The Cadiz sentinel. [volume] (Cadiz, Ohio) 184?-1851, 1844-05-29


the adventure a profitable one, Mr.. Livingston
offered to be concerned with Captain Kidd in
one-ffth of the vessel, and to be bound for the
faithful execution of his commission.
The King not only countenanced the enter
prise. but was TO share one tenth in the profits
so confidently anticipated to result from it. Sew
eral of the nobility took shares in the adventure
among whom were the Duke of Shrewsbury,
the Earls ofRomney and Oxford, and Lord Chan
celor Somes.
The chief management of the affair was en-
trusted to Lord 3ellamont, through whom the
commission of Kidd was regularly issued.
Under this he sailed from Plymouth for New
York, in April, 1896, in a ship called the adven-
ture Galley. On his way thther he took a
French ship, which he carried into New York,
where she was condemned; and there he enlist
ed large number of men by promising them a
share of the prizes he might take. His whole
crew, in the end, consisted Of about one hundred
and fifty men.
Belamont did not reach New York till near
" two years after Kidd had sailed from England !;
and found, on arriving there, that instead of hav-
ing exterminated piracy, the man whom he had
commissioned for that purpose had become the
terror of the ocean, by the bold and ndiscrimi-
nate war which he had beenscarying on against
the vessels ofall nations.
Such an issue of an expedition, which the min
istry and leading Wings had originated, could
hardly fail to bring reproach upon its authors, es-
pecialIy while party spirit was as rife as it was
then in England.
Lord Somes, though of long tried worth and
great sagacity as political leader, was particu-
larly obnoxious to the Tories; and, after holding
the great seal for seven years, was, by their nsti-
cation, dismissed from office,
In l70l, he with the earls of portland and
Oxford, was mpeached for high crimes and
misdemeanors, and one of the articles against
the late Chancellor was his connection with Cap
tain Kidd. Kidd was even examined at the bal
of the House of Commons, with view to make
evidence against the ministry; but the attempt
to connect him with them in any way calculated
to impeach their moral or political character
wholly failed The Commons did not pursue
their articles of impeachment, and no trial was
ever had upon them; and, when the trial Of Kidd
took place, the entire innocence fall who were
interested in the enterprise which had been en-
trusted to him, was conclusvoly established.
The course which Kidd pursued, after leaving
New York with his augmented crew, was direct
ed to the Indian Ocean, where he made many
lch prizes; and, having divided his booty with
his crew, about ninety left him, and engaged i'll
other similar adventures. He thereupon burned
his own vessel, and embarked in one of his pri-
zes for the West Indies Here he purchased a
sloop, and leaving his prize in charge of part
of his crew, he sailed with the remainder for
New England, and with strange degree OF
foolhardness, yentured to appear openly in Bos-
ton, and to engage in traffic there
As soon, however, as his arrival there was
known; he was sent for by the Government, and
required to render an account of what he had
done under his commission, within three days
AS he failed to comply with this order, an officer
was sent to arrest him, on the 9th of July, 1909;
but Kidd being determined not tosunender, drew
his sword on the officer, and only submitted af
ter he was overpowered by superior force.
The Governor made no delay in sending no.
tice of his arrest to England, and, SO important
was it deemed to secure him from escape, that a
vessel was fitted out for the purpose, and order
ed to Boston to bring him to England.
Upon his being arrested in Boston, his plate
and other valuables were seized in New York,
but subsequently given up by Government to his
wife, upon her representation that she had come
honestly by it. True TO her character as wom-
an and wife, she came to Boston and visited
her husband in prison, and made most urgent
application to the Governor TO extend favor to-
wards him. This application, as we'll as that
for the restoration of her property, is among the
curious papers in the Secretary's Office of the
| Commonwealth.
The same i'll fortune, which first involved the
ministry in a connection with Kidd, attended
their efforts to remove him to England. The
vessel sent out for that purpose, after encoun-
terng tremendous storms, was obliged to put
back without reaching her destination; and it was
openly charged that they dare not bring the mat
ter to the test of public trial.
| Kidd however, together with one Bradish, O
famous pirate, was at length sent home, where
he was indicted and put upon his trial for mur-
der and piracy. This did not take place until
the eigth of May l70l, although, as has been sta
ted, his original arrest was made nearly two years
prior to that date.
In regard to the charge of murder, of which
he was convicted, it seems it was the result of a
hasty braw between him and his gunner, Will
liam Moore and at this day would have been re-
garded as an act of mansaughter only. The
blow which caused his death was inflicted with a
lDucket, ana was gwen III consequence OF lrrlta-
ting anguage used by the deceased towards his
commander, in an angry dispute.
1t made however, but little practical difference
with the prisoner whether the verdict in this in
stance was right or wrong, for, upon each of the
five indictments which followed, he was convic.
ted, and general sentence of death was pro-
nounced upon him. Eight of his associates
were convicted and sentenced at the same time
but Kidd protested to the last, that he had been
sacrificed by pe1ured witnesses.
The sentence was soon after executed upon
him, and the name of "Captain Kidd" has ever
since been associated in the legends ofour early
history, with tho powers of darkness; and the un,