The Sun.
London, England, 1860-08-02 00:00:00

along, sees many a place where the grass grows taller
and greener than that which surrounds it ; but he
little dreams that its roots are enriched by the blood
shed by me. If I should travel that road now, I
should have plenty of ghostly company, for, though
dead men tell no tales, and are but dead to all the
_ _

world beside, to me they are now living horrors,
and will insist in keeping company with me.
" I remember one day that, a few miles from
Montevido, we attacked a man and three women,
all of them being on horseback. We robbed them
and should have killed them all, but the women
were beautiful, and for once I allowed my heart to
yield to the feelings of pity, and we did not mur-
der them,

" I shall never forgot the look of those poor
frightened creatures kneeling at my feet, praying
me to be merciful, while my partner, Tom Stone—
that was his name, I do not think I have mentioned

it before—stood a 'few feet off, with his pistol at
the head of the man who was gradually divesting
himself of everything valuable he had about him."
After robbing this party they were suffered to
depart.
He refers also to the numerous murders com-

mitted by himself and comrade between Santiago
and Valparaiso, the details of which are given. He
was on board the ship Anne Mills, a slaver, and
being in danger of being captured, he says the
slaves on board were all tied to a cable, and the
anchor thrown overboard dragging them after it.
After detailing robberies, murders, and ravishings
without number, he gives the following regarding
the murders on board the
OYSTER SLOOP E. A. JOHNSON :
" The sloop E. A. Johnson offered an easy prey.
She had on board, I supposed, from all the informa-
tion I could gather, something over a thousand dole
lars, and the entire crew consisted of but two boys
and myself.
" I had never known of or seen Capt. Burr befov..e
I shipped with him. He had never done me injury
or wrong, so that I had no revenge to gratify, no
grudge to pay.
" He seemed a kind and amiable man, and would,
I have no doubt, awakened kindly feelings in any
heart but mine, and even I liked him. Yet, I en-
gaged myself to him solely and only for the cruel
purpose of taking his life, the lives of the two young
men, and making myself master of the money I sup-
posed he had on board.
" I calculated to do this as calmly as you would
contemplate doing any of the usual duties in the
ordinary transactions of life.
" I had killed men, yes, and boys too, many a
time before, for far less inducement than the sum I
supposed I should gain by killing them : and I had
too often dyed my murderous hands in blood in
days gone by, to feel the slightest compunctions or
qualms of conscience then.
"I never thought of the consequences of such a
crime. The fear of detection never once crossed
my mind. I had too often done the same thing with
impunity to believe that a day of reckoning would
ever come, in this world at least, and I never gave
a thought to the world to come.
" After engaging with Capt. Burr, I went home
to my wife at No. 129, Cedar-street, and lying
down on the bed, told her not to disturb me, as I
wanted to take a long sleep, and if any one came
for me, to say that I was not in. She left me
alone, and I then deliberately matured all my plans.
I marked out the course I intended to pursue
exactly, and after I had decided upon everything,
I went to sleep and slept as soundly as ever I slept
in my life, my mind was so much at ease, and I
felt so contented at the idea of having at last an
opportunity of making some money in an easy way.
" The next day I went on board and commenced
my duties, and in order to ingratiate myself into
the good graces of the captain, I did even more
than could have been expected f me.
" We sailed on the 16th of March from the foot
of Spring-street, and proceeded to Keyport, where
we remained till Sunday. While here, I scraped
the mast of the sloop, did a lot of carpenter work,
and accidently pleased Captain Burr very much by
my earnestness in trying to make everything look
shipshape.
"We arrived at Gravesend on Saturday after-
noon, and waited there for a fair wind.
"At last we put to sea, and when we were off
the Ocean House, I went to the forecastle, and got
an axe, which I put in the boat hanging to the
davit aft.
" The younger Watts was at the helm, and I
asked him to allow me to steer a little while. He
consented, and went forward.
" In a few minutes I left the helm, and taking
the axe, went to him and asked him if he saw
Barnegat Light. He said he did not. I told him to
look again and pointed with my hand.
He turned round and looked in my face a mo-
ment, but even if he had suspected my cruel pur-
pose he would have read no indication of it there,
for I was as calm as though I was going to do the
simplest and most innocent thing in life.
" Had I been under human influences the confi-
dent and trusty way in which he turned his eyes to
mine would have made me hesitate, but no such
thought entered my heart, and I pointed again and
told him to ' Look there ; ain't that it ? '
" He turned his head and peered through the
darkness in the direction I pointed, and as he did so
I struck him on the back of the head with the axe,
and knocked him down.
" He fell.
" Thinking I had not killed him I struck him
again with the axe as he lay upon the deck. .
" His fall and the sound of the axe made some
noise, which, added to that caused by my running
across the deck, attracted the attention of the cap-
tain, who came up the companion way, and putting
out his head asked what was the matter.
" I replied, Nothing,' and then asked him, as I
had the younger Watts, Is that Barnegat Light ? '
" Captain Burr replied, ' No, you will not see it
for two hours ; and as he spoke he turned his head
from me.
" The axe swung in the air, and guided by my
sinewy and murderous arm came down.
" The edge crushed through his neck, nearly
severing his head from his body, and killing him
instantly.
" The body fell down the companionway.
" As I turned to leap after it, and dispatch my
remaining victim, I looked forward, and—oh, God,
how I shudder to think of it now l—he whom I
thought I had already killed had risen, and was
coming aft, his hand outstretched towards me, and
the blood running in two dark streams over his
pale face, from two ghastly wounds on his head.
" For a moment I stood undecided, but as he still
came on, I ran toward him, but ere I reached him he
fell about midship, and rushing on him, I struck
once, twice, thrice with the axe and finished him.
" Running aft, I jumped down the companion-
way with the bloody axe in my hand.
"There lay the elder Watts, in his berth, and close
beside him the ghastly, bloody corpse of the captain.
"I stood a moment looking at him, and dashed at
him, and struck out with the axe.
" He leaped out of his berth, and sprang at me,
all red with the blood of the captain, whose body
had fallen past him, covering him with gore in its
fall.

