either side. The captain directed Cromwell to stop, to allow Spencer to pass first. At this moment Spencer himself paused, and asked to be allowed to see Mr. Wales. He was called, and Cromwell now passed on, almost touching Spencer. When Mr. Wales came up, Spencer extended his hand to him and said, "Mr. Wales, I earnestly hope you will forgive me for tampering with your fidelity!" Spencer was wholly unmoved, Mr. Wales almost overcome with emotion while he replied, "I do forgive you from the bottom of my heart, and I hope that God will forgive you also!" "Farewell," exclaimed Spencer; and Mr. Wales, weeping, and causing others HANGING OF RINGLEADERS FROM THE YARD-ARM. to weep, responded "Farewell!" Spencer now passed on. At the gangway he met Small. With the same calm manner, but with a nearer approach to emotion, he placed himself in front of Small, extended his hand, and said, "Small, forgive me for leading you into this trouble." Small drew back with horror. "No, by God! Mr. Spencer, I can't forgive you!" On a repetition of the request, Small exclaimed in a searching voice, "Ah, Mr. Spencer, that is a hard thing for you to ask me! We shall soon be before the face of God, and then we shall know all about it!" Captain Mackenzie went to Small, urging him to be more generous-that this was no time for resentment. He relented at once, held out his hand to take the still extended hand of Mr. Spencer, and said with frankness and emotion, "I do forgive you, Mr. Spencer! May God Almighty forgive you also!" After some farewell words with Captain Mackenzie, he said, turning to those who held the ship, "Now, brother topmates, give me a quick and easy death!" He was placed on the hammocks forward of the gangway, with his face inboard; Spencer was similarly placed abaft the gangway; and Cromwell also on the other side. About this time, Spencer sent for Lieutenant Gansevoort, and told him that he might have heard that his courage had been doubted; he wished him to bear testimony that he died like a brave man. He then asked the captain, what was to be the signal for execution; the captain said, that, being desirous to hoist the colors at the moment of execution, at once to give solemnity to the act and to indicate by it that the colors of the Somers were fixed to the mast-head, it was his intention to beat to call as for hoisting the colors, then roll off, and at the third roll fire a gun. Spencer asked to be allowed himself to give the word to fire the gun; this request was granted, and the drum and fife were dismissed. He asked if the gun was under him, and was told that it was next but one to him. He begged that no interval might elapse between giving the word and firing the gun. Captain Mackenzie asked if they were firing with the lock and wafer, which had always proved quick and şure, but was told that they had a tube and priming, and were prepared to fire with a match. Some delay would have ensued, to open the arm chest and get out a wafer. The captain ordered a supply of live coals to be passed up from the galley, and fresh ones continually supplied; then assured Spencer there would be no delay. Time still wearing away in this manner, Small requested leave to address the crew. Spencer, having leave to give the word, was asked if he would consent to the delay. He assented, and Small's face being uncovered, he spoke as follows: "Shipmates and topmates! take warning by my example. I never was a pirate. I never killed a man. It's for saying I would do it, that I am about to depart this life. See what a word will do! It was going in a Guineaman that brought me to this. Beware of a Guineaman." He turned to Spencer and said to him, "I am now ready to die, Mr. Spencer, are you?" Cromwell's last words were, "Tell my wife I die an innocent man; tell Lieutenant Morris I die an innocent man!" It had been the game of this leading conspirator appear innocent. to Captain Mackenzie now placed himself on a trunk, in a situation from which his eye could take in everything, and waited for some time; but no word came. At length, the captain was informed that Spencer said he could not give the wordthat he wished the commander to give the word himself. The gun was accordingly fired, and the execution took place! The three conspirators against their country, their flag, their comrades and mankind, swung lifeless in the air, from the yardarm;-a fate richly deserved, at least by him who had atrociously declared: "I am leagued to get possession of the vessel, murder the commander and officers, choose from among those of the crew who are willing to join me such as will be useful, murder the rest, and commence pirating; to attack no vessels that I am not sure to capture; to destroy every vestige of the captured vessels; and to select such of the female passengers as are suitable, and, after using them sufficiently, to dispose of them." would do this when they sang praises to his name. The colors were now hoisted, and, above the American ensign, the only banner to which it may give place, the banner of the cross. And now, over the vasty deep, there resounded that joyous song of adoration, the hundredth psalm, sung by all the officers and crew. The crew were now ordered aft, and were addressed by Captain Mackenzie, from the trunk on which he was standing; after which, the crew were piped down from witnessing punishment, and all hands called to cheer the ship. Captain Mackenzie himself gave the order-"Stand by to give three hearty cheers for the flag of our country!" Never were three heartier cheers given. On the following Sunday, after the laws for the government of the navy had been read, as usual on the first Sunday of the month, the crew were again impressively addressed by Captain Mackenzie, and, in conclusion, he told them that as they had shown that they could give cheers for their country, they should now give cheers to their God, for they | favor. On the arrival home, of the Somers, the tragedy was investigated by a court of inquiry, consisting of Commodores Stewart, Jacob Jones, and Dallas, and Captain Mackenzie's course was fully approved. A court-martial was also subsequently held, at his personal request, of which Commodore John Downes was president, and the trial, which lasted forty days, resulted in his acquittal. One of the ablest reviews of this case, was that by Mr. J. Fenimore Cooper, in which Mackenzie's course was condemned; but the popular opinion was greatly in his XXXVII. SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF A GREAT AND FIERY COMET IN THE SKIES AT NOONDAY.-1843. It Sweeps Through the Heavens, for Several Weeks, with a Luminous Train 108,000,000 Miles in Length.