Island for many months.” These statements he has maintained to the present time, constantly refusing to give any account of himself in connection with this vessel, or of anything which transpired on board of her after she left her anchor in Gravesend bay. That denial, contrary to the truth, that he had ever known Captain Burr, or ever been on the vessel E. A. Johnson, or had been on Staten Island when he was charged with being there, shows a full consciousness of the fatal effects of any evidence tending to establish that fact if uncontradicted, and in that contradiction he persisted. On being brought to this city, he was confronted with various persons that he had known before; with the man who carried his baggage; with the deck hand of the Southfield, and with various persons who saw him on the sloop Johnson; the watch found upon him was, through the hand of Providence, identified as the watch of Captain Burr, worn by him on the day of his leaving this port. That watch the prisoner stated he had had in his possession for a long time; that he bought it from his brother, and paid a certain sum of money for it; and as to the other articles, he claimed that they were his, and gave various accounts concerning them. On the Monday following his being brought here he was examined before a United States magistrate, was indicted, and is now brought before you for the offence of robbery on the high seas. I have thus briefly gone over the various circumstances of this case as they will be produced to you by the evidence. I deemed it necessary to state to you the line of evidence that is intended to be pursued by the prosecution, that you may understand the bearing of each portion of the testimony toward the rest. You will perceive in this case one peculiarity. A great number of witnesses will be examined for the government, and among these witnesses there is a very slight connection, either with each other or with the individual himself—particularly with each other. Various witnesses will be produced before you from Islip, Gravesend, Staten Island, New York, and Brooklyn, who are unacquainted with each other, who each come up to add their little fibre to this strong cord of proof which is thrown round this defendant. Each little item of evidence is of no particular strength, of no decision in itself, but only forming a strong chain, a perfect chain, as claimed by the government, fixing without question and without doubt the guilt of this offence upon the prisoner. Your attention, gentlemen, is invited to this carefully and scrutinizingly, which scrutiny, I feel convinced, you will give to it. It is a question of great interest—it involves the punishment of a terrible crime. If this prisoner is the true offender, the result may be very serious to him. It involves a vindication of the law and the punishment of a crime which he thought he had covered up; for there is very little doubt he