The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1865-11-17
TIE Execution of Wirz.
SVashiogton. Nov. 10.

and IL O'clock this morning. On the gal
lows he declared his innocence. He died
withou. exhibiting any symptoms Ct fear
| This morning Father Boyle administer
ed the sacrament to Captain Wirz, aud
Father Wigget, OF the Roman, church.
;hen placed upon the prisoner tie black
cambric, remaIkipg as he did SO, :. J hope
| this will be turned into while one in .he
other world"
A, 25 minutes past 10 O'clock Cap.sin
/ Wiz cage from his cell in the old Capi
tol prison, accompanied By provost mar
shall RUSSELL and other officers, and b.
Fa'heIs Boyle and Wiggett. and .psssir &
between the military gua;i ascended the
scaifold The prisoner was then seated
The scaffold was II feet square, and %
feet to the top beam, with trap Il Zee.
from the ground. .. +. .-....r HI. +.
The guard consisted OF the 95,h .Penn>
sylvauia volunteers, and three desachnents
Of the veteran reserve corps under CON
mand Of Captain Walbridgs, military
superintendent of the old Capitol prison.
There were several hundred spectators
present, besides the military, civilians hav
ing been admitted on special passes.
Amid profound silence, Provost Marshal
Russell proceeded TO read the order OF the
War Department, founded on the verdict
Of the court marshal which tried the pris-
oner. Il was charged and convicted Of
combining, con!edera,ing and conspiring
with Jsf Davis. j. A. Seldom, Howell
COBB, J. Ii. Winder, Richard Winder,
Isaac White, W. J. Winder, w. Shelby
Reed, r. A Stevenson. S F. Moore, Kerr
late hospital Steward at Andersonvile,
James Duncan Wesley, w. Turner, Ben
jamin Harris, and others, whose names
are unknown, and who were then engaged
in armed rebellion against the United
States; with me.iciously, traitorou.ly,
and in violation OF the laws Of war, seeking
to impair and injure he health aud to
destroy the ives-by sutjecring to torture
and great suffering, by confhiug in un>
healthy and unwholesome quarters, by
exposing to the incIemency OF the weather
and to the dews and burning sun Of sum
mer, by compelling thu use Of impure
water, aud bv furnishing insufficient and
unwholssome food d,-of large numbers of
| federal prisoners, to wit : the number of
about As ,0O0, held as prisoners Of war at
AndersonvilIe, within the lines Of the so :
called Confederate States, on or before the
9th Of March, 1864, and at diverse times
between that day and the 10Th Of April,
1865, to the end that the armies Of the
! United States might be weakened and
impaired, and that the Insurgents engaged
in armed rebellion against the L. s.,
mi-ht be aided and comfor;ed, etc, etc.
The order also states that the prisoner
was found guilty Of two charges, namely
! Murder in violation of laws aud customs
of war, aud guilty of all the specifications.
excepting the 4th. 10Th and Is h, which
three set forth that he killed prisoner by
shooting him with a revolver, that lie
ordered a sentinel 20 fire upon another
with = revolver, and that lie shot another
with revolver so that lie died The order
concludes a. follows:
And the court do therefore sentence
him, Henry Wirz TO be hanged by the
neck until he be dead, at such time and
| place as the President of the United States
NAV direct, thirds Of the members OF
the Court conc1rring herein. And the
court also tnGs the prisoner, Henry Wirz
guilty of having caused the death, in the
manner as alleged in specification llth
charge 2, by means OF dogs of three
prisoners Of war in his custc dy, and sol,
diers of the United States, one occurring on
or about The 18Th Of May, 1854 another
! occurring on or about the llth day OF
July, 1864; ano,he. occurring on or
about the lst day Of September, 1864
but which finding as here expressed, has
no; entered into the sentence OF The court
as before given.
SECOND The proceedings and finding "a
! to the sentence in the foregoing case
! having been submitted to The Presiden,
Of the United States, the following are bis
orders:
Executive Mansion, Nov. 8, 1865.
The proceedings, fadings and sentence
| of the Court in the within case are ap
proved, and it is ordered that the sentence
be carried into execution by the officer
commanding the Department Of Washing
ton. on Friday. the 10th day Of November.
| 1865, between the hours of O'Clock in
the morning and 12 O'Clock at noon.
! (Signed( ANDREW Johnson,
President of the United States.
THIRD Maj Gen. C. G. Augur, com
nsnding the Department Of Washington
is commanded TO cause the FOREGOING
sentence in the case Of Henry Wirz to be
duly executed in accordance with the
Presidents order.
| FOURTH. The military commission. 0!
which Maj. Gen. Lew Wallace, U S.
Volunteers, is President IS hereby dis
solved, by command of the President ol
the United States.
E. d. TOWNSEND, A. A. G.
When the reading Of the order was
completed Wirz conversed with those on
the platform with seeming confidence and
self possession, and it was remarked that
he had smiling countensnce. TO bis
spiritual advisers be said: II am inno-
cent. have to die, but can die like a
man. have hope in the fn.n.e. have
nothing more to say His legs and
hands were tied, the moose passed around
bis neck and the black cap placed over
bis face lie stood erect, without fal,cr.
ing. evidently having nerved himself for
tie solemn event.
! Th0se on the platform te,irel TO the