The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1865-11-16
VxeeutiOn Of WirZ.

,etween 10 and IL O'CLOCK 'uh' 80 cence.
Ne e,allows he declared his lnnc ms Of
IL IL die without exhibiting any syinp'|
fear. s-.,,o. Rovle administered |
:, i nnoranoent to Wirz, and father Wlgee
Ia of the Roman Cathollc Nhurch III
ei Ioo u mon the prisoner black camorlcH;;
PPa,oorking as he did SO, 81 hope TINS W.
he turned into white one IN inc o'n
world" IN o,o1ock Capt
W. came from his cell, in the Old IaPl'"I
'ris ESQ accompanied by Provost m'i poupe
PP,1sseIl and other officers, ana la'heis III
- Wioet: and passing between ,S a i",,,;
., o,uard assembled the scanolo' no pi'0
cneI was then seated. uo ood %
'i The scaffold was II feet square atu e A
sset to the top beam, with VraP - 'VV'
from the ground.
The guard consisted of the 156th Penn.
Vols. and three detachments of Veteran Re-
serve Corps under command Of Capt. Wal
bridge. Nil. Supt Old Capital prison.
There were several hundred spectators
present, besides military. Civilians having
been admitted on special passes.
Amid the most profound silence, Provost
Marshal Russell proceeded to read the order
of the War Department founded on the YER
dict of the Court Martial which tried the
prisoner. He was charged and convicted
of combining, confederating with Jefferson
Davis j. A. Seldom, Howell Cobb, John ii.
Winder, Richard B. Winder, w. Shelby
Reed, r. R. Stevenson, S. P. Moore Kerr,
late hospital steward at Andersonville, JAS
Duncan Wesley, w. Turner, Benjamin
Harris and others, whose names are I'M
known, and WHO were engaged in armed re-
bellion against the United States, malicious
Iy, traitorously and in violation Of the laws
of war, to impair or niure health, and de-
stroy lives by subjecting to torture and
great suffering, by combining in unhealthy
and unwholesome quarters, by exposing to
incernency OF winter, and to dews and
burning heat Of summer, by compelling the
use of impure water and by furnishing in
sufficient and unwholesome food, of large
numbers of Federal prisoners, to wit: the
number of about 40, 900 prisoners of war
held at Andersonville within the lines of the
so-called confederate states, on or before the
9TH day March, 1864, and at divers times
between that time and the 10th of April,
1865 to the end that the armies of the
United States might be weakened and i'm :
paired, and that the insurgents eng ged in
armed rebellion against the United States
might be aided and conforted, etc. etc.
The order also states that the prisoner
was found guilty of the I'd charge, namely;
murder in the violations of tine laws and
customs of war and guilty of all the specifi
cations excepting the 4th, 10th and 18th,
which three set forth that he killed a prls-
oner by shooting him with a revolver; that
he ordered a sentinel to fire upon another
with revolver, and that he shot another
with revolver so that he died.
The order concludes as follows;
The sentence and court do therefore SCI
tence him. Henry Wrz, to be hanged by
the neck until he he dead, at such time, and
place as the President of the United States
may direct, two-thirds of the members con-
curing therein; and the court also find the
prisoner, Henry Wirz, of having caused the
death, in manner as alleged in specifica
ton 18th, charge 2, by means of dogs; Of
two prisoners of war in his custody, anc
soldiers of the United States-one occurring
on or about the 18th of May, 1864, and
anothsr on or about the LIST day of Septem
Der, 1864, but which finding as here expires
sed, has not and did not enter into the SEN
tence of the court as before given.
Second-The proceedings findings and
sentence in the foregoing case having beer
submitted to the President of the United
States, the following are his orders:
EXECUTIVE MANSION,
WASHINGTON, Nov 1856.
The proceedings, finding and sentence o.
court in the within case, are approved, and
it is ordered that the sentence be carried in
to effect by the officer commanding the de
partment Of Washington, Friday, the 10th
day of November, 1865, between the hours
of 6 o'clock in the morning and II o'clock
noon.
(Signed) ANDREW JOHNSON,
President of the United States.
Third-Mai. Gen G. G. Augar, comman-
ding Department of Washington, is com
manded to cause the foregoing sentence in
the case of Henry Wirz to be daily executed
in accordance with the Presidents order.
Fourth Military Commission, Of
which Maj. Gen. Lewis Wallace, q; S. Vol
unteers, is President, is hereby dissolved by
command of the President of the United
States.
Csigned) +. D. townsend,
Asst Ait. Gen.
When the reading Of the order was com
peted, Wirz conversed with those on the
platform with assumed confidence and self.
possession, and it was remarked that he hao
a smiling countenance. To his spiritual
adviser he said: Il am innocent, | have
to die but | will die like a man have hope
in the future, and have nothing more tc
say"
His legs and hands were tied, the moose
passed about his neck, and the black cap
placed over his face. He stood erect without
faltering, evidently having nerved himself
for the solemn event. Those gu the platform
retired to the railing, leaving the doomed
man 10 the centre of the structure After a
few moments of profound quiet, the drop, at
the preconcerted signal, fell The sounds
thus occasioned having reached the proms-
cuous crowd outside the old Capitol grounds,
but was not privileged to view the execu
ton, was responded to by repeated shouts
OF appreciation.
The convict directly after falling was
CONSIDERABLY convused in his legs but the
agony was soon over. He hung about 6f
teen minutes and was then cut down His
body was laid upon stretcher and convey
ed to prison, where he was placed in cot
fin, and transferred to Father Boyle for in
terment.
His neck was broken by the fall, and al
the proceedings occupied about three quar-
tiers of an hour
Melancholy Death of Preston King.
The telegraph brings us the startling an
nouncement of the death of bon. Preston