with the
clothes which his aged mother had put up for him; that Oliver Watts had
parted with the daguerreotype of the girl he loved. The time had not yet
come when Yankee sailor boys gave up the pictures of “the girls they
left behind them” without a struggle. Mr. Dwight then clearly and
concisely reviewed the whole case and the testimony, giving a painful
but graphic description of that dread night when this triple deed of
blood was perpetrated, and concluded thus: Gentlemen, I have occupied
your time longer than I intended, and I have but one word further to
say. If this prisoner is not proven guilty of the crime against him, he
is of course an innocent man. If there is in the breast of any of you
one doubt concerning his guilt—one reasonable doubt as to his having
committed this robbery of George H. Burr, as set forth in the
indictment, in God’s name give him the benefit of that doubt. It is his
sacred privilege, and it is just as much his right as he has a right to
his life or his liberty. If you have any doubt upon considering the
evidence, give him the benefit of that doubt, or any which you may have.
But, gentlemen, if through the five days of this trial there has crept
into your minds a conviction that he is the man, and if that conviction
has been strengthened by the evidence which has been adduced and placed
before you—that no other but he had committed this crime, then I say
that his conviction is the property of the government, and I charge you
to give it to the government. Here, in your seats, where you have sat
during these five days listening to the opening and the testimony, and
the closing upon the part of the government—here, in your very seats, I
charge you to give the benefit of your conviction to the government, and
I charge you to do this in your jury box without any hesitation.
Gentlemen, there was no hesitation on his part; with that sharp axe he
cut down the fair-haired boy, Watts; and then returned and felled the
other: and then the death struggle with the captain occurred. Gentlemen,
there was no hesitation there; and if you are convinced of his guilt,
let there be no hesitation in your rendering in your jury box a verdict
against him. There cries from the sands of Islip, “justice;” from that
widow and from that mother. There comes up from the depths of the
Atlantic, “from all the ships that float on it, and all that go down in
the great deep”—there comes the cry of “justice.” The prisoner equally
calls upon you to do justice; and gentlemen, I ask you, in the name of
the government, if you believe him guilty of this crime, which he
committed speedily, summarily and devilishly, that you will let your
verdict be speedy, summary and just.
During the whole of Mr. DWIGHT’S address, which occupied nearly an hour,
the prisoner was still unmoved; he never winced, but coolly twisted and
turned a pen in his hand, pointing it to the table, and scarcely once
looked up.
JUDGE SMALLEY said it was now past four o’clock, and he desired to look
into some authorities which had been referred to; he would not charge
the jury until morning.
The COURT then adjourned to Saturday morning, at ten o’clock. The
prisoner was removed, in irons, by Deputy Marshals De Angelis and Dugan,
who had special charge of him, and who kept a sharp watch that he should
have no means of suicidal death at hand, nor make any effectual effort
to escape.
The court-room was, as it had been every day during this extraordinary
trial, densely crowded.
SIXTH DAY.
THE VERDICT.
JUDGE SMALLEY charged the jury. He instructed them that the case was
clearly within the jurisdiction of the Court, the occurrence having
taken place in the harbor. The jury retired at 10:36, and after having
been out seven minutes, returned and announced that they had agreed upon
a verdict. The prisoner was directed to stand up, which he did readily,
exhibiting little or no emotion. In a scarcely audible voice the foreman
then announced that the jury found him GUILTY of the crime with which he
was charged. Hicks appeared to be somewhat stupefied by the
announcement, but resumed his seat again when the counsel told him to.
The Court then remanded him for sentence, and he quietly held out his
hands for the handcuffs. His counsel, Mr. Eagles, then asked the Court
to set some time in which to make a motion for arrest of judgment. Judge
Smalley designated 10 A.M. on Wednesday as the time for making such
motion. Hicks was then conducted back to the Tombs by the officers
having him in charge.
A motion for a new trial was afterward argued and denied. Immediately
after decision, the sentence of DEATH was passed upon him, the day fixed
for his execution being FRIDAY, the 13th of July, on BEDLOE’S ISLAND.
