by Bob Brown
Mackenzie read an act of congress passed in 1800 that states that if any person in the navy attempts to make any mutinous assembly, he shall, on conviction by a court-martial, suffer death. A latter act of 1806, although not entirely clear, seems to reinforce the first act and expands it to consider mutiny at sea as much more dangerous than mutiny on land. Mackenzie interpreted that to mean that under unusual and unprecedented circumstances, such as existed on the Somers, the captain is entirely within his rights and responsibility to supplant a court-martial with his best judgment. He elaborated on the fullness of the Somers, and not one foot of space available for prisoners. Thus they were ironed on the spar deck. He explained the competition for space and listed some of the competing items as its large crew, ballast, ammunition, food, and water tanks. He spoke of how difficult it was to prevent communication between the prisoners and the crew and how impossible it was to stop collusion amongst the disaffected.
He named the few trusted officers who single-handedly manned the Somers and guarded the prisoners. He described their devotion to duty and courageousness. Mackenzie emphasized phrases he felt were most effective. “Any squall or slight mishap on board might be taken advantage of and deliver them into the jaws of danger, probably death. These officers stood sentinels on the deck and ultimately had no alternative but to remain there under arms day and night, watch and watch about. Fatigue and consuming care were wasting away their youthful frames. The conspiracy, confident in its strength, matured in its counsels, murderous in its resolves, was now ripe for action. Even then the officers actions were cool, collected, temperate, and deliberate. They proposed no hasty effusion of blood. Only the melancholy proofs of guilt drove them to recommend to their captain that the three most iniquitous offenders must be executed.”
In his finest self-proclaimed thespian delivery, Mackenzie proceeded, “And what would have been the consequence of a successful mutiny? I pass over the murder of the officers and faithful of the crew, as a comparative little thing. The lives of military men, whether on land or sea, are pledged to their country and compared to the honor of that country, individual life is as a drop in the ocean. But the nation’s honor was now at stake. A vessel consecrated as a defender of her country’s glory was about to be torn from her sphere. A lawless wanderer upon the deep, like a comet loosened from its orbit to inflict upon the innocent, bloody devastation, terror, and death. Perhaps no vessel could be found better fitted to become the pest of the ocean, seldom surpassed in speed or strength.
“Under these circumstances, what was the captain of the Somers to do? He was alone on the ocean. He asked the best and only council within his reach. He appealed to his officers for their advice. The officers, after full deliberation, returned their unanimous and solemn judgment, that executing the three ringleaders of the mutiny was necessary for the safety of vessel and the lives of the faithful on board.
“The high seas furnished no learned jurist with whom the captain might consult, but he did have with him the laws written by the finger of God on the human heart. These laws ordain that they who seek unlawfully to slay, may themselves be slain. There on the solitary deep the commanding officer was bound by oath to protect lives and the sacred honor of our flag from being incurable wounded by a band of merciless felons.”
With steadily increasing volume, Mackenzie proclaimed, “The captain is duty bound to rouse up his spirit to the majesty of the occasion and poising himself on his own magnanimity, grasp, with unfaltering hand, the sword of righteous though summary retribution.” He concluded with deep voice throbbing from the throat, “The path of honor and conscience was rugged, but it was plain. The execution took place.”
CHAPTER 44
Everyone in the wardroom expected that Mackenzie would effectively plead his defense, but few were braced for his river of eloquence and many were swept away with the pleasing rhythm of Mackenzie’s voice.
While Mackenzie was speaking, Judge Advocate Norris leaned forward in his seat with mouth parted and gave the appearance of being awestruck. However, afterwards he would remark sarcastically, “Mackenzie should have charged admission for that performance.”
