Not One Shred of Decency

by Bob Brown

  Mackenzie rose from his seat, but before he could say anything, Captain Downes said, “Your objections will be placed in the record, Mr. Norris. We will study the notes more when we deliberate. For now proceed with your witnesses.”

  Norris felt that he had made an important point and was denied elaborating in more detail. By not being allowed to continue, he wondered if Captain Downes had already formed an opinion about the notes and possibly about the whole trial. He sensed that all parties were looking forward to the end of this affair. A possible exception might be Captain Mackenzie.

  Norris recalled Wales and many of the Somers’ crew. Contrary to his expectation, they were cooperative and courteous, but revealed only a few facts not already known. He asked several witnesses if they had been instructed to be extra polite in their testimony. They all said “Absolutely not.” He soon realized this was making more points for Mackenzie than it was for the prosecution, so he quit asking the question. Mackenzie realized this, so he had not objected when the question was asked. After Norris quit asking it, Mackenzie began asking the question himself. This was so much fun he did not miss being at sea.

  Pretrial interviews of the four men who had been arrested at the time of the executions gave Norris reason to believe that they would lay bare a seamier side of Mackenzie’s character. To his chagrin, Wilson, McKinley, Green, and McKee, all praised Captain Mackenzie for his fairness, judgment, and fatherly concern. They insisted that they knew nothing of any mutiny plans, but understood why Captain Mackenzie had to arrest them when their names were found on Spencer’s list. They held no grudges for their arrest and agreed with the necessity to execute Spencer, Cromwell, and Small. When reminded that their earlier pretrial statements contradicted their present testimony, they said that they must have misunderstood Mr. Norris’ earlier questions. Although their saintliness might be suspect, the blemish of their arrest cast doubt on their reliability from the outset.

  Mackenzie insisted that while they may be guilty of some misjudgments, he was sure they had learned their lessons. They were basically a fine bunch of young men and his heart was big enough to forgive them and he would be proud to sail with them again.

  For character witness, Judge Advocate Norris brought in two young men who had been classmates of Spencer’s at Union College in New York. They were well dressed, clean shaven, and intelligent. They remembered Philip as “smart, noble-hearted, and generous to a fault.”

  Without knowing anything about them, Mackenzie extracted from them that they, as well as Spencer, had failed in their studies and never graduated. They had, however, succeeded in executing many ingenious pranks and received appropriate punishments for them. When pressed to name Philip Spencer’s greatest achievement, they said it was helping to found the Chi Psi fraternity, in which he excelled in inventing secret passwords and codes for the organization.

  Finally Norris turned to the lesser fourth and fifth charges. The fourth charge accused Mackenzie of behaving in an un-officer-like and unfeeling manner and by addressing Philip Spencer with a taunting language. The fifth charge accused Mackenzie with oppression, cruelty and maltreatment of the crew, and having inflicted unnecessary punishments upon them. Norris judged that enough had already been said about Midshipman’s Spencer treatment. Also, he decided that prolonged testimony about mistreatment of the crew would wear down the jury and therefore might lesson the chances of convicting Mackenzie on the more serious murder charges. Even so, he could not ignore official charges, so he called Dennis Manning to testify.

  “What is your rank and how old are you, Mr. Manning?”

  “Apprentice. I’m not real sure how old, 14, I think.” Manning, stocky and hard as steel, had a dreadfully sad and serious look about him. A angry scar marred the weathered complexion of one cheek. These features, along with tousled hair and sloppy dress, made him look old beyond his years. If one were told that Manning had never laughed in his life, it would be instantly accepted.

  “Were you ever punished on board the Somers and if so, what were the offenses?”

  “Cromwell wore out a hell-pot full of cats on me. No particular offenses.”

  “How many times were you flogged.”

  “Lost count.”

  “I have reviewed the ship’s log, Mr. Manning, it records that you were flogged twelve times in a two month period for a total of 101 lashes. Does this sound correct?”

  “Thought it’d be more’n that, but I guess any two months would be about the same.”

