Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1872-10-02
MEMORIES OF ONE WHO WAS
HANGED.

It has sometimes happened that when
a man has been hanged he has, either
through the carelessness or unskllful-
ness of the hangman, or some other
unforeseen cause, escaped death.
Some people may imagine that in such
a case there is not so much disgrace in
beng hanged. Let them not indulge
in this belief any longer, for [. who
speak from my own personal experience,
have found the situation a very I'M
pleasant one.
Those whose fate has led them to
the scaffold, and who have had the
misfortune to be cut down too soon,
have my sincere pity. There are many
persons who, on such an accession, would
be very happy to be cut down before
life was extinct, and they think that [
have very strange opinions. But /
reason from experience. Erperto
creder Roberto That IS to say, [ have
been hanged although my name is not
Robert You shall know why, and
what was the result of it. As for those
capricious ainds who think it strange
that [ should write my history in my
last will and testament, [ would simply
ask them where they expect me to
write it. Do they imagine that one
who has been hanged ought to write a
book about it?
It is now twenty years since the event
of which write took place, but the
stigma of having been hanged, which
follows me in spite of myself, is none
the less a bad recommendation among
scrupulous people.
T hnnnct Of
my birthplace [ had fourishing
business, and every day added some
thing to my fortune. It was my Gus
tom, in common with my brother
grocers, to add mutton tallow to the
salted butter, flour to the powdered su-
gar, sage leaves to the tea, cider to the
cognac, water to the tobacco, sawdust
to the ground pepper, and roast beans
to the coffee. These little auxiliaries
were not noticed from the fact that
their consumption was more or less
general.
I had a clerk who was an excellent
hand at that business, and he mixed
the different articles SO skillfully to-
gether that no one found any fault
with the merchandise. Proud of his
success, he wished to do better. He
imagined that with ialap, -four, the
juice of white prunes, and I do not
know what other drug besides, but
something less innocent, perhaps. he
could make the honey go further; but
his composition produced an effect ne
certainly did not foresee. About a
dozen of our customers who used that
honey were taken sick, and some of
them died. [ was the first to suspect
the truth. [ placed a jar Of pure honey
in the shop, and carried the adulter-
ated honey into my wife's rooon, for [
was married. [ gave as a reason that
[ could not sell any more of it, as it
had an unpleasant taste. My wife was
very economical and not wishing to
waste the honey, she determined to
have it for her supper. Happily, she
had no children, or she would have
feasted them likewise. During the
night she was taken so ii that ] was
obliged to send for the MUSICIAN. He
Immediately recognized symptoms of
poisoning. He asked her what she had
eaten, and very naturally she answered
that she had supped on some honey
that | had taken out of the shop be-
cause my customers did not like it.
The physician appeared struck by this
circumstance, and, giving some pre-
scriptions, he retired, saying that he
would return In an hour. | awoke my
clerk to send him TO the apothecary
with the prescriptions, and when he
learned what had passed he became
pale and trembling. He went out i'm
mediately on my errand, but did not
return, and it was the apothecary him
self who brought the medicine.
This incident increased my trouble.
At the end of an hour the physician
returned, bringing a nurse with him,
and, telling me that the patient must
be kept quiet, he advised me togo in
to the shop. [ there found two bailiffs
to arrest me as a prisoner What shall
[ tell you2 They accused me of hav-
ing poisoned four persons in the city,
besides my wife,-among them being
the sister of the judge, who was stern
old Lutheran. They searched my
shop, and from the many adulterated
articles there they drew bad infer
ences against me. The disappear
ance of my clerk, who did not return
was taken as another proof of my guilt
In short, [ was condemned to be hang
ed, and the sentence was quickly car
RED into execution. By a privilege
which is not rare, L had a fault of con
formation of which | had never boast
ed, and you may call it fortunate or
unfortunate, as you choose. Ny throat
was ossiied, and the rope did not en-
tirely stop respiration ; and that even
ing, when they had delivered me to a
young surgeon, who had bought me,