The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-06-07
TEE GALLoWS In TEXAS.
Hanging Of the Notorious steph. Ballsw-He
Murders Brother, Marries Sister, and
il Afterwards Tried, Convicted
and Twice Hung.

MCKINNEY, Texas, June J, 1872
This section Of Texas has looked upon many
heart-rending spectaces but the double hanging OF
the notorious and hardened villain, Steph. Ballew,
on the Path ult, far outstripped anything ever be-
held. even by the rough and weather-worn fron
tiersmen that had assembled from miles around to
witness it. The day beautiful one, and
long before sunrise the curious backwO0ds
men were upon the grounds discussing the
coming events The citizens Of Mckinney
also seemed interested and by twelve O'Clock FULLY
four thousand people had assembled upon the
commons, directly south OF the town. In the centre
OF which had been erected the gall0ws About half
past one o'clock
THE PRISONER
was led from the County jail and placed in q
wagon, with the Sheriff and his posse, TO be con-
veyed thence to the place OF execution. He was
neatly attlred In plain suit OF black, and as the
wagon drove up through the crowd to the gallows
not an eye OF the many , thousands s,,S sha1
ws"ee nS tx step paew s Re q
Jimmy Golden The prisoner was taken from the
wagon by sheriff Bush and led up to the gaflows;
His face wore q sullen and cold-blooded look, ana
he aat there calmly smoking cigar Willie tue
officiating clergy were performing service thrlli
OF horror sreps over me multitude nd as sney w
After few short PRAYERS, OF which the prisoner
took no notice, the Sheriff advanced and announced
that the prisoner had
NOTHING TO SAY,
he having positively declined to utter single word.
Baew was then informed that the time had come
when the penalty Of the law had to be carried out,
when he got down from the railing upon which
he had been perched, advanced toward the Sheriff
with q snecr, and, with such dcvil-may care
indifference IA has never before been read OF In
the annals OF crime he lowered his head In order TO
allow the Sheriff 10 properly adjust the rope After
the black cap had been drawn over his head ana
all necessary arrangements having been made, the
Sheriff Knocked the prop from under the trap, ana
the heartlcss scOundrel, Steph. Ballew was
swinging in mid-air, paying the penalty for the
cold -booded murder OF James p. Golden The fall
PAILED TO BREAK HIS NECK,
and II was discovered by the convulsive struggles
OF the e-devil that something was wrong. After
swinging for fifteen minutes during which time
the prisoner made desperate efforts to free himself,
II was ascertaned that the moose Ill so loosely as
time for the sheriff and his posse The assembled
crowd were unanimously In favor OF
SECOND HANGING
and were not slow In publicly demanding II. The
voices OF the cattle drovers and backwoodsmen
could be heard above the noise and confusion,
shouting "Give the villain another dose ~ "Shoot
himi" "Cut his throatr' and numerous other
CALCULATIONS OF similar tenor. Women tainted and
a scene Of
THE Widest CONFUSION
ensued. Sheriff Bush regained the platform, and
by determined EFFORT OF his assistants the half
amid the shouts OF the more hardened attendants
Ballew was swung to the winds the second time,
and In thirty minutes he was
SUCCESSFULLY HUNG
and pronounced dead by the physicians.
The circumstances or
THE MURDER,
as elected in the trial, are IA follows:-On Sep
TENDER 30, 1870, Ballew ana his victim, James y.
Golden, started to Texas from Quincy, ILL.,, on a
trading expedition Ballew having successfully
played the confidence game the Golden fam
Hy, Inducing the belief that he a regular trader
in Texas stock. BY these representations he was
enabled to buy farming stock from G0ldens father
credit. Upon starting Ballew gave to the senior
Golden note for 81 500, which he promised to pay
to young Golden when both arrived I'm Texas. The
young man came overland, and, as Is supposed,
reached this place early IN October. Then II was
that young Golden was murdered. Bal!ew induced
his victim into a thcket, murdered him with an
axe and buried him. Balew was then In
sole ownership OF the property, which he
afterwards sold squandered the money and, after
wandering about the country, he again appeared
at the home of the Goldens, In Illinois, expressing
great surprise and astonishment at the absence of
his companion, who, as he stated had started on his
return home several weeks before. Ballew told the
murdered boys father thai he had given him large
sums of money, among other amounts 81, 800 to pay
the note. After talking In this manner II was gene
rally believed that the son had ran away. Shortly
after this Ballew, clad in the apparel OF his victim
sought the hand Of Clara Golden, sister Of the man
he had murdered and led her 10 the marriage altar
Conflicting stories brought about suspicion, shrcwd
detectives were put upon the search one develop
ment followed another, and II soon was proved
that Ballew was indeed murderer OF the deepest
dye. He paid the penalty OF his crime yesterday,
and no tear shed as the body was buried in the
woods, two miles below town.