The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1879-12-11

j Il
No more Of human hope. the wanton vagrant
I reject all. Now other cares engross me
Ana my tired soul with emulative haste |
Looks to its God, and prunes its wings for |
- = ANDREW TRACY.
FITFUL sLUMBER.
Tired nature at last commanded |
and about half-past four
he dropped into a fitful, ,dream-haunted
from which he aroused him
self after an hour and arose to see the
gray shadows of the early morning of
his last day on earth. Then his rev.
erend brother Michael prepared to
take his leave. "Be brave, Andy.
Nerve yourself to meet your fate like
a man, brother.n II will, Michael, l
will" replied the poor fellow. One
long, fearful embrace, smothered sob
or two, and Andrew Tracy was parted
from the last of his kindred i'm this
world. Andrew almost Immediately
regained his composure His brother
Michael went out into the early morn
ing air sobbing like child, with the
bowed head and abject air of a broken
hearted man.
BEGINNING OF THE END.
The day broke bright and beautiful,
with the gladstone sun beaming like
benson upon the pretty village and all
nature seemed to smile in the. very
fulness of its living Joy. The shadows
danced as gleefully before the frown-
ing portals of the crime-haunted jail
as upon the pure hillside yonder, yet
within, a sin-laden soul was even then
preparing to take its last awful leap
into the dark. The slight eminence
upon which the Jail stands was very
early peopled with curious village
idlers, and before the sun was well up
the front of the Jail was surrounded by
a crowd, many of whom remained
until after. the legal tragedy was en-
acted. Soon after 9 o'clock the solemn
tones of the priests celebrating mass
echoed through the cold and dusky
corridors of the Jail. During this Ger
emony the last sacrament of his
church was administered to Tracy and
80 far as human power availed he was
prepared for eternity.
THE SHADOW OF DEATH.
Inside the Jail an impressive atmos-
phere of silence prevaded everything ;
outside bustling c.owd made hide
Gus mockery of death, and relieved the
monotony of waiting with bald and
heartless gibings at the fate of the
doomed wretch, whose every pulsation
was as a fOot-beat toward the grave
The ceaseleSs clamOr rung its changes
upon the chances of the morbid mob
to witness the last agony of the laws
victim, and the owner of Sheriff Is
pass was regarded as person to be en-
Wed. The time of the execution had
been set at lao. The reporters, ply
| sicians, jurymen, and those invited by
| the Sheriff, to the number of about
| fifty, were admitted between II and l
! o'clock.
THE MURDEROUS INSTRUMENT OF THE
LAW.
The scaffold was built in the main
corridor, on the first floor of the Jail
form, eight feet square, and raised
above the floor seven feet, the top
nearly reaching the landing of the
first gallery. The trap doors extended
from point near the center to within
q few inches of the back of the plat,
form, where the sustaining rope was
fixed. From an eye-bolt i'm the ceiling,
twenty feet above, thin and hooked
bar of iron was suspended. To the
lower hook small log-chain was fas-
tened, and from this the rope and
moose dangled. Three chairs were on
the platform, and, to complete the
paraphernalia, COurt-crier Knapp laid
a small brOad-aXe close to the railing
| on the floor of the gallery, at the real
| of the scaffold, where it would bt
within easy reach of the eXecutioner
and where it was fully exposed to the
view of the sad procession on the way
to the gallows. Doors We're placed be
| fore all the cells, thus shutting off the
view of the prisoners.
About o'clock the twelve jurymer
arranged themselves on either side thu
scaffold in the main corridor. In theil
midst Tracy's coffin with it's funera
covering, was a conspicuous object
The jury was composed of William F
Ormsby, j. w. Starks, d. NJ. Wright
l.. o. Chadwick, Jabez Beckwith, Jr.
Leslie H. Bard, Herbert Bard, Josepl
Barnes, H. l.. Wilson, Gilbert Ly
man, Tearney McCuen, B. Franl
Corwin. At l:I5 Tracy was notified
that his time had come, when tn
priests assisted him in putting on
black gown which covered his entir
person like a domino. Then th
sheriff finally adjusted the rope an,
chain so as to give Tracy fall @
nearly six feet, after which, accom-
panied by Under-Sheriff H. l.. