American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1876-12-09
THE MILLIONAIRE MURDERER,
ESQ ping the Hangman and Going
into Prison to stay for Life.
[From the Chicago Times

| @SS RbS NV WHY
into Prison to stay for Life.
(From the Chicago Times
PETERBORO, Ont. Nov. % Think
Of a. millionaire leaving his rich
possessions and, accompanied by
The officers of the law, boar ding the
train Tor the penitentiary there t.,
remain for the term of his life! This
morning james Ryan was takes,
from the Jail here, put on board tie
early train by tie sheriff and his
constab!es. ard conveyed TO the
provincial peneten:iary in Kings
ION. He was found guilty of muir
der at the Pete: shore assizes on the
18Th of October last and sentenced
for death to-day. The Executive
at Ottawa, however, heard the
prayer of almost the whole province
;ts expressed through a peiiiion
asking tor the mel cifnl exercise OF
! the Exe,uiive power, and the sen
/ tcnce WAS committed to ImprisOn-
mrnt tor life.
Ryan in person Il AMI real estate
is worth. SD it is estimated, 81, 200,
900. Twenty years ago wh-n he
was of age, his father, Patrick
Ryan, now IA millionaire of 20, gave
him half million in gold with which
TO start i'll business. James bought
= large taniirfy, and by energy in
business and the wise and profitable.
invrs mrnt Of his surplus capital
soon doubled Lis ia.hei's t to him
Ri ht i, hrs ago he married highly
accomplished young lady of Mon
real, the daughter at IA wealth,
French firm of cloi HERS there.
Everything he handled prOSper+d
.inl he was regarded as the coming
Dives of the Dominion. In, 1851,
when, owing to the panic, real
estate was selling dirt cheap, he
purchased largely in Chicago, st.
Louis, New York, and elsewhere,
and obtained an interest in some
in Birkenhrad, the chief
ship building center in the North of |
which brought him a
h indsome year'y income. He sold
out his Chicago property in 1860,
just before the great fire.
In the early p.rt of this year, Mr..
lty an took to drinking. On the Sth
pf May he had an at tack of lelirium
lremens. He fled from his house
in the forenoon and took refuge
from his imaginary pursuers in his
h.v1 lao II. Il |
ne sent workman for Il bottle OF
" hiskry, and havin. drank it felt
neTved again, and returned home.
lie Sat down in his p,rlor and
called his young wife to him. She
walked up to HIM and put her arm
irOnnl his neck Their two Chi
lren, one seven and the other fiv..
years old, were in the room. Sud
lenly Ryan rose from his chair and
) abbed his wife in the side She
staggered from the room Into the
iall and down the steps, and vi h a
PIERCING cry Tell dead on the lawn
outside the Fl ont door.
The town .cOnStab.es arrested
b. AN, sitting motiunleSS in his chair
On being atcu sed of kill G his .fe
le wept bitterly, bu made n,
answer. A long, thin bia,ird kuifr
inged at the sharp point with
Hood, was found on the CARPET 10y
lis chair, and WAS recognized us IA
nlfe us q by the tannrrs- for pre- .
arirg peliries. ~
The prisoner was duly comm tied
Or trial at the fail aSslzeS, aud Oh
is trial was defended 10y three o
he ablest nisi priuS advocates at
he Canadian bar. The defence
as temporary ins:,ni Yin PLAIN 6
'Ords, delIiium tremens-and whrt y
bat failed. the learned counsel
lade an effort to siiOy that thu,
eceased wife committed suicide il, VI
iStrac; ion at her husbands drum
ennesS. The suicide theory Was
before the close of the
ial, however, and the prisoner WAS
'und guilty, after il trial extending n
yer eight bouts. aud sentcn. ed to v
2 hanged to-day.
The jury recommended Ryan to
ercy, and this recommendation
sing backed by petition by this
'wn at-large, and by same nf the
Ost reputable physicians in the A
,nntry, Mr.. Blake the Minis.er of
ISticr, advised the Governor Gtn
al to commute the sentence, as 49,
ready stated.
Under the Old English law Il frlOn
'ntlemned to death became Sat Al
int by the Crown" and his
like his body, was forfeit
to the Crown. But that practice
IS been dropped, and Ryan's
'llion and quarter is invested J
It'll trustees, of whom his father is TIL
e, for the benefit Of the two
ildren. &C,