The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1864-10-22
LOCAL. M1TTERS.

TnE Execution Misunderstanding to an
nouneement, the execution of Ben, slave Of John H.
GENTRY, and William, slave of Samuel Fauntl5Toy,
convicted of burglary took place yesterday morning
About quaTtcr-past 10 O'Clock the condemned
emerged from the jail, with their hands cuiIcd to-
gcther, and SpTIClh@ INTO the wagon waiting took
seats their coffin. They were followed by Rcv.
DIR. Burrows (who had frequently visited them du
rIng their eunncmcn br. John Dove, Sergeant
Dudley, Jaor Frederick Hlll, and other attaches
Uf the prison As the PARTIES moved oil, the crowd
of persons collected outside, onsiating chicy OF
negroes and children, sctmpercd away at IA rapid
pace towards the place of execution, some taking
route and uthprS another. by the time the
posici3 reached the ground every available house
top, tree and hill in the vicinity packed With
spectators, and around the scattoi thousands
gtunding cui"uSly gazing upon the g allows.
At hall-past ten O'Clock the negroes and their at
tcndants arrived III front If the scatfuld, immed
atcy after whl~h they jumped from the wagon, and
being untuifed, aSefnd,d the ll,icI leading tfthr
platform III rapid and cheerful manner Ben, who
was a tall, well-iomcd mulatto, was dressed iii n
handsome suit OF light WOODEN goods, and Wore
one hand white military cloye, carry ing i'll his
night the other, with wilrh he saluted the crowd
around h.m. William, short, stout negro, very
black, commonly dressed aud baretootrf Both
of tieni :h0Wcd not the least symptoms Of fear,
and maintained Throughout the most surprising
compeSu,e. uncovcrnG their heads, as if III token
Of respect and reverence for the occasion, they
awaited the reading of the dc1th-wdlTant, which
Sergeant Dudley delivered in somewhat an ieit,lted
and feeling manner; at the conclusion of Which he
asked the criminals whether they wished to say
anything before the sentence of the law carried
into effect. Ben promptly eSpondcd that he should
like to address the crowd and sing hymn. lie
then went on IN rambling, sort Of speech, the point
III which seemed to he that he had gone ''on and
on III badness until de eotoh me-, and that now he
was "oing to suffer for it. He felt that he was
gong to Heaven, and pressed all his friends, bro
theirs and sisters to meet him there.
Rev. Dr. BuTToWS, at the conclusion OF Bcn'3
speech, delivered feeling and eloquent PRAYER af-
ter which he shook hands with the condemned and
left the syTliiOld.
Then followed Nelson, an old grey-haired negro
clergyman, who has spent much of his time with
the negroes during their imprisonment. He cX-
holtcd the crowd in attendance to take warning
from the fate which hanging over the unfOItII
nate CRIMINALS standing by him. My friends" he
$iid, - sin aud Satan is now howlng through dis
hnd more than ever heaIn OF afoIc. Use been
preaching dc gospel of de Lord dis forty wears and
nrbcr see 40 much bad doins aforr Our poor old
commonwealth ls suffering with sin of every kind
oar JS, cur coItts, our law offices, is all full Of
wicked, bad people, who have NiOlttcl de law and it
seems dat de devil am let lo"-e Dee boys point
me to the tegroes beside hnl am truly pent of
d t. sins, and believe am going up to God" Ntl-
sou then shook hamis with ii, untoitunatc bro
fh'fH, as he called them, and particularly desired
to h" remembered to Father Abraham in lIc:tyrn =
Following Nelson's c>hortation, William Inad" a
nhoit @lt'h, eAlrcssll hl@ satisfaction with the
verdict Ul the lmY AMI the punishment VIII Ii
WI. lhunt being ilnTo-,l upon HIM. lie said hr
not AFRAID to die; hclltyyti Itc w5 prepared and
hol"'i all Ia. fi,ud- w"uL meet hun IN heaven.
Ii an audlll tone, Ben dlin dctrtd ali to- tiI,lte
III prayer, when hInscl tlld William instantly ftl
Oh their kites, and lac delivered one Of those Pc
,liTly earnest, disconnected prayers which char
aCleIiIe Observation-Disclosures negroes when en-
gagged III devotional exercises at r their meets
in2 houses. Ia the course OF his PRAYER Ben a,kcd
the Almighty 10 he merciu to his doomed COM
pmon's widow and children after he was gone and
to guide thcm throughout this life in the way of
righteousness, 50 that they might all meet him i'll
Heaven.
Durin,, the whole of these exercises on the part o
the condemned, the negroes gathered around ho
composed thout tourtiith9 OF all prrseutW,Pt bit
tcrly, and many of hm shouted and Il tctlllt,d 50
vin nifty that the officers several times
PEELED to quiet them.
NJ i've minute to II o'clock, J.ilor Frederick "
Hall aH5t the Iopr around the nc,k~ ut the con-
q, mnti drew tho caps over their eyes, de-, ,EdCd
the scaitnli, and knocked away thg props from
der the platform upon which they Wei" atanIn@.-
Owing to the srllHcs1 Of the rope, th, knot did not
slip clo@sto the necks of the crnnl7 consequently
they did very hard, and ii h.lf hour elapsed
hrtuir fife was entirely extinct For about
two minutes they hung perfectly mDtInrl,7s but
then their bodies commenced twichiu@ :tnd hc.tyinc
and they could he heard brclthing for dist uo,
off. William struggled desperately, several times
swin-in" tli lie could throw his feet upon the top Of
the platform, which WIS hanging By hinges edge
wise to the ~Cailud, upon a level almost with hl~
head, by which means lie would raise hIni> 1t up in
ou,h manner 10 lc~~tn tn" ~tlHIn upon tlisncck
Several time iic supported himself III thiS manner,
and would Itmpin that position TIL the CErcu-
toncr Wollll pluck IN legs oil, inL then ho would
Violently Ir,i rutud and iulul TIL he could a-SHn
>tlkr ia, ,atlold with his feet. Finally, however
iiS moItGu,Ht became weaker and weaker, and
death pat chi to his suiklng~.
Dr. John Dove examined their pulses ahi pro-
nGuuc,d them dead precisely halt-pd~t IL O'clock,
when their bodies cut down, placed INTO col
fins and taken off tor burial.