The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-06-02 00:00:00

ACCIDENT TO A MISSION VESSEL.

Whilst the Rev. M. Beattie, the Missions to Sea-
men's chaplain for the open roadsteads in Belfast
Lough, was sailing at noon on Sunday last from ship
to ship to hold services on board with the crews, the
mission vessel wa4 overturned in tacking by a heavy
squall, and the chaplain and four others were thrown
into the water three-quarter?, of a mile from shore.
The vessel sank with the mast upright in seven feet of
water, and the chaplain
.and his crew clung to the
rigging for thirty-five minutes, when they were all
haopily rescued by the Garmoyle Lighthouse-keeper,
who launched a boat immediately and landed them
safe at Holy wood.

Last week the exports of produce from New York
amounted to 5,896,000 dole,

THE PHCENIX PARK MURDERS,

EXECUTION OF MICHAEL FAGAN.

The sentence of death pronounced upon Michael
Fagan for the murder of Mr. Burke was fulfilled on
Monday morning in Kilmainham Gaol. A memorial
by the prisoner's mother praying for a commutation of
the sentence was addressed to the Queen on May 12th,
and was referred to the Lord-Lieutenant for his Ex-
cellency's consideration. On Friday in last week an
answer was sent to the effect that his Excellency
saw nothing in the circumstances of the case
to induce him to remit the sentence, and
that the law must take its course. The prisoner
was a young man, 24 years of age, and was by
trade a blacksmith. At the trial it was proved by
independent and reluctant witnesses that he was in
the group of men who were observed loitering in the
park about the scene of the murder shortly before it
took place. It was admitted in his defence that he
was there in the early part of the evening, but an
attempt was made to prove that he was not there
when the crime was committed.

The execution attracted very little popular interest.
Up to almost the hour at which it took place there
were few people to be seen about the gaol, and at the
most the crowd did not number more than 200 persons.
The prisoner slept soundly, and rose about six o'clock,
when he resumed his devotions, to which since the
sentence he had been very attentive. He made no
statement, but on leaving the chapel on his way to the
scaffold he was heard to Bay that he hoped his fate
would be a warning to young men to have nothing to
do with secret societies.

At eight o'clock precisely the sentence of the law
was fulfilled, and the black flag announced the fact to
the people assembled outside the gaol. A brother of
Fagan's was in the crowd, and manifested bitter grief.
A few people knelt down, and offered up some
prayers, a woman reading them out of a prayer-book.
Masses were said for the repose of Fagan's soul in
several of the Roman Catholic churches. Death
appeared to have been instantaneous ;• there was no
sign of any struggle. The drop was seven feet.
There was a large military and police force at hand,
but there was no need for their action, as no demon-
stration of a disorderly character was attempted.
At half-past nine o'clock an inquest was held, and
formal proof of the cause of death having been given
by Dr. W. A. Carter, the jury found accordingly.