The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1870-09-21

ate; fight, the smaller of the pirate
was taken, and the whole crew of for
lty-two men were hanged in,a row OF
Long Island. But the other escaped
and made twenty prizes before sh'
was caught. In the same year 1928
twenty-six pirates were hanged a
Newport, Rhode Island. Indeed, i
was a common event, about that time
for pirates to be strung up In a row
in that wholesale fashion for, by thi
time, the British government had be
gun to bestir itself and put forth .sys
tematic efforts for the suppression o
piracy.
Captain Robert Kid, born abou
1000, was for many years a sesideni
Of the city OF New York, where he
had a wife and child, and whence h,
sailed, for several years, as respecta
BILE merchant captain and privateers
men. So highly was he esteemed
that no mans services were. in sc
much request among the merchants
of New York, and every one was ca
ger for shares in privateer which he
was to command. Among the ole
recods of the city of New York his
name frequently occurs. Sometimes
he is mentioned as demanding the r.
turn of one of his sailors who had beer
impressed into the kings service, and
sometimesssas bringing n prize, and
paying to the king the tenth and tc
the governor the fifteenth which the
law allowed them.
About 1896, the piracies on the
American COAST had become SO nu
merous,. and so destructive of com
merce, that a kind of society was
formed in England, headed by the
King, William ILL., for their sup
preston. The company fitted out
and armedsa ship of thirty guns,
named the "Adyenture"' designing
that she should pursue and capture
the pirates, and sell their vessels for
the advantage of the company. When
the ship was getting ready for sea il
SO happened that Colonel Robert Liv'
ingston of New York, member OF
the we'll known New York family OF
that name, was in London. Colonel
Livingston not only recommended
Captain9Kid for the command of this
vessel, but engaged to become his Sc.
curly for the faithful performance OF
his duty. He spoke of Kid as a
s'bold and honest man, well fitted to
suppress the piracies in the American
seas. The appointment was accord
ingly given to Kid, and he received
the kings commission, which was di.
rected ito the trusty and well-beloved
Captain Kid" Bearing this commits
sion, he sailed from Plymouth in
1896, and bore away for the Ameri-
can coast.
Probably the pirates took the
alarm; for he cruised for several
months between Boston and Virgin
ia, without making important cap
lures. Occasionally he visited New
York harbor, anchoring off the Bat
terry, and while there, took pains tc
enlist daring and numerous crew,
until, at last, lie had resolute band
of hundred and fifty men. Toward
the close of 1896 he struck across the
Atlantic, bound for the East Indies,
and on the way made known to his
crew that he meant to turn pirate,
and dash in among the richly freight
ed ships of the Easterns seas. The
men offering no effective opposition,
he continued his course around the
Cape of Good Hope, and made his
way to the Red sea, where he began
his depredations. He captured many
vessels, gaining as ho supposed a
booty, and at length took
a merchant ship of four hundred tons,
laden with precious merchandise.
With this vessel, anda vast amount
of gold and silver and precious stones
he started on his return to America.
The large ship he gave up to one of
his band and his own vessel he re-
turned to our waters, and buried a
large amount of treasure on Gardners
Island. A portion of this, and per-
haps all of it, was afterward found by
Lyon Gardner, the owner of the is
land, who surrendered it to the Gov
ernor of Massachusetts,: namely, three
bags of gold dust, containing about
one hundred and fifty ounces, two
bags of golden bars, weighinp nearly
six hundred ounces. two or three bags
of precious stones, and several of bro
ken silver. 1t is possible that he bu-
ried treasure at other places on the
coast.
Having secured so much treasure
the next thing to consider was how he
could get on shore to enjoy it. The
Earl Of Belmont, Governor of Massa-
chusetts, was one of the stockholders
in the original entrprise, and Kid,
upon this fact, sent one OF
his men to Boston to learn from the
Governor what treatment he might
expect if he should go ashore. The
it appears, replied in Ian
guage which admitted of two inter
pretations, one favorable to Kids
hopes, and the other not. He went
to Boston, and appeared openly in
the streets, where he was at once ar
rested. He was sent to England
for t,ial, but it was difficult 10 con-
vict him of piracy, owing to the COM
mission which he bore; and after q
Iong delay, he was arraigned on q
charge of numbering one of his crew,
md condemned to die. Col. Living.
,ton of New York, who owned one
fifth of the vessel in which Kid had
sailed, befriended him to the last
lie was hanged at the Execution
Dock, in London, March %, 1701.
For many years after his death,
people living along the coast of Long
island could not quite get it out of
heir heads that Kid had buried vast
treasures there, and they spent