-Almost Grazes the Sun, and, after Whirling Around that Orb with Prodigious Velocity, Approaches the Earth with a Fearful Momentum.-Its Mysterious Disappearance in the Unknown Realms and Depths of Space.-Most Notable of all Comets.-First Visible in the Day-time.-Its Conspicuous Aspect.-Strange and Threatening Motion.-Its Course Towards the Sun.-Their Supposed Contact.-Becomes Red in Passing.-Recedes Straight to the Earth.-Watched with Deep Concern.-The Magnetic Needle Agitated.-Wide Fears of a Collision.-Its Probable Result. -Indian Terror and Prediction.-Triumphs of Astronomy.-Diameter of the Comet's Head.Measurement of its Tail.-Stars Seen Through the Train.-Appearance in the Equator.-Like a Stream of Molten Fire.-Beautiful Ocean Reflection.-Double Sweep of the Tail.-Other Cometary Phenomena. "A pathless comet, The menace of the universe; SUALLY, the name or word 'comet' is applied to bodies which appear in the heavens with a train, or tail, of light; but it is now not uncommon to apply the term to those heavenly bodies, beyond the limits of the earth's atmosphere, which are nebulous in their appearance, and with or without a tail. It is, however, the class first named, which includes the most wonderful examples of this phenomenon in modern times; and, in connection with the splendid visitant of this kind that appeared in 1843,-almost rivaling, as it did, the splendor of the sun itself,-some notice will be appropriate of similar bodies which, during the last century, have excited wonder and admiration. Without dwelling upon the appearance of those comets which antedate the year 1800, or upon the corruscations, flickering and vanishing like northern lights, of the comet of 1807, some mention may be made of that of 1811, the finest that, up to the time of its appearance, had adorned the heavens since the age of Newton. It was noted for its intense brilliancy, and was visible for more than three months in succession to the naked eye, shining with great splendor-being, indeed, a comet of the first class, in point of magnitude and luminosity. Its brilliant tail, at its greatest elongation, had an extent of one hundred and twenty-three millions of miles, by a breadth of fifteen millions; and thus, supposing the nucleus of the comet to have been placed on the sun, and the tail in the plane of the orbits of the planets, it would have reached over those of Mercury, Venus, the Earth, and have bordered on that of Mars. At its nearest approach to us, the comet was yet distant one hundred and fortyone millions of miles, so that even had the tail pointed to the earth, its extremity would have been eighteen millions of miles away from its surface. Its appearance was strikingly ornamental to the evening sky, and every eye waited and watched, intently, to gaze upon the celestial novelty, as it grew into distinctness with the declining day. The elements of the orbit of this comet were accurately computed by Professors Bowditch, Farrar and Fisher. It The comet of 1843 is regarded as, perhaps, the most marvelous of the present age, having been observed in the day-time even before it was visible at night,-passing very near the sun,-exhibiting an enormous length of tail,-and arousing an interest in the public mind as universal and deep as it was unprecedented. startled the world by its sudden apparition in the spring, in the western heavens, like a streak of aurora, streaming from the region of the sun, below the constellation of Orion. It was at first mistaken, by multitudes, for the zodiacal light; but its aspects and movements soon proved it to be a comet of the very largest class. There were, too, some persons who, without regarding it, like many of the then numerous sect called Millerites, as foretokening the speedy destruction of the world, still could not gaze at it untroubled by a certain nameless feeling of doubt and fear. From the graphic narrative of a European traveling at that date in the wilds of America, it appears that the Indians around him viewed the comet of 1843 as the precursor of pestilence and famine. One of his companions, Tamanua, a young Wapisiana, broke the silence with which the whole party for some time stared at the starry train of the ball of fire, with the exclamation, "This is the Spirit of the Stars, the dreadful Capishi-famine and pestilence await us!" The others immediately burst into a torrent of vociferation, lamenting the appearance of the dreadful Capishi, and raising, with violent gesticulations, their arms towards the comet. This comet was visible in Bologna, Italy, at noon, two diameters of the sun's disc east of the sun, while passing its perihelion, being then only ninety-six thousand miles distant from that luminary, and its speed three hundred and sixty six miles per second; so that, in twelve minutes, it must have passed over a space equal to the distance between the earth and the moon. When its distance from the sun allowed it to be visible after sunset, it presented an appearance of extraordinary magnificence. But the appearance of this strange body, as observed at different points, by various scientific observers, has been made a portion of the permanent scientific history of our country, by Professor Loomis, of Yale college, to whose learned investigations in this department of human knowledge, more than one generation is largely indebted. In his admirable paper on this magnificent comet, he states that it was seen in New England as early as half-past seven in the morning, and continued till after three in the afternoon, when the sky became considerably obscured by clouds and haziness. The appearance, at first, was that of a luminous globular body with a short train-the whole taken together being found by measurement about one degree in length. The head of the comet, as observed by the naked eye, appeared circular; its light, at that time, equal to that of the moon at midnight in a clear sky; and its apparent size about one-eighth the area of the full moon. Som observers compared it to a small cloud st.ongly illuminated by the sun. The train was of a paler light, gradually diverging from the nucleus, and melting away into the brilliant sky. An observer at Woodstock, Vt., viewed the comet through a common three-feet telescope, and found that it presented a distinct and most beautiful appearance, exhibiting a very white and bright nucleus, and showing a tail which divided near the nucleus into two separate branches. At Portland, Me., Captain Clark measured the distance of the nucleus from the sun, the only measurement, with one exception, known to have been made in any part of the globe before the third of |