THE
CONFESSION OF ALBERT W. HICKS,
PIRATE AND MURDERER.
OFFICE U. S. MARSHAL, _Southern District of New York_.
I hereby certify that the within Confession of ALBERT W. HICKS was
made by him to me, and that it is the only confession made by him.
LORENZO DE ANGELIS, _Deputy U. S. Marshal_.
_July 9, 1860._
After his sentence, Hicks seemed to lose that firmness which he had
hitherto manifested. His reckless indifference left him, and in place of
the stolid look which had marked his face from the time of his arrest,
an appearance of deep anxiety gave token that he had abandoned the hope
which had supported him, and that dread of his approaching fate, if not
remorse for his crimes, had taken possession of him.
He seemed to dread being left alone, and often besought his keeper and
the warden of the prison to keep him company in his cell. He was
frequently found in tears, and on being questioned as to the cause of
his grief, expressed a deep anxiety in regard to the future of his wife
and child, about fifteen months old.
He was often begged to make a free confession of his crimes, and though
at first he stoutly denied having anything to confess, he at last sent
for Mr. De Angelis, and offered not only to confess the crime of which
he stood convicted, but also to give a history of his whole life in
detail, from his childhood up to the time of his arrest, on condition
that the confession should not be published until the day of his
execution, and that all the proceeds arising from its sale should be
given to his wife.
This was agreed to by Mr. De Angelis, and accordingly, on the 13th of
June, that gentleman, accompanied by an amanuensis, visited Hicks in his
cell, and there listened to his confession, which is given below in the
precise order in which he related it, though not in his own words, his
command of language being exceedingly limited. The true spirit of the
narrative is strictly preserved, however, and wild, monstrous, and
terrible as the details are, there is no doubt of their truth.
After Mr. De Angelis and the amanuensis had taken seats, Hicks being
seated upon his iron bedstead, proceeded as follows:
I can stand it no longer. I had hoped that I should carry the secrets of
my life with me to my grave. I never thought that I should sit here in
my cell crying like a baby, over the remembrance of the past, or that my
heart would flinch at meeting any fate in store for me.
I fancied I bore a charmed life, and that having heretofore escaped so
many dangers, I should find some loop-hole through which to creep now,
or that something would turn up in my favor which would lead to my
escape from the mesh into which I had fallen.
I have long felt as though I were the Devil’s own, and that though he
had served me so many years, I must at last be his; yet I imagined he
would not claim me yet, but allow me to do his work for a time longer.
He has stood by me all my life, on ship and on shore, amid the howling
storms of the ocean, where every moment the waves threatened to ingulf
me; he has snatched me from their deadly embrace on the battle-field, in
many a hand-to-hand fight; he has seemed to stand by my side protecting
me from danger; and when I have been in the hands of my enemies, and
escape has appeared impossible, he has, until now, invariably opened the
way for my release. But at last he has deserted me; in vain I call upon
him, he will not answer me; and I dare not call on God, for what pity
should he show a guilty wretch like me?
For years conscience has slumbered; I have not heard her voice at all.
No deed of desperation has seemed to me too desperate; no crime has
seemed too dark or bloody. My soul seemed dead to all remorse or dread,
and fear has been a feeling which, until now, I have never known.
But in this lonely cell, away from all the excitements which have always
been the support of my restless nature—within these solemn walls, where
I see none but those who guard me, or those come to look at me, as upon
some wild beast; here, where no sounds fall upon my ear but the
footsteps of the keeper, as he paces with measured tread the long
corridor outside, or harsh, discordant clank of heavy doors slamming, or
the grating of bolts and the creaking of hinges—conscience, so long
dead, has at last awakened, and now stings me with anguish, and fills my
soul with dread and horror.
