The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1851-02-23
BroOkIyn CITY Court.

| Brooklyn CITY Court.
Before Judge Greenwood and Aldermen Lsseh a
Taylor.
/ TRIAL OF GEORGE WILKES, EDITOR OF TIE POLIO
GAZETTE, FoR LIBEL
Fgs 2l-The assistant Distxic. Attorney for ia
county OF Kngs- with whom was associated the HoE
Ambrose L. Jordan and Mr.. Asther-Appesred 70
the prosecution; and Asssrs Brsdy and D. sieksis ~
appeared for the defence The cause called up o.
Thursday, when the most str~nuous efforts we're mao
by Mr.. wilkes to putt on on the ground OF the ab
renee Of material witnesses: but the Court not deem
Ing that sUsien diligence to obtain their attendsno<
used ty def ndsut they refused to postpone the
trial. jury vas then tnpsnsiied aud ths opsning
OF the postponed until ths morBing; when, after
the Court WAS organised Mr. Weeks one Of the jurors,
stated that he understood the trial would take mp .
considerable time he anxious to leave for the
South INN edists.y and prayed the Court to let him
on Judge Greenwood then inquired Of the counsel Il
the trial was likely to last long Mr. sckles for the
defence and ssid that ding to his instruo-
tions II would last two weeks.
Judge Greenwood-0 1 thi1k not
Mr. Jordan-It can be disposed of In two days.
The juror then excused by consent, and Mr..
Newman called 10 be sworn In HE place The latter
ior ssrti.ly The QUESTION Of his eliaiblity vas sub
mitted to triers and no was rejected An arguments
then arose ssto comprising the jury when the Court
septed that Mr.. Weeks, the juror who objsoted to
serve, should stand aside, aud that a juror in his
place should be sworn also by consent.
Mr.. sickl.s stood up and said it vas true that he
contented that the juror should stand aside but there
he stopped and he would insist that the juror to
panel before . talssmau can be supplied.
The Court said, that when once jurors name was
those the panel As, Lowevsr, they could net
come TO an arrangement sc to draw juror in Mr..
Weekss place. that gentleman must serve; and the
counsel were directed to proceed With the cause
MIR. Jordan opened the for tie prose sutton He
said this was an indictment against Wake, for libel
on James Freelsnd and Henry sheldon This lb.l,
gentlemen OF the Jury. charges Preesni and sheldon
with robbine Charles IL Carpenter and alter stating
that Carpenter had brought TEEN TO justice for II they
turned round and ploy uterfsitsr and tool
OF the police to him sl to carry The perss
cution against him. Now gentlemen. wilkes has
been ringing the changes this subeot for two ears,
and carrying an iuce.sant warfare against those
two gentlemen. for no other reason than that they
the ass ocistion called the Kidd Salvage Company .
speculation perhaps. that you nor l. gentlemen,
would not like to be concerned In bue long they
broke no one'sleg and paid out their money and rere
the sole sufferers by 1t, they had perfect right to
hold to their speculative belief which they did that
there was vessel sunk. which bslonsej to Captain
Kidd and that such vessel sunk, believe, no
one doubts But. gentlemen, as l have said before,
Oh sldon and Fraeapd have heen tbs object OF kes'
continued attacks for upwards OF two years; aud
under the rules of the court will b. allowed
to give evidence of tho-e attacks. and Of those
speculstions that 1 have limited at, Ia order
to show you the course of conduct pursued by
wilkes towards those gentlemen tor this long period.
q Gentlemen. beg bere TO call your attention TO the
charge against Freeland and Sheldon in this libel
1t charges them with belonging TO band OF ssiudlers
who were connected with ina Kidd Salvage Company;
that they swindet and ruiaei Charles III Carpenter,
and then prosecuted hun. 1t will therefore be proper
for defe ndant and the court v allow him to go INTO
evidence that they were band Of prosecutors and
swim dern: tb at they ployed counefeiter for the
purpose of impugning his motives and also employed
tool police carry ng their designs that
they have succeeded in s~indng and running Csrpen-
ter; and that those charges ma1s from good me-
tives and justitsbls ends Gentlemen no doubt you
have heard good de al from counsel and perhaps
from others about these persscutions but gentlemen,
will give you the true and faithful history OF tho
Kidd case, and just such way as we Intend to
prove it, witnesses arrested by the hand
ef death. by sickness, or from some other cause
over which We have no coptrcl In the nrst place,
let me advert to Charles Carpenter, whose smiiing
face see here this morning, although he did not
make his appearance here yesterday. also see ano-
Their gentleman here to DAY who did not see yester-
day. mean Hr Grscie; and am happy to eee him,
also Gentlemen thi. indiviiu, a. Charles IL Cerpen-
ter about the year 1870 might be little before
time in the shoe business In the
city of New York 1t seems he did not manufacture
hims elf, but was in the habit OF purchasing from
those who did manufacture; and In lsi3, In the
having FIRST got into debt in the OF abou.
