The Rutland herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1850-1852, 1851-10-09

hum Of ,rw yoirc. perva led ih' air
aud might have been heard blnrks dis.
,ant Still the crowd increased. Mem.
bers OF the Vigilance Committee, srriv-
ing on the ground, after jcstling through
The dense mass Of human beings, found
The passage 10 the chambers completely
blocked up and closed, the doors BEN:
fastened inside, 81 as TO resit the pres.
sure from without. In the southern
chamber rope had been "rceved
through the block attached to the beam
above the left door, and several mem
bers, appearing at The fall, lowered the
rope 20 their comrads below, and swung
them up from the greond, thus giving
them access to the Committee.
Twelve minutes had passed since
the alarm was sounded on the fire bell,
when the door Of the northern cham
Der opened, few members appeared
without their coats, and addressed q
few words to the heavins surging
ing masses below. The din Of human
voices that arose, completely drowned
the speakers words. 1t was under
stood that the capture Of the prison
ers was announced. Cries of " hang
them up!" .now and here !" cnsued,
and the tumnlt aud noise each mo.
ment grew greater. A member Of
the CommiSee waved his hand, si.-
nifcant of assent to the proposition.
and in momentary lu!l we could
catch the rem,rk, hurriedly and en-,
ergetically made eve have them !;
never fear; it is all right; y and a
laundering shout of Wild congratula-
ton announced that the people below
were as fully bent upon witnessing
justice done as their representatives
in the chambers above. A few of the
Committee then dashed out the glass
over the door of the southern chamber
and one of their number mounted into
the opening, holding one end of a
rope. Dexterously clinging to the clap.
boards on the outside, he managed to
pass the rope through the block and
returned with the two ends to the
floor. Both doors of the Committee
rooms were then closed-the fatal
ropes inside.
1t was now within fifteen minutes
Of 8 p. NJ, seventeen minutes only
having been spent in rescuing the
prisoners from Jail, conveying them to
the rooms, and completing the pre-.
liminaries of their execution. Tie
great, dense, asitated crowd that
covered sLe roofs, and chung by doz
ems to the sides of all the adjoining
houses, and packed the streets, dark
ened the walls, and filled the rigging
and boats along the docks, presented
an awful and imposing spectacle Of
excited, inpatient and resolute man
kind. Ten thousand faces were up
turned, and every eye was fixed upor
the doors of the committee chambers
The vast concourse was stilled al
} most to the hksh Of death. but this wa:
only for fek seconds. Two minute.
only had passed after the ropes were
drawn in, and already the Grove
showed signs Of impotence. The frs
marmur had scarcely arisen, however
, when the doors of both chambers were
simultaneously jerkcd open, present
ing to view each Of the prisoners
) half surrounded at each door by thu
, members of the Committee. A ter
rife shout rent the air.
, The multitude, tossed to and fro
above all, amid all, calmly but stcrnly
J stood the band of the Brothers O
: Vigilance, and in their hands the
falntlng dropping, gasping, criminals
their arms pinioned aud their fee. SO
, cured. The rope was about theil
, necks, their coats having been remov
. ed and they stood aghass and trcm
bling in the brief second Of lifetime
allowed them to confront the stormy
sea of human beings spread far on,
below them. Another second of time
and they were tossed far out into the
space, and drawn up like lightning
up to the beams end. Both were ex
ecuted at one and the same instant,
the signal being given throughout the
chambers, and the members rushing
back with the rope until the culprits
each had been dragged to the block,
and hung almost motionless by the
neck. Then few convulsive throbs
and the names Of Mckenzie and
Whitaker were but empty words
their tabernacles Of flesh cold in " oh.
struction's apathy"
While they were hanging the crowd
below vented in whispers, and some
of the more thoughtlcss in shouts,
their approval. One or two of the
Committee very indecorously appear.
ed at the threshold from which the
poor wrctches had the moment before
passed into eternity, and seemed to
recognize acqnaintances among the
populace, exhibiting very little rever.