The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1878-02-07
Hanging Day.


Phil. Watson, the negro, who upon the
evening of September s, 1877, murdered
his wife by brutally attacking her with
a Ratchet, expiated his crime on the morn
ing of February l, by hanging from the gal
lows, at Covington, KY. When Watson was
led forward and placed on the fatal trap, he
showed q good deal of nervousness, and
trembled from head to foot. Sheriff Lowe
placed the black cap on his head, the rope
having previously been adjusted about his
neck, amt asked him if he had anything to
say. In a loud, ~stentorian voice he pro-
nounced as follows: "Far'well, vain world
Pm goin' home. De Lord Jesus has called
me and l am goin' home. Dere s lots of
rascals left who will follow me to the pits
of hell"
sheriff Lowe approached him and pulled
the cap over his face. Stepping aside, he
| grasped the lever and pulled it. The drop
| Tell at IL Al o'clock. There was a dull thud.
The vast congregation of spectators looked
on with awestri ken c~ountenances. The
body of the unfortunate man hung motion
less. There was no struggling of the Shout
ders, or drawing up of the legs or move
ment of the arms or hands-not a muscle
quivered.
DIR. Dulancy and Coroner Averdict ap.
preached the body INT felt the pulse. One
hA4iAabO ~ bOob nv IL raw Va
forty pulsations per minute; ~ minutes, at
AZ; 2H minutes, at 60; 8 minutes, at Is
at 4 minutes it had increased to 80; at 6
minutes it was weak and irregular; at 7
minute it was "a; at s minutes, futtering
and weak, and at 9 minutes and 10 seconds
the physicians pronounced him dead.
The body was allowedto hang for twenty.
five minutes, when it was cut down by
Coroner Averdick and delivered to Messrs.
Charles Donnelly & Co, who were there
ready with a coffin. The remains were taken
to Donnelly's stable, where they were ex
amined by the physicians mentioned, who
discovered tn, the neck had been broken,
causing a complete separation of the axis
from the atlas, the bones forming the
vertebre. The body was subsequently car.
ried to st. Mary's Cathedral, where the
requiem mass was celebrated, and then
taken to st. Mary's Cemetery and duly de.
posted in consecrated ground.
At st. Louis, ON February 1, William
Wieners, who shot and killed A. V. Law.
renee, bar-keeper in the saloon of the
Theater Comique, early on the morning oil
January 20, 1877, was hung in the j~ail-yard
between eight and nine o'clock in the
morning, in the presence of only a few
spectators, most of them being newspaper
and professional men. Wieners was a big
brutal fellow, and acted as what they cal
bouncer at the Theater Comique, a variety
show of not hrst-class reputation. He haC
some quarrel with Lawrence about a wo
man alleged to have been Wieoers's wife.
Wieners spent most of the previous nigh
with his father, sister and his spiritual ad
v~isers, until four O'Clock in the morning
when he took a short sleep. At eighl
o'clock he came out of his cell witt
Fathers Shea and Braun, and aftel
some p~reliminaries were gone through
with, City Marshal Mason and ether OIL
ciais beaueo the PR ~cessioD, and the whol,
party passed from the rotunda of abe Jail t,
the jtity ard, and assembled the scaffoid
Prase-s WIRE then made by Fathers BFauI
aud Shea, after which Wleners made a b lie
speech, IN which he Admitted killing Law
rence, but said the act was not o IN Gel;
blood. that he was crs z ID with liquor, snt
he warned all men against viii ky anu bat
associations. Hs forg6ve everybody, ant
wished to be forgiven by all, and hoped hi
death would be happy.
The cuiprir's legs AID arms were bound
the black cap a. adjusted, the last word spoken
and at $50 the drop Iell. Tas fail was
neOns.
In fifteen minutes the body was cut down
aad the cFowd dispersed.
There are to be four other executions i
Missouri within a short time.
Joseph Woods was hanged at Malone, n
Y, February l, for the murder of Stephe,
Woods. Just before the moose was adjuste
he thanked those who had been kind to hin
and said: az don't know how to make
speech, and l am not going to make one.
About two hundred persons were admitte
into the Jail to witness the execution, bu
large numbers viewed the spectac e frol
overlooking bui dings, on the roofs of whic
accommodations for sight-seers had bee
: arranged.