S25, 600, failed, aud declared himself unable to
pay than ten fifteen cents the dollar This
the situation OF Carpenter in thu latter end Of ls3
lieve IL still gentleman in this city OF the name Of
Abraham J. Thompson, who WAS owner Of n tract Of
land lying the bank Of the Hudson River known az
the Dunderbund in the kborhood OF the Highlands
Carpenter seived notion from tradition or from
history from some other, God knows what
that the vessel In which Captain Kidd sailed, and in
which he performed his pirAtca exploits st
this place and be alec supposed that Mr.. Thompson
had grant OF land lar enough sto the river to include
the spot which supposed the vessel sunk.
This In the spring ef lsii and the beginning
OF the Kidd affair. Ard gentlemen, let me intro
duce the names OF other parties who figured in
this famous company There wa. a Mr.. Thorn d.
Sergeant who claimed to bs tho inventor ofsub marine
apparatus for exploring the beds OF rivers Carpenter
made to Sergeant told him the discovery
he had made, and finally Carpenter aud Pierson be-
joint owners with Sergeant Of this sub marine
apparatus and thought they might as we'll test its
utility At the foot OF the Dunderbund mountain - any
where else but Csrpentc Who had before stated,
recently failed was csutous that he should be known ss
ha - nj n y lad m
that Pierson should take from Thorn the piece
of land which he accordingly did and they then took
up with them the apparatus and went TO work. But
before the operations actually entered on they
associated with them man named Henry o. Coles,
who wss an expert at diving so that At this time
Carpenter, the protector OF the enterprise Person.
Sergeant and Coles we're the four persons owning the
apparatus and holding the besse from Thompson,
which sivep without any rent; but it stipu-
lated that they should on. and II they found any
treasure they should give him his portion Of It, aud IL
not, he was to get nothing In the mouth Of June
operations were commenced. Carpenter was to be the
presiding genius-tnat is b. vas TO supervise the
concern where the operations were carried Coles
was TO be the operative Sergeant was 10 watch the
operations and keep the apparatus in order and Pier
TO live In the city OF New York but to have
general supervision OF the whole Carpenter Coesa
Sergeant went on with their aminations until the
latter pert OF tho summer, and the meantime tho
men employed uDcer them struck upon what they
thought was hard sub,tancs and which turned out
to be an old cannon. which from Its make and other
They brought It up, aud the story ran round that
they fshed up one of Captain Kids esnnons and
now bear In mind, gentlemen, that Carpenter,
Coles and Sergeant wers the three persons
Who got up the story II II 60 tup TOR the
got up before Pierson went TO the Of opera
items. and sko beg Of you to bear in mind that this
Circumstance happened four or CIV. months before
Frseiand and sheldon had anything to do with the
concern. The finding Of the cannon naturally
enough ran through the country like lightning,
and caused great site ment and about this time Car
pnter proposed ts turn all the property into 1000
shares Of stock OF 800 each. Nov, gentlemen beg
again TO call your attention to the fact that this
TOUR or i've msnths before freeland and Sheldon be-
cone connected with the KIDD Co. in any manner or
form whatever. Pierson resisted the proposal. but
Carpenter insisted on bis scheme and he backed
MP by Sergeant and Coles and Pierson had to yisid
He st wanted to make u 1000 shares ut 500 share;
but In thai he also oyerrulsd and ~ was finally
agreed that 1000 shares Il stock should be issued aud
signed BY Thompson, to be distributed. Gentlemen,
provs) II will be seen that Carpenter Sergeant and
Coles got up this specuaos and there any fra I'D