The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1879-04-16
HANGF0 AT LAST.
Dressed ! Second Time for the Scat.
fold--A Bad Man, Guilty or Not
Z Guilty Of the Crime for
Which He Suffered.
A Remarkable Criminal Experience.

WINDSOR, VT, April 10.-John P. Phair
was hanged in the State prison to-day. Phair
was ignorant of the last efforts of his friends
to prevent his execution. He retired at
o'clock this morning, and slept well until
o'clock, when he arose. He seemed re-
signed to his fate. His counsel asked Gov
ernor Proctor this morning for a reprieve, to
allow q session of the Legislature to inter-
vene, but the governor denied the petition.
At o'clock Phair assembled the scaffold,
when a short prayer was offered. The origi-
nal warrant for the execution and three re-
prieves were read, and the moose and black
cap adjusted. The sheriff said: John P.
Phair, the time has come for the sentence Of
the law to be executed upon you"
Phair's last words were: Lord, remember
me. Lord, remember me-"
At Oil the trap was sprung, the body fell,
and life was soon extinct
PHAIR's CRIME.
john P Phair, an iron worker in Rutland,
VT, was employed in the Lincoln Iron
foundry on May 20, 1874, and continued
there until June 9. About the middle of
May he was introduced to Mrs. Ann E.
Frieze, with whom he became very intimate.
On the morning of June 9 fire destroyed the
house occupied by Mrs. Frieze. Her dead
body was found in the ruins, bearing marks
of wounds that In themselves, il was de-
clared, would have been fatal. 1t was ascer-
tanned that on June 10 q man signing him
self on the register of the Adams House in
Boston as "E. F. Smith, st. Adams, w.t."
had pawned a shawl, an opera glass and
ring In Boston, which articles were proved
to be the property of Mrs. Frieze. Experts
testified that the handwriting on the
register and on the pawn tickets was that of
Phair. and the pawnbroker identified him
as the person offering the articles. He was
consequently arrested, tried, convicted and
sentenced to be hanged on April 6, 1877.
On March 81, 1877, the Dartmouth College
| Glee club went 10 Windsor. VT, in which
village Phair was confined, for the purpose
of giving a concert. The manager Of the
club was E. c. Carrigan, who then repre-
| sented the Associated Press In that locality.
He visited Phair in prison and ascertained
| that the condemned man had written q
statement in relation to his whereabouts at
the time of the murder, asserting before
God and man,
HIS ENTIRE INNOCENCE OF THE CRIME
| OF WHICH ne ldQ D6eu convicted. Carrlgan
obtained this statement, agreeing that it
should not be given to the public in any
form until after Phair was hanged. Ii it
was not published until after his death,
Phair argued that it might be believed by
some, and. as he said, ''If can die by 1T,
they will surely think it of enough import
ance at least to read it.'
Phair afterward consented that the docu-
ment might be printed in Boston on the
morning of the day on which he was to be
hanged, as the newspapers containing it
| would not arrive IN Rutland until O'Clock,
the time set for the ,irop, and in Vergennes
not until 4 o'clock; and thft 1t would
arrive in Windsor at / O'Clock. so that he
would be able to see that his statement had
been treated in accordance with his stipula.
tions.
In his statement Phair set forth that on
June he accompanied Ann Frieze to cir
Gus, and afterward, going with her to her
house, remained with her until o'clock the
next morning. This, he AYERS, was the last
time he ever saw her. On Sunday, June z,
he went by train to Brandon. expecting to
meet q person there, remaining in the vii
lage until the evening. He returned to
Rutland on the midnight train, went to his
room in the Berwick House, and slept until
abeut 80 o'clock on Tuesday morning, June
8. At about that time he took the train for
Boston, arriving there in the afternoon. At
5 o'clock he started for Providence,
and he descri ss in detail his journey
s snither; where he stayed hand and
work. On June 10 he returned to Boston,
and he tells particularly of an interview he
had with stranger on the train, who said he
was engaged IN the manufacture of novel
ties in Boston, and was hiring agents fol
their sale, and who offered him situation
In the afternoon he took the train for Yer
mont, and was arrested while on it for the
murder of Ann Frieze.
On the morning of April 6, 1877, the Bos
ton Globe published Phair's statement. II
filled seven columns Upon the bulletin q,
the door was the announcement: Vermont
is to hang man to-day who claims that ht
| is innocent"
Mr.. Marshall d. Downing, manager Of the
American Novelty works, at SO Schoo
street, Boston. seldom read the Globe at tina
time, but on the morning named his offict
boy saw the Globes bulletin and spoke of 1t
He was sent for a copy of the newspaper an(
Mr.. Downing sat down to read the statement
When he came to the description of the rid,
Phalr claimed to have taken between Provi
dence and Boston on June 10, Mr.. Downing
recognized the description of himself ans
the account of the conversation. He sprant
up, ying: my God,
THEY'VE GOT THE WRONG MAN;
i this man Is Innocent" lsr. Downing cor
roborated his recollection by his memoran
dunn book, and satisfied himself that Phai
had ridden with him on the day named, an,
! could not have been guilty of the crime o
which he had been convicted.
But It was IL clock, and the condemned
man was to be hanged in two hours. Mr.
| Downing tried to telegraph to the governo
of Vermont in Montpelier, but the operate
there had gone to dinner. Every Office II
the State was then asked as to the where
\ abouts Of the governor, and the sheriff .
! Windsor was informed by telegraph of tn
: discovery of new evidence in favor of hi
prisoner, and asked to communicate with th
governor before hanging. twas LIS o'clocl
before the governor was heard from at 81
Johnsbury. He Immediately telcgraphed t
the sheriff postponing the execution unit
May 4, 1877.
q At 1 clock Phair, dressed in plain blac
clothes, was prepared for the scaffold. II
d was calm and collected, seemingly fully re
!, signed to his fate. While he was waiting