  “You said that you were punished for ‘No particular offenses.’ Surely there were some reasons why you were punished.”

  “I curse like a friggin’ sailor and I wont take no gruff off’n no man, but the main reason was, Cromwell hated me. He wanted to kill me.”

  “Why do you think Cromwell wanted to kill you?”

  “Cause I wouldn’t whimper and cry like a baby, like them other boys. I’d take his worst and look him in the friggin’ eye afterwards. That’d bust his damn gut, he hated me, and I hated him. I’m glad the son-a-bitch is dead.”

  Captain Downes said, “Clean up your language while in this court, young man.”

  Manning replied with veiled sarcasm, “Damn it, capt’n I forgot where the hell I was for a minute. Hope I didn’t offend your honors.”

  Norris asked Manning, “Could Captain Mackenzie have put a stop to this vendetta of Cromwell’s?”

  “Reckon he could, but I’d eat whale shit a’fore I’d ask for his damn mercy. I got to be his whipping boy. I’d wink at the capt’n before Cromwell’d flog me and he’d smile back.”

  “Smile? Captain Mackenzie? Do you think he liked to see you flogged?”

  “Damn right, he liked it.”

  Mackenzie interrupted, “How could you tell, Mr. Manning, that the captain was smiling for pleasure or was it a show of compassion?”

  “Compassion, shit. Pardon the language, capt’n. Nobody’s showed me any compassion in my whole life, I wouldn’t know compassion if I stepped in it. There ain’t no such a damn thing.”

  Mackenzie asked, “Is it fair to say that you would resist any authority?”

  Manning scowled, “No son-a-bitch’ll bully me around, that’s for damn sure.”

  Mackenzie was satisfied that Manning would not have much credibility with this court so he did not ask any more questions.

  Afraid of what Manning might say next, Judge Advocate Norris did not ask any more questions either. He figured that actual numbers would speak louder than anyone’s testimony. He stated for the record that he had gone through the ship’s log from June 6, 1842 to December 10, 1842. In that time there were 247 punishments with cats and colts totaling 2,265 lashes. Neither he or Mackenzie cared to interrogate anyone else about punishments.

  That concluded the testimony part of the court martial. Mackenzie would give his summation next. Unless the court asked him to, Judge Advocate Norris would not have the opportunity to present his summation.

  CHAPTER 42

  Spencer hung his hat and coat on the hall tree and carried a bundle of papers into his study and laid them on his desk. To conserve firewood his servant did not keep the fireplace burning when he was not home, but always had it ready for him to light. While waiting to make sure it did not go out, he reflected on a conversation he had with Elizabeth’s doctor earlier in the day.

  The doctor confirmed what Spencer had already guessed. The cause of Elizabeth’s weakness was unknown and there was nothing more he knew to do. The doctor said that he had seen it many times, it just happens and we have to accept it, like death from aging. Occasionally a patient is anemic for awhile and recovers. The fact that Elizabeth has had it for an extended period of time was not encouraging. He expected that she would steadily become weaker until she died. He would not speculate on how long that would take. Of course she was more susceptible to an infection, like pneumonia, and could die from that.

  Spencer climbed the stairs and entered their bedroom. Elizabeth was sitting in a rockin
g chair in front of the fireplace. A whale oil lamp on a table beside her barely illuminated the far reaches of the room. Elizabeth’s eyes were closed and her hands were crossed on a Bible in her lap. When she heard Spencer, she opened her eyes and smiled weakly.

  He pulled a chair up and sat down beside her. “You’re out of bed, do you feel stronger?”

  “I get so tired of lying in bed all the time. I have to sit up now and again.”

  Spencer took her hand and they sat silently for a while. This was not the usual pattern for Spencer. Usually he briefly checked on Elizabeth, then would go to his study and work until dinnertime. This change of habit was more noticeable with John than it would have been with a less disciplined person.

