The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-04-28
THE JUNIOR MUTlNEERS.
Sentence or the Junior MutinecrS In Il
tOn.A0dreaa uf II Riurdei.er.

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Sentence or the Junior Mutinccrs In Bss-
rsSon-Address u a murderer.
IRON the Boe,on Traveller, April 20l
In the United States Circuit Court this morning nj nine
bert and Charles H. Stanley The mutaecrs Of the whale
ship Junior, were brought In for sentence
a. ~ wss iCunS guilty At former trial. Of the
found guilty OF masslaughter indictments for Ala
ing and aoetag 10 The death Of Capt Mellon and Of the
Judge Clifford directed the Clerk to inquire OF cvru.w
Piumer he had anything 70 say why sentence Of death
The Clerk made tho ufua inquiry.
Pumer Replied have very much 70 say your Honors:
petent to read It and DESIRE If your Honorx viii
asw IT, that the Clerk should read my statement to tho
Court.
The Court assen.ed and several docuusns ware .nd.n
TO the Clerk, who read them, beginning with Plumor's
statement, which was as follows =
PLUMKRs ADDRESS TO TliE COURT.
MAY IT PLEASE rHE CouRT;-I am asked IL have any
thing to why sentence Of death should passed
long no enter MO w nG 1sn re
will briefly state the why think sentence a
death should not be pronounced or executed upon mo-
believing that these reasons fully unfolded by ny
friends, hereafter and sustained by the evidence legal
and moral, that can be offered In their support Wal
torney and above ALL the President Of the United States
In whose hands am aware my fate now ultimatey
interests Of the oomu,ercia marine would not be orS
NOTED by nfctng uen my person the last penalty Of the
law object to sentence Of death being passed upon me:
LIST. Because Am not guilty Of the death Of Captain
Archibald Melen. fits blood does not rest on my hanas
Could all the facts in relation to the transactions that
night they known and lie in the minds OF the Wit
nesses and prisoners now in jail 10 this city, bs
reached and fully laid before the Court, i would
cabin of the Junior that night not with tho intention Il
committing murder but for the purpose OF taking prison.
and securing the captain and certain other officers Il
that ship II would appear-Secondy that the firing
at first accidental from arrangement Of the
plans agreed upon and that the shot which standing
the cabin fred in the dark as evident from tho marks
n he from
the gun struck and be sustained BY the evidence and
opinions OF Capt. Gardner who brought the Junior hons
from Sidney and who slept in the berth occupied By
Captain Melen and whose alldavt Is in my possesse0
that the shot which fred did not hit wound Captain
thirdly that the death Of Captain Meen caused by
wounds inflicted with Ratchet in the hands Of another
afterwards coming deck stated 70 another person that
"lssed the captain, but that he did not msShm," ami
poastpgly showed the blood on his Guernsey rock say
ing SIT was the captain blood and that he butch.
err That man ia Charles L. Flfeld whom generous
ly but unwisely screened from suspicion by assuming
his crime that he might remain in tho ship, because h0
came to me in tears and told he dared not 60 on
shore with the other men with whom no had quarrel
led and who abhorred him and his conduct have been
convicted by tho perjury Of that man, who, coming
without suspicion has thoroughly exposed his baseness
by throwing himself under the protection OF the govern
ment aud partially confessing hs guilt has wlckedy
sworn his crime my head. object, therefore,
first 10 the sentence Of death being passed ms be
object secondly and strongly because the real culpr
the most guilty person in my judgmentthe whose
contriving brain and intriguing heart were the nsgang
cause tho conspiracy and mutny board the Junior
would not be reached 10 my person Gould all the
who board the Junior the morning Of the 28h
OF December 1857, be found, and their testimony OBJ
tanned even perhaps without that could ell the facte
and originating OF what occurred tho night of
the 25h OF DECEMBER as they are KNOWN ana lie In the
MINDS OF some, perhaps many OF the prisoners and
witnesses in this matter, now In the JAIL In this city,
be fully ascertaned and laid before tho Court,
believe and maintain tnat II would appear tnas mono
of the forecaste and storage OF the sailors
on board that ship, would ever have conceived Of.
designed or attempted TO execute me conspiracy:
mutny and mnroer WIN winch some Oh them now stand
charged had moi snd nad reason 70 oellevo
that one 81 me omcera Oh tne snip was prvy tne Psr
pose, ana WOMB ~ seveIat ways osect ana nafec. ao
In its execution eoud al the iacss aao the wnoe truth
be ascertaned it would appear that the pcy Of this
officer With the events OF tue OF the 2btn OF Deoem
ber was the real insagatng ana encouraging cause OF
those events while at the samo time this completely,
ing to msappr ehension which at the moment was
the incidental cause OF the deaths nlcted and OF the de-
raDgement Of all intended snbsequent plans. object,
therefore, to sentence Of death boing passed upon
because believe the ends OF JUSTICE and the promotion
and security of the best interests of toe commercial
rne make the duty Of the government TO probe this
mater more deeply than has yet been done aud that in
doing they would reach the great culpr the original
and nstgang source of the crime that was committed
OF the officers Of The ship, who deserves punishment
more than mysef or any other man belonging to tho
Ship To prove clearly 10 The Court and to the world
that could not have originated the design TO seizo
that ship and murder her officers, have only 70
point 70 the record made IN the log book alter
left the ship, which admits and declares that my know
ledge OF navigation was not sufficient 10 carry nae to
place TO which might wish 10 60 But, sai probably
knew mere OF navigation than any person on board
cept the captain and mate TIE providence Of God in
that record and u as clearly points 10 tho base originator
OF the idutinJ ae turns the suspicion and the odiun OF
the design away from me- Ana while cannot and wild
not attempt to Justify myself for participating tho
slightest degree in the plans proposed 70 me, still believe
and maintain INST proper meabs are used by the govern
ment the greatest criminal will be brought to justice
others will be saved from punishments they do not de-
serve, and memory If tho laws and society inexorabiy
demand my Death, will be relieved Of the atrocities at
present attaching to my name through the perjury and
collision OF those who have heaped crimes upon my head
which never committed, and put hendke language int
my mouth which never conceived Of, nor uttered.
Thirdly and aAty, object TO sentence of death being
passed upon me, because while am gniless OF taking
he used my best Efforts to preserve e and did two
more Instances actually preserve IT, and through that
servaou or fc was instrumental In preserving property
and restoring TO the owners without going into
meraon OF all the canses ana Influences which placed
Ia hht potiton auIis tnat ater tue ornipg OF the 26h
% peCempei io2 wax az thc heaa Oh tins company ON
board the snip Junior, and had command of the