The jurors seemed attentive and Mackenzie felt that was a good sign. Standing militarily erect, as usual, he continued in his now familiar melodious tone, “It has been stated publicly that there is no precedent in United States military history for executing mutineers. Nothing could be further from the truth. In January 1781, while in the throes of the Revolutionary War, a distressing mutiny occurred amongst the Pennsylvania troops while fighting in New Jersey. General How was ordered to seek out the mutineers, and once captured, he was to obey the following instructions: ‘As soon as they should surrender, seize a few of the most active leaders, and execute them on the spot.’ These mutineers were indeed captured, and General How obeyed his orders promptly and implicitly. The surviving mutineers were compelled to return to their duty.
“You may ask, who issued this explicit order to General How? That person, gentlemen, was our revered General George Washington. This action was the mere creature of urgent necessity, which as in the case of the Somers, could not brook delay. These actions lay bare this undeniable truth. The salvation of this country depends upon the discipline of the fleet. Without discipline they would be a rabble, dangerous only to their friends and harmless to the enemy. A ship is a little government, compressed into a narrow compass. There can be no hope of security for any man on board without a rapid and strong occasional exertion of an absolute power placed in one man.
“To enable the court to better judge the necessity of the execution, permit me to bring the case to another test. Suppose that the execution had not taken place, that the unconfined malcontents had risen and released the prisoners; that the mutiny had triumphed, and the brigantine had been turned into a pirate cruiser; that the faithful of the officers and crew had all been massacred, except for the captain alone; that the pirates in an ironic twist of cruelty had spared his wretched life, and sent him on shore that he might be forced to wend home his solitary way. He would then become the disgraced narrator of what would indeed have been the ‘Tragedy of the Somers.’
“What a burst of indignation would the country have received his narrative! How would the American press, with its thousand tongues, have overwhelmed him with exclamations and questions like these: ‘You were appropriately urged by the unanimous voice of your trusty officers, to save their lives, the lives of your faithful seamen, and the honor of your country, by the timely execution of these malefactors. Why did you not heed the earnest council of your associates in authority, with whose opinion you also concurred? You did not because you dared not. You faltered in the path of known and acknowledged duty, because you wanted moral courage to tread it. On you, in the judgment of conscience, devolves the responsibility of those murders, which you might, and ought to have, prevented. On you recoils the disgrace of that flag which never sustained a blot until it was committed to your charge.’
“To finish the picture, permit me to fill up another part of the canvas. Suppose that the Somers, now turned pirate, while cruising off our coast, had been permitted by Heaven, in an evil hour, to capture some vessel plying between our shores and Europe. This vessel freighted with the talent and beauty of the land. The men are all murdered, and the females, including perhaps maidens just blooming into womanhood, are forced to become brides of pirates. A universal shriek of agony would burst from the American people throughout all their vast domains and the wailing is echoed back from the whole civilized world. And where then would the captain have hidden his head, branded, as it would have been, by a mark of infamy as indelible as that stamped on the forehead of Cain!”
Mackenzie expanded his chest, looked each juror in the eye for a second and ended with Captain Downes, who sat in the middle. “Gentlemen, all this is respectfully submitted. I deliver myself for you to judge, but be assured that I have no regrets for my actions and would never for one second have thought that I coul
d have, or should have, performed my duty in any other way than I did.” With that, Mackenzie returned to sit stiffly in his seat. There was not one sound originating from the wardroom, even breathing was momentarily frozen while everyone waited for someone else to break the silence. Only muffled sounds of harbor bells and squawking seagulls penetrated this tiny historical sphere.
At last Captain Downes said, “All concerned persons will be notified when the court is ready to announce their decisions. I hereby order the court cleared.”
Newsmen made a hasty exit while other spectators left at a more leisurely pace.
Norris gave a long serious look at Mackenzie, who paid him no attention.
Mr. Griffin, Mackenzie’s legal counselor said, “Well done, Captain.” and shook his hand. Mackenzie acknowledged by nodding.
**********
The court-martial convened in secret for six days. Newspapers had plenty to write about. When not reporting on Mackenzie’s summation they were speculating on how the court-martial would, or should, decide Mackenzie’s fate.
Mackenzie returned home to work on another book he had started. He put the case out of his mind, for he was satisfied that he had done his best and it was in the hands of the court now. He refused, or was not interested, in reading any news accounts about the court-martial.