" He tried to grapple with me, but stepping back
I gave the fatal axe a full swing, and struck him
again, again and again, once upon the head, once on
the back, and he lay dead at my feet, side by side
with the captain.
" My bloody work was done !
" Dead men tell no tales.
" I was alone. No eye had seen me, and now I
was free to reap the reward of my work.
" I did not feel the slightest regret for what I
had done, and went about removing the bodies, as
coolly as though they had been so much old lumber.
" I took rope and bent it on to the feet of the elder
Watts, hauled him on deck, and threw him over the
quarter. I then hauled the captain out in the same
manner, and threw him over ; and then going to
midships, I lifted the body of the younger Watts
from the deck, and plunged him into the sea by the
starboard side.
" I then threw the axe overboard, and as soon as
I had done this I changed the course of the sloop,
and ran in close to the Hook.
" My intention was to run the sleep up the North
River, and then fire her ; but I same near running
her on the Dog Beacon, abreast of Coney Island
and Staten Island lighthouse, after which I fouled
with a schooner, and carried away the bowsprit, so
I put the money and such other articles of value as
I could pick up into the yawl, and then scut
on
ashore, three miles, landing just below the for
Staten Island.
" My movements after landing are well known ;
and when I looked back upon the fat
seemed to dog my steps, it seems as though the
that
the fiend
who so long had stood by me in every emergency
had deserted me at last, and had left me to my own
weakness.
"But I never thought of this until after my
arrest. I had no shadows of a presentiment that I
should be checked so suddenly and brought to
justice, and on my return to New York made
arrangements to go
with my family as coolly
a
as if nothing had occuwrraeyd which should counsel
me to u4e caution.
"But on that fatal night when I awoke from a
deep sleep to find the officers of the law standing
by my bed, for the first time fear overcame me, and
I grew faint and weak as a baby. Great drops of
sweat started out of my forehead and all over my
body, and then I realised that at last the master
whom I had served so long had really deserted me
and abandoned me to my fate.
"But to all outward appearance I choked these
feelings down, and none who saw me dreamed of
what was passing within.
"My task is done. I have related all the awful