The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1873-08-30 00:00:00

THY EXECUTION OF SUB-INSPECTOR
MON FGOMERY.

es Hartley Montgomery was executed at
.1 l'neaday morning at a few minutes past eight
He rim in his cell on Monday night till an ad-
. lir, attended by three reverend gentlemen,
;sir. Mr. Chartres, &clergyman of the Church
. the Rev. Mr. Irwin, incumbent of Lis-
- die Rev. Mr. James Donal', Wesleyan
the admonitions of these gentlemen he
• closest attention, and in the fervent
iffered up he joined. One of the clergy.
red that in all his experience he never
more genuine repent lace, and never
ter prepared to all human appearance.
to Montgomery wrote ti Mrs. Glasse,
itiful language the crime he hat corn-
. iving her and her family of so valuable
• if her son, and begging her to forgive
t six Montgomery partook of break.
, la. wards accompanied the chaplain to the
chapel, where the Sacrament was administered to him.
At • ipiarter to eight he was conducted to one of the
hospital wards, and there the operation of pinioning
was gone through. It consisted simply of tying
his hands d iwn by his si le by means of a strong
tape. Having thanked the goal o flicers and the
chaplain the procession was formed, and amid
the mournful tollicit of the bell, and the choked
utterances of the chaplain reading the service for the
dying, the melancholy party proceeded towards the
gallows. Montgomery walked with the most perfect
calmness and steadiness. He was in a slight degree
assisted on to the drop, hut his self-possession did not
for • moment forsake him, and in the act of stepping
up he fervently prayed " Lord have mercy upon
rue." A second afterwards the bolt was drawn, and
In two minutes he had ceased to breathe. After hang-
ing for the space of half an hour the ho y was cut down,
and a coroner's inquest was held. Formal evidence
of identification and the cause of death was then
taken. Mr. Joseph Smyth then said :—" Gentlemen,
before separating I think we should mark our disap-
probation of the refusal of the Board of Superinten-
dence to admit the representatives of the public press
to be preisent at the execution of Thomas ilartley
Montgomery." He moved • resolution to that etleot.
Mr. William Gallagher seconded the motion, which
was passed unanimously. The Coroner said it was
scarcely within their province. Mr. Smyth—it is.
The Coroner said he was not pleased with the conduct
of certain parties who, when served with a summons
to attend as jurors, threw it back in the face of the
constable, refusing to corn.. Constable Thompson
said the jurors were generally attentive in coming to
the inquests, but this was an exceptional case. The
proceedings were then closed.

At suosequent hour the body was buried within
the precinsts of the gaol in acc .nlance with the sen-
tence. Montgomery Wad hanged in hie ..wn clothes,
the same ai he wore during his trial.

The Mail, in remarking upon the case, says : -
tt The melancholy drama which has been lingering upon
the stage for two long years reached its catastrophe this
Morning in the execution of the miserable culprit. No
further confession was made by Montgomery, as, indeed,
there was nothing for hOn to colt as His guilt wm
fully proved to the jury, and was admitted in Court by
himself. liters was see secret motive left undiscovered.
The crime was of the most vulgar and most sweat
kind, it was done simply to ever a robbery. There
was no malice in tt in a moral sense—only a brutal callous
oblivion of every human feeling. The victim was knoe'red
upon the head with no more comf mutton than would
have been shown by a burglar to • dot whi h faithfully
guarded Its master's door. The sffeir was t o low, to ,
romantic even to be available for use in garnishing a taie of
horror for the pages of the vilest broadsheet, or the boards
of the meanest prier) theatre. The only outuf the-way com-
plication lay in the pc sition and education of the cricalmal,
which were shown, not merely by the perpetration of the
murder, but by that scarcely inferior crime committed at the
notorious interview, to be hot incompatible with an entire
'beetle, of the moral sense. The attempt mare by Mont-
gomery upon that occasion to blacken the characters of per-
sons whom he had already so deeply Injured was doubtless
the cause which influenced the authorities of the gaol in re-
fusing au ith'iccriminate admicslon of reporters to the execu-
tion. If any of our ointemporaeles feel that they have a
grievance In an occasion for fine writing having bum refused
to them, they have no one k, blame but themselves."

The Evening Telegraph says :
" The unhappy man met his fate with every appearance
of resignation and contrition, and but for one circumstance
the execution would not require or deserve notice. The cir-
cumstance to which we allude is the exclusion of the press
from the execution. In spite of all remonstrance, the au-
thorities persisted In their determine ion not to permit the
reporters ti attend the execution. We earnestly trust that
the press and he public will not let this matter lightly drop
A more dangerous precedent, and one more clew'', at vari-
ance with the best interests of the public, has Enver oce Irma].
I/ necesaary. an act of parliament should be introduced
amending the Private Executions Act by a clause ordering all
officers to admit the representatives of the press to execu-
tions. Personally, the duty is a painful one, 'lsbell we
would be glad to see our brother j relieved from,
but for obvious lemons It Ls a most necessary and important
duty."

HIS CAREET.

At • comparatively early age Montgomery was samitte t a
Conner into the employment of the Belfast Banking Com-
pany, and was advanced through the usual stages up to the
post of accountant. It will be remembered thst in all the :
trials the Crown laid great stress upon the fact, as proved in
evidence, that • few minutes before the closiog hour of the
bank Mr. (Hass took Cod's Amencsn draft into the hater ,
office to Consult some one, and that whispering took place, I
allowing, as the learned counsel argued, that the ceshler was I
conferring with& persyn having more experience in banking I
affairs than himself. It was the knowledge acquired daring
Montgomery's seven years' service as clerk in the Helsel
Bank that Glans wished ty avail himself of In determining I
whether, under the circumstauces, any charge ought to be ,
made for culling the order. Montgomery, it seems, was
Hot satisfied with his prospects in the honking business; or
else he had a prediteat n for the profession so long and
honourably foltowed by his father ; or perhaps he had an
aspiration for • higher weld status which he dreamt the
rank of sub-inspector would give him. At all events, he
studied for the isual cadet examination, and havisii credit-
ably passed it in the year 1856, he rerigned his clerkship and
was appointed third-clase sub-Inspector in charge of the
Newtorinards district in the county Down. In his new
sphere he I !banned his dales efficiently, and In due time
was advanced to second class rank. Suortly afterwards he
married, end In accordance with she regulations of the force
he was removed--unhappily for Wm. Glass. The district of
which erewtonstewert is the headquarter. was placed Tinder
his charge. Montgomery's rather was an officer in the R•iyal
Irish conotabulai y He ear first on th, list for a county In-
epectorshlp when death mercifully saved hi la from the awful
Ignominy of seeing his *sly son a cloriemed felon. His
decease took place a few months before the fatal 29th of
Jane. Montgomery was a man of splendid physique. Hewn
over six feet in height, with broad shoulders, fob cheat and
an altogethea rtrong and mounter frame, constabulary drill
baying given him a soldierly bearing. file large moustache
did not entirely conceal his firmly-compressed lip', which de-
noted a determined wIIL His face was naturally pain, his
forehead narrow aod elightly receding. His eyes were u..-
doubtedly peculiar ; the pupils were of • very dark blue
colour, and at time, rolled about with quick furtive glances
A more daring, atryclous, and extraordinary murder never
challenged prec,dence in the alma, of crime. In all its
tragic incidents it stand. uniqut. The pudic are already
rttonsinted with every link In that wonder,ul chain of cir-
cumstantial evidence by which the legal triumph of c inac-
tion was ultimately achieved. Nearly two months were
spent by the coroner in the preliminary investigation. Im-
mediately after the more., In June, 1011, on time applica-
tion of counsel for the Crown, the trial was postponed,
and the accused was not called on to plead until
the summer assizes of 1872, be ore Mr. Jostles Lawson.
The prosecution was conducted by the ablest Crown lawyer,,
and the eefence of the unhappy prisoner was entrusted to a
distinguished counseL After a protracted hearing of,the
case the jury were discharged without • verdict. The se.
Calld trial took place at the spring assizes of the present
year, before Mr. Justice Barry, and had a similar result, one
or two of the jurymen having crotchety notions of their own
to eccount for the murder without iniViceting Montgomery,
they would not convict. He was, however, finally con-
victed on purely circumstantial testimony.