His biggest concern was Kate. He knew what was bothering her, but would never discuss the case with her, and she feared to bring it up. Mackenzie tried to entertain her and busy her mind on other things, but when he would tell her an amusing story, she might start to laugh and end up sobbing. This would make her feel worse than ever, for she had made heroic efforts to act normal, but now threads were unraveling from her fabric. If she did not get her man back soon, free of all charges, then her world might be torn asunder, never to be restored again.
**********
All parties were notified to reconvene on March 28, 1843. Captain Downes motioned for Captain Mackenzie to stand. Keenly aware of the importance of the occasion, he spoke loud and clear as he read, “The court having heard and duly considered the evidence and testimony offered under said charges and specifications, do acquit Captain Alexander Slidell Mackenzie of all charges and specifications preferred by the secretary of the navy against him. This court is adjourned.”
Reporters swept up their notepads and coats, knocked chairs over, and shoved their competitors without apology in their efforts to be first up the ladder to the spar deck.
Mackenzie looked up from cramming papers in his pouch to see Judge Advocate William H. Norris standing directly before him.
“An excellent performance, Mackenzie. However, sadly to say, a travesty of justice. Good day to you, sir.” He wheeled around without giving Mackenzie a chance to reply if he had wished. With a whimsical smile Mackenzie watched Norris stalk over to the ladder to the spar deck. Mackenzie’s counselor said, “Congratulations, Captain, I knew you could do it.” Several men walked by and shook his hand or patted him on the shoulder. Few of them made any comment.
Mackenzie did not know that John Spencer was sitting on the last row during this final session. Spencer’s two attorneys, B. F. Butler and Charles O’Conner, sat with him. As Mackenzie neared the ladder for the spar deck, his eyes suddenly connected with Spencer’s eyes. He stopped abruptly, stared passively at Spencer for a moment, and a slight, almost imperceptible, trace of a smile emerged. Then, as if the contact had never been made, he climbed the ladder to the spar deck.
Spencer had not flinched during the encounter, but after Mackenzie was gone he slowly lowered his head. He may have been studying the impact of Mackenzie’s acquittal. Maybe he was thinking of the prospect of a similar outcome in a civil court. Or perhaps he was just thinking of Elizabeth. His attorneys squirmed uncomfortably and waited for Spencer to make the first move. Finally he said, “Gentlemen, I’m forced to accept the futility of pressing for a civil trial for Captain Mackenzie. You may proceed to terminate the matter.”
Butler looked at his partner O’Conner to acknowledge agreement and then said, “Under the circumstances, we must agree, Sir.”
News reporters waiting to interview Mackenzie were stopped at the end of the gang plank from going back on board the North Carolina. They were quiet and had scant hope he would talk to them since he had refused all previous attempts to be interviewed. Maybe now that the court-martial was over, he would make a statement.
Mackenzie appeared on the spar deck. As he stepped upon the gangplank a small gathering of loyal supporters standing on the wharf began to applaud with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Other spectators stood at a distance with sour expressions. Mackenzie strolled down the gangplank with a Mona Lisa countenance. His thoughts scrolled back to that windy day in December and the vivid image of young Spencer’s farewell dance at the end of his tether bravo, Mr. Spencer, bravo indeed, sir. And now, Captain Alexander Slidell Mackenzie, take your bow bravo, Mackenzie, bravo.
author’s NOTES
Not One Shred of Decency is a fictionalized account of actual events. Fiction is written for entertainment so excess detail was omitted when it would not contribute to the story. The facts are, Philip Spencer, Samuel Cromwell, and Elisha Small were summarily hanged in December 1842 for mutiny and Captain Mackenzie was acquitted in the court-martial for their deaths. Philip Spencer was the son of John Spencer, Secretary of War under President Tyler.
Rigid historians will notice other deviations from actual fact. Not all ports of call were included in the story. Captain Mackenzie was actually Commander Mackenzie and Ganse’s name was really Gansevoort. However, most of the names of characters were persons who actually lived. Only a few boys were created to describe conditions on board the Somers. Dates were altered in some cases by a day or two. James Fenimore Cooper’s Review of the Proceedings of the Naval Court Martial (called The Affair of the Somers in the story) was written a year after the court-martial and not before the trial as stated in the story. Mackenzie did quiz witnesses but did not deliver the summary. Mr. Griffin, his legal counsel read it. It is not clear how much Mackenzie influenced its preparation.
Most of the conversations were written with words I think might have been said but more than a few conversations were paraphrased directly from testimony of witnesses in the court-martial of Commander Mackenzie. The make-up of personalities is a judgment call in many cases. In all likelihood Mackenzie and Cromwell were not as hard-nosed as portrayed, nor was Ganse as wimpy. Historians to this day differ on Mackenzie’s true nature. Some still state as a fact that he was a honorable officer doing his duty, while others argue just as ardently that he was a dirty, rotten, murdering scalawag.
The idea for this novel was born while researching another U. S. naval incident that occurred in the last century. I would occasionally see a sentence or a reference to the Somers mutiny incident of 1842. Since I had never read anything about this mutiny, I looked in my encyclopedia and there was no entry for it. Two more encyclopedias at the local library did not mention the mutiny either. By then I was determined to find out about this mutiny. Was it a trivial incident and not worthy of mention in the encyclopedias or history books? At the University of Tennessee Library in Knoxville, I found several documentary books dedicated entirely to the Somers mutiny incident. It was not a trivial affair. Even though the incident set off a firestorm of national controversy when it happened, only a few encyclopedias make any mention of it today. U. S. Naval history books on that period of time may contain a few sentences or in some cases a whole chapter devoted to the mutiny, but it is usually presented in a matter-of-fact way.
There may be good reasons why the Somers’ incident failed to reach the pages of most history books. The news broke abruptly and was resolved in a relatively short time. Most of the main characters were either dead from hanging, died naturally, or died violently, within a few years. Without live participants there was no one left to fuel the controversy. In 1846 the Somers sank, taking with it tangible archives. This removed practical
ly all traces that she even existed. Finally, it was not the navy’s proudest moment so they had no reason to promote the story. It was however, the primary rationale for the founding of the U. S. Naval Academy in Annapolis in1845. It may have also influenced the Navy to ban flogging as punishment in 1850.
Probably a plentiful amount of fiction was written about the incident shortly after it happened, but if it exists, it is buried under the dust of time. One outstanding story that can be found in most bookstores is Herman Melville’s Billy Budd. Even though Melville changed the navy (British) and the character’s names, his story follows the Somers mutiny closely enough that many historians think that it must have provided Melville’s inspiration. No Melville explanation for this similarity has ever surfaced. However, Melville’s earlier writings are proof of his great interest in the Somers incident. He started writing Billy Budd in 1888, forty-five years after the Somers incident, and completed it only a few months before his death in 1891. The novel lay in the attic of a relative for years and was not discovered and published until 1924, thirty-three years after his death and eighty-two years after the Somers incident.
After the mutiny affair, many sailors were afraid to serve on the Somers, believing it to be cursed by the ghosts of Spencer, Cromwell, and Small. Superstitious crews reported moaning sounds and noises of irons being dragged across the wooden deck. Whether curse or fate, the Somers sailed only three more years after the hangings. On December 8, 1846, while involved in the Mexican War, the Somers was under full sail chasing a ship near Veracruz. A squall approached that did not appear to be violent until it struck. Before the sails could be trimmed, the Somers was instantly blown over. With sails lying flat on the sea, water poured in hatches and scuttles. The captain, Lieutenant Raphael Semmes, ordered the mast cut away, but this could not be accomplished in time and she sank in ten minutes taking thirty-nine of her crew down with her. Thirty seven officers and men were rescued. Other brigantines of the same design, including the Somers’ sister ship, Bainbridge, suffered similar fates.