I look back upon my way of life, and see the path marked with blood and
crime, and in the still midnight, if I sleep, I act the dreadful scenes
anew. Again I imbrue my hand in the red blood of my victims; again I rob
the unsuspecting traveller, or violate the most sacred sanctities of
life, to satisfy my greed of gold, or headstrong, unchecked passions;
and if I wake, I seem to see my victims glaring at me through the gloom
of my cell, or hear them shriek aloud for vengeance on my guilty head.
The past is one great horror! The future one dread fear. A heavy,
insupportable weight is on my heart, and I feel as if, did I not reveal
its fearful secrets, I should go mad.
But I have resisted the impulse until now, and would die and tell no
tales, but that the history of my life may serve as a warning to
mankind, and may benefit my wife, perhaps, though it will make her bow
her head in deep shame over the crimes of him who is the father of her
child.
I feel that after I have unburdened myself of the secrets of my life, I
can die easier, and meet my fate like a man; and though I may go to the
gallows without hope, without repentance, without any evidence of aught
but misery hereafter, the thought that the sale of this, my Confession,
will perhaps keep the mother of my child from dependence on such cold
charity as the world would show a murderer’s wife, will make me stronger
to bear the inevitable doom which is now awaiting me.
For my own sake I would not have done this; but for the sake of her
whose fate I have linked in life to mine, and for the sake of the poor
little child, who I trust will never know who was its father, I give to
the world the wretched
STORY OF MY LIFE.
I was born about the year 1820, in the town of Foster, State of Rhode
Island.
My father was a farmer, and had seven sons, of whom I was the youngest
but one.
I worked on the farm until I was fifteen years of age, and though I had
opportunities of receiving the benefit of public instruction, I never
attended school, or profited by the advantages offered me to improve my
condition in life by any honest or legitimate means.
I was naturally of a wild, restless, reckless disposition, fonder of
wandering about the fields, or lounging by the brook side, than
following habits of industry, and among my companions was noted for my
headstrong, imperious manner, and was always foremost in all youthful
frolics and scrapes, never feeling satisfied unless I could outdo my
companions in any enterprise of fun or mischief.
My only ambition was to be rich; but I had no desire to acquire riches
in the plodding way in which our neighbors went through life; my dream
was to become suddenly rich by some bold stroke, and then to give free
reins to the passions and desires which governed me.
I never, even as a boy, hoarded money. I did not care for the mere
possession of it. It was only valuable to me as the means of gratifying
my passions.
I used to wish that I could find the pots of gold and silver which rumor
said had been buried in our neighborhood by pirates and robbers, and
used to listen with rapt attention to stories of pirates, robbers,
highwaymen, etc., which my companions used sometimes to relate.
My father compelled me to work, and though I had no taste for it, when
once in the field my ambition to excel always brought me out first at
the end of the row or swath, and having some mechanical skill, I was
often called upon to do jobs about the farm which saved calling upon the
wheelwright or carpenter.
But by the time I was fifteen years of age I grew tired of the
monotonous life I had been leading, and my desire to roam and see the
world, and seek my fortune, took entire possession of me; so I began
making my preparations to run away. I got together a small sum of money,
by hook and by crook; and one night, after all were asleep, I stealthily
left the house, and took the road to Providence, from whence I proceeded
to Norwich, Conn.
Here I took the first important step in that career of crime which has
made me a prisoner in this cell, and which will lead me eventually to
the gallows.
After arriving at Norwich, I wandered about, seeking not employment, but
some means of gratifying my desire for money in an easier way; and
during the day I strayed into the railroad depot, where I observed a
number of trunks, packages of goods, etc., a part of which I determined
to appropriate to myself. I hung about the depot until night, and then
watching my opportunity, I seized a package of goods; and leaving the
depot in all haste, made my way outside of the town to some woods, where
I examined the package, which contained laces and silks. I secreted some
of the things about me; and, not knowing any one to whom I could dispose
of them there, I determined to go back home, which I reached in the
course of a few days.
My parents were very angry with me, and tried to learn where I had been;
but I kept a still tongue, and sold the goods secretly to a peddler who
stopped at the house.