  Elizabeth said, “You’re quiet tonight John. Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine.” Spencer intended to tell Elizabeth about his conversation with the doctor, but he wanted time to think about how to approach her first. This was not foremost on his mind, however, for he knew that she already understood very well what her condition was. Nothing that he could say about her health would come as a surprise to her.

  He was obsessed with bringing Mackenzie to justice, but he was also reluctant to discuss that with Elizabeth. He did not wish to worry her, but more importantly, she had expressed her feelings earlier about the matter. Her desire was to put it all behind them and forget about Philip’s untimely death as best that they could.

  “Are you worrying about the outcome of Mackenzie’s court-martial?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Of course I am. Aren’t you?”

  “I just want it over with. Punishing Mackenzie won’t bring me peace of mind.”

  Spencer bristled, “Mackenzie executed our son and two others simply for the pleasure of watching them die. He must pay for this crime against man. I won’t rest until he’s brought to justice.”

  Elizabeth said, “Please John. My life is as a candle in an open window. The slightest breath of air will snuff out the flame. I can face death, but I long to die in peace. I can’t bear to leave you with such bitterness in your heart.”

  Spencer loved Elizabeth dearly and he would willingly die in her place if it would save her, but bringing Mackenzie to trial was a matter of honor. Honor cannot be compromised. His duty was clear. “I’m sorry Liz. I cannot comply with your wishes. It isn’t a decision that I can make for your sake. To shirk my duty on this would brand the family name for all time. And not just my name, but my father’s name and our sons, also.” He looked at Elizabeth and observed her distressed expression. It hurt that he could not do as she wished, but he could not retract a word of it. It was harsh, but it had to be said.

  She fixed her gaze on the flickering flames in the fireplace and tears welled up in her eyes. After a minute, she said, “Will men forever think by a rule book? What’s so wrong with thinking by the heart?”

  Spencer’s thoughts were quite the opposite. The Lord created men and women different for good reason. Men are manifestly attuned to manage worldly affairs that women are fundamentally incapable of understanding. Their role is to bear children and tend to the mundane needs of men. God bless them, but it is best that they know their place and not try to break the bounds of their destiny.

  Spencer sat there a few more minutes until he became restless. He poked the fire and placed another log on it. He decided that he would wait until tomorrow to tell Elizabeth what the doctor told him. “There are some matters I must attend to before dinner.” He kissed Elizabeth on the forehead and left the room.

  Elizabeth nodded and shut her eyes again.

  CHAPTER 43

  March 22, 1843. Captain Mackenzie rose calmly, and with an air of great confidence, began his summary. “Philip Spencer,” His ubiquitous baritone lingered in the low overhead wardroom as though searching for an opening in which to escape. “had to be executed beside his partners in crime, gentlemen. This, the court has proven so handily that it is now obvious that the charges brought against me are frivolous, even to the point of embarrassment to our cherished Navy. But charges persist like barnacles fused to a vessel’s hull. Once again I cannot escape explaining, and you cannot escape hearing, the necessity for snuffing the flame of life from these three greedy and bloodthirsty men.

  “In judging this necessity, it is of vital importance to ascertain whether a mutinous conspiracy existed on board the Somers. If, in fact, it is determined that such a conspiracy did exist, then were the persons executed parties to that conspiracy?

  “Unequivocal documentary evidence and the witnesses own repeated and solemn declarations prove that such conspiracy existed. Further, that its intent was to convert the Somers to a pirate cruiser. That intrinsic in the plans of the mutineers would be the murder of the officers and the faithful of the crew. That Spencer, Cromwell, and Small were not only parties, but ringleaders in the conspiracy.

  “Mr. Wales testified that on the 25th of November, Mr. Spencer took him to a place of secrecy and communicated to him the whole mutinous scheme. Spencer told him that he was in league with about twenty of the crew to get possession of the brigantine, murder the captain and officers, and commence piracy. Mr. Spencer so systematically detailed the plans of the operation that premeditated deliberation was never in doubt.

