petitions that his life might be
spared. He made the most trivial and weak excuses for his conduct,
utterly unlikely to avail him anything. He declared that he had been
led on by Myers; that his crew had forced him to consent to the piracy;
that he had endeavoured to dissuade them from it, and that the fear of
death alone had induced him to consent. Nothing he could say could, of
course, alter the decision of his judges; and he, with six of his
companions, was condemned to be hung at the fore-yard-arms of the
_William_, then lying in Quarantine Harbour. It was dreadful to hear
the shriek of despair to which Delano now gave vent.

"Mercy! mercy! mercy!" he cried. "Oh, spare my life! I am unfit to
die! Send me to toil from day to day in chains, with the meanest in the
land; but, oh, take not away that which you cannot restore!"

"Let him be removed," said the judge of the court; and he was borne
away, still crying out for mercy.

The miserable man, who had never shown mercy to others, still besought
it for himself. The other prisoners said not a word in their defence.
One only voice was heard when all others were hushed in the court. It
was solemn, though hollow and weak.

"Our doom is most just. We suffer rightly; and may God have mercy on
our souls," were the words spoken.

I recognised the voice of Charles Adams. I saw him the night before his
execution. He was calm and happy.

"O that my fate," said he, "might be a warning to others! and I should
feel still more contented to die."

He begged to keep my Bible to the last, promising to give it to the
chaplain to be delivered to me. I will not dwell on the dreadful
particulars of the execution. No Maltese could be found willing to
perform the office of executioner. The chief of the police, therefore,
ordered a swinging stage to be formed on either side of the vessel, on
which the criminals were placed with ropes round their necks, secured to
the fore-yard-arms, three on each side. These stages were secured in
their horizontal position by ropes rove through blocks made fast to the
fore-rigging, with lanyards at the end. As the chaplain reached a
certain word in the Service, the seamen stationed at the lanyards were
ordered to cut them. This was done, and the stages sinking from under
their feet, the miserable men were launched into eternity. A barge was
then brought alongside, into which the bodies were lowered, and carried
to Fort Ricasoli, at