The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-12-16

before, eff had died six months ago
should have been lost, but now I rely on
tirely on Gods mercy; I have done will
the world and am ready to leave it." h
stated all recent events had at times an
peared to him like q vision or a dream
adding that he had passed in solitud,
through many terrible hours since his ar
rest in America. He was full of meek
ness and resignation, forgave freely all bill
enemies, requested me to write to hi
father that he should die a happy and re
pentant man, and spoke in terms of affeo
ton and gratitude of the prison off Gals
particularly of Rev. Mr.. Davis and Mr.
Jonas, the governor. And l desire t
confirm his sentiments towards all the of
ficers of the prison, and cannot sufficiently
express my admiration of the firmness
combined with touching kindness and ten.
derness of heart, with which Mr.. iona:
fulfilled his most trying functions. 1t is 8
blessing indeed to have such officers in
such prison.
SIN conclusion, I feel constrained re.
spectfully to call the attention of the prop
er authorities to what seems to me cruel
and crying evil in Newgate. Again and
again Oh Monday morning, in those last
solemn moments, our prayers were inter-
rupted by the savage yells of the multi
tude assembled to witness the execution.
Cannot the condemned cells be placed in
a position where the noise of hammering
and the shouts of the mob do not reach
the ears of the miserable culprita
HORRIBLE SCENES IN THE CROWD.
None but those who looked down upon
the awful crowd of Monday will ever be-
lieve in the wholesale, open, broadcast
manner in which garotting and highway
| robbery were carried on. We do not now
speak of those whom the mere wanton
mischief of the crowd led to bonnet" as
they passed, or else to pluck their hats
from off their heads and toss them over
the mob, amid roars and shouts of laugh
ter, as they came from all sides and went
in all directions, till sometimes even they
fell within the enclosure round the drop,
and were kicked under the gallows by the
police. The prOpriety of such an amuse-
ment at such time admits of question, to
say the least, even among such an audi
ence. But even this rough play falls into
harmlessness beside the open robbery and
violence which had its way virtually un-
checked in Newgate street. There were reg
ular gangs, not so much in the crowd itself
within the barriers as along the avenues
which led to them, and these Migrants
openly stopped, bonneted," sometimes
garrotted and always plundered any per-
son whose dress led them to think him
worth the trouble; the risk was nothing.
Sometimes their victims made desperate
resistance, and for q few moments kept
the crowd around them violently swaying
to and fro amid the dreadful uproar. In
no instance, however, could we ascertain
that Police" was ever called. Indeed,
one of the solitary instances in which they
interfered at all was where their aid was
sought from some houses the occupants of
which saw an old farmer who, aftef q long
and gallant struggle with his many assail-
ants, seemed, after having been robbed, to
be in danger of serious injury as we'll
This, however, about the farmer, is q mere
episode; the rule was such robbing and
i'll treatment as made the victims only too
glad to fly far from the spot where they
had suffered it, and who, if even then they
ventured on giving any information to the
police, could hope for no redress in such
crowd. Such were the open pastimes Of
the mob from daylight till near the time of
execution, when tho great space around
the prison seemed ohooked With its vast
multitude.
COMMENTS OF THE LONDON TIMEs.
The London Times of the 18th, COM
menting upon the execution, says:
"However crushing the evil
dence of the murderers guilt, however
flimsy the defence set up on bis behalf, the
terrible and irrevocable nature of his pun
ishment paralyses in some minds the pow
or of approaching moral certainty, and
induces a craving for some higher kind of
proof In the majority of cases no such
proof can ever be forthcoming, and the
prisoners own confession is the only pos.
sible substitute for it.
"There are countries, we believe, In
which, not long ago, capital sentence
was never executed unless an explicit con-
fession bad been procured, and where the
most refined tortnres were applied to the
conscience of the orirHinal until it could
be extOrted.
elm this country official interrogation
Of the convict, with view to make his
life intolerable, would shock the public
mind far more than his execution upon the
honest verdict of q jury. Moreover, if
society possesses the right to inHict capital
punishment at all, it possesses the right to
ascertain for itself the facts which justify
is infection. ......
Murderers ofwhose guilt no doubt could
exist have been known to face death with
lie on their lips. How much more in.
vincible would be their persistence in false
hood if they knew that their own admis-
sion of the truth could alone bring them
TO the gallows! Still, while earthly jus.
tice is tallible, it must always be consola-
tory to have prisoners own confession
from his own mouth. ..
1t sets at rest the groundless but linger-
ing doubt which, until it be stilled, de-
prives the penalty of its due effect, and en-.
lists some humane but treacherOus senti-
ments on behalf of the sufferer. 1t dis.
perses the shadowy cloud which seldom
fails to light on some innocent person