  “That this communication was a frolic of boyish fancy, as has been sometimes suggested, is clearly disproved by Mr. Wales and the circumstances of the case. The appearance and manner of Mr. Spencer were earnest and grave. Before he would make his communication, he bound Mr. Wales by an oath of secrecy and promised immediate death if he betrayed their confidence. Small was present for part of this interview, understood the nature of the interview, and expressed his gratification that Mr. Wales had consented to be one of them. Spencer told Wales that the plot was detailed in a secret paper that he had rolled up in his neckerchief. This paper was found the next day, as predicted, in Spencer’s neckerchief and is correctly called the Greek paper since it is written in Greek. This paper contains three list of conspirators marked as certain, doubtful, and to be kept.

  “It’s possible that Mr. Wales name occurring on the certain list was added after his secret interview with Mr. Spencer. It is also logical that his name might have been written earlier since the existence of a misunderstanding between the captain and Wales was notorious. Spencer’s secret interview with Wales is proof that he considered him to be a promising recruit to their conspiracy.

  “That the name of Cromwell doesn’t appear on the Greek paper, subtracts nothing from the proof of his guilt. He was too adroit and wary to have his own name registered without disguise on the guilty record. He wanted the benefit of the omission of his name in case the paper was discovered. Doubtless the name of Andrews, nowhere to be found in the ship’s papers, but standing in the Greek document next to that of Mr. Spencer himself, was intended to designate not a fictitious person, but his own real and efficient lieutenant in guilt. If Cromwell had been a pirate and a slaver, it was probably not the first time that he’d found it convenient to have two names in use.

  “I pass over, at least for the present, many other parts of the evidence, tending to show the existence of the conspiracy, and proceed at once to the final scene just before the execution. There Spencer and Small, with their dying lips, voluntarily confessed their guilt in the presence of the officers and crew, and acknowledged that their punishment was just. Surely no innocent man ever confessed himself guilty of a felony or other heinous crime unless the confession was extorted from him by rack, or other instrument of torture. To condemn a man out of his own mouth is a rule of evidence which the Judge of all the earth will himself adopt in that great day when judgment will not be based on any fallible proof.

  “The guilt of Cromwell is no less manifest, in spite of his failure to confess. Note the wickedness of his general character and conduct, the sudden change of his demeanor. Ceasing to treat those in his charge with harshness when he found their adhesion to the conspiracy was needed. His repeated and profane declar
ations of deep and desperate hostility against the captain and officers. His intimacy with Mr. Spencer, accepting rum from him, and spending hour after hour in secret consultation, an intimacy made more suspicious by their differences in rank. His secret and repeated conversations with Small just after Spencer’s arrest. That he was the oldest, the strongest, and the most cunning of the conspirators. His rush toward Mr. Ganse at the time of his arrest. The solid opinion of all the officers that he was guilty. All these are circumstances in evidence before the court, and which leave no reasonable doubt of Cromwell’s guilt.

  “Cromwell’s persisting in the declaration of his innocence at the time of his execution only proves that he was a more hardened offender than either Mr. Spencer or Small. Much their senior in years, he had been longer educating in the various schools of vice. It is a well-known fact in the history of crime that veterans in iniquity have seldom or never those compunctions which often extort confessions of guilt from younger, less-disciplined offenders.”

  Mackenzie had carefully presented evidence that proved, at least in his mind, that Cromwell was as guilty as Spencer and Small. Cromwell had steadfastly refused to confess to any crimes and it seemed worthwhile to make as strong a case as possible of his guilt. After all, there were three separate charges of murder against him and it was conceivable that he could be acquitted of Spencer and Small’s deaths and hang for murdering Cromwell. He found this possibility ironic since he felt that Cromwell was the real mastermind behind the mutiny.

  Once he became convinced that Cromwell was involved, he privately considered him as the most able to see the mutiny through. However, for his defense, he had portrayed Spencer as the mastermind of the mutiny. The reason is simple. If not for the ruckus raised by Philip’s father, John Spencer, this court-martial would not have taken place. He felt obliged to make Philip Spencer the centerpiece of all aspects of the mutiny affair.