The age-herald., 1897-11-06
4 MURDERER'S CONFESSION
Anderson, the Cook of the Ves-
 seI Olive Pecker,
WHO KILLED THE CAPTAIN
And Also the Mate, and Then Ordered the Crew to Fire the Graf, Now in Gus
 tody With His Comrades


 Newport Nsws, aV., Nov. 5.-The Unit ed States cruiser Lancaster arrived here today having on board securely ironed the crew of the Office Pecker, which was burnad off the coast of Brazil last sum- me-, under the direction of J. Anderson, the cook, Who took possession of the vessel after killing the captain and mate. The story of bloody murder on the high sea and ths tragic events which followed it were procured tonight from Anderson himself. He wrote the following version of the affair, which was sent to the cor respondent of the Associated Press by an officer of ths Lancaster. Access to the prisoners was denied to newspaper men.
 T was the cook on beard the Olivs Pecker, a two-masted schooner from Boston to Bahia, and had to serve the captain as his servant.
 T had good reason to believe that the captain did not take to me, and I was always in far of my life, whenever a1e got into his mad fits.
 'He had a dog which was always coming into the cook house and annoy ing me. On the day of our difficulty the animal came inside and I threw a boiler of hot water on him. The dog howled, and the next thing I knew the captain was calling for ma. I went to his cabin and he commenced cursing me, telling me that this sort of thing had to stop.
 q did not say anything to him and he ordered me into his cabin to make up his bed This was in the morning.
 'I made up his bed and he ordered me out with volley of oaths. I saw he was in mean humor, and determined to arm myself I knew the captain had some pistols in his cabin, and I went back to get one of them Just as soon as I entered the captain fired beer bot tie at me, and seeing that lodged it, he picked up pistol from the table and sent a bullet in my direction. I had got my hands on a weapon which was lying on the corner of his table, and of course I opened fire on the - ras- cal. My first bullet took effect in his forehead and the second went into his breast, killing him instantly. I then went up on deck and called to the mate, NllO was III luS lOIC
 "He shouted down to me asking what wanted. I told him to come down, and when he reached the. deck I went for him. He was an old fellow with whis- kers, and I felt like smashing him with my fist. He looked at me as If to in- quire my authority to order him about and I 1eveled the weapon at his old be- whiskered head, saying at the same time:
 Now, die like the dog you are
 with that pulled the trigger and the mate dropped to the deck. rolling to the portside of the ship.
 q then went. down into the cabin, thinking I would be able to take the ship by myself. I saw that the captain was a ghost and I came upon deck again. The mate was grooming, and I felt it my duty to put him out of his misery. One more shot did that. se- cured the captains other pistol and af- ter giving the mate second bullet started toward the crew, who were aft, with a pistol in each hand, and gave them to understand that I was to be master of the Oliver Pecker, and that the first man who undertook to disobey my orders would have to suffer the con- sequences. They carried out my com mands without a murmur.
 'I first ordered them to throw the mates body overheard, and then we : went down 's tha .ssin and brought up the captains corpse, disposing of it in like manner. Next I ordered the men to get out the oil and saturate the whole vessel fore and aft in such a manner that she would burn up like h-l. They did that, and then we got our belongings and prepared to take to the boats, first setting fire to the old ship. My chum and went down In one of the boats, while the other four men took another. They pulled off in a different direction from us and we never saw them again until we met in prison in Bahia. They must have peached on us, for no sooner had we landed from the ship we had taken, than the officers placed us under arrest and sent us to Bahia.
 'sThe Pecker was one month out from this port and within two days from Bahia when all this happened. She had a crew of eight
 The officers of the Lancaster stated that when the men were thrown into prison at Bahia the United States consul at that port communicated with the navy department at Washington con- cerning the arrest of the murderer and his accomplices and received instructions to place them aboard of the first-class cruiser Lancaster, which, at that time, was several hundred miles south of Bahia and which would be ordered to that port as soon as possible. The sea- men remained in the old prison al Bahia