The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, D.T. [N.D.]) 1873-1875, 1875-07-28

u
der that yon were equally guilty of with
themselves, and to save youfself from
the consequences Of yonr crime. And
your statement Of your connection with
the crime is not true. g Every circum;
stance in the case disprovessit. That
you were present and saw Shaffer and
Stears murder Franz W Warl, ,bnt that you
were there by compulsion, is the most
weak and transparent pretense ever set
up in court Of justice. Nothing but
your own wickedness and depravity
compelled your presence, and naught
but your own fiendish heart and the dew
ilish promptings thereof compelled your
strong arm to deal death to your victim,
as the testimony conclusively shows
that you did. And because you have
added the crime Of perjury to that Of
foul murder, should your sentence be
commuted Not for any sorrow of the
bloody deed, or from any feeling of re-
pentence did you make any revelations,
but you hoped to cause Shaffer and
Stears to be hung for your crime and
their own, thereby to cause your own
escape, and you framed your statement
xith this sole intention. Does this con-
duct enti tie you to any considerations
ofmercy But if a Communication ofthe
sentence were proper, there is no pow
er under the law to cause it to take
place. IN 5.& La,4
,Actuated by my own feelings and un.
controlled by any other considerations,
if had the power so to do, undoubted-
ly I should yield to the dictates Of sym
pathy and save your life. But the ma
jestic scale ofjustice must beheld with
a firm steady hand. Sympathy for one
in distress must not blind US to the fact
that his bloody hand showed no mercy
to his innocent, unofending victim.
The law says you must die, and the
law is supreme; it is strong and power
full; it moves slowly, calmly, and stead.
lily; it protects the rich and the poor;
the lonely cabin in the mountains, the
elegant home in the town, the unfortu-
nate and the weak as well as the strong
and powerful; its shield is over all, and
the court, the prosecuting attorney, the
sheriff, and the jury, are but the instru-
tments to assert and maintain its abso-
lutte supremacy, to the end that human
life may be protected, liberty enjoyed,
and property made secure. This su-
premacy of the law must be upheld and
maintained, let the consequences fall
where they may. The law administered
with firm, steady, unYielding purpose,
to see it's authority vindicated and re-
spected, is the only bulwark of safety.
All the hopes Of civilization; all the
dearest interests Of man; all the hopes
Of progress and enlightenment, depend
upon the uniform and steady and GER
tain enforcement of the law, and the
law in its majesty and power must be
indicated; human life must be protect
ed; murderers must be hung. .:~.s3.sn.
If you deplore the fate that has be-
fallen you, remember that it is because
of. the law that was enacted that you
might enjoy your life in peace and safe
ty; remember that this dismal ruin is
the consequence Of your own act; re-.
member that if you had kept away from
the dens of vice and crime, and had been
content to have earned an honest living
by honest labor, you might now have
been a respected citizen Of this commu-
nifty saf . sasa8@g ~ -5
What your history was before your
arrival in this Territory, know not;
but it could not have been in your favor,
for, seemingly by intuition, upon your
arrival, here, you sought the society Of
those whose inevitable2 destination is
debauchery and crime. You early grad.
uated in. the school Of infamy and vice,
and you have now reached the legiti-
mate end Of the race. fz4es. sag
You are near the close Of an ill-spent
life. In this dread moment ! can give
you no hope and no consolation. Re-
feet that life is eternal, and the time
for reformation is short Sincerely do
I implore you to repent Of your sins.
Seek the counsel Of those holy men
whose Office it is to point out the road to
salvation. May they cleanse your soul
and prepare it for great eternity.
Now, therefore, it is the sentence OF
the court: That you, William Wheat.
II, be removed from the court room, and
detained in close custody in the Jail Of
this county, and thence taken on Fri
day, the thirteenth day Of August, An
no Domini one thousand eight hundred
and seventy five, to the place fixed by
law for execution, and then and there
between the hours of eleven o'clock
"a. n. and three o'clock P. n. of said day,
be hung by the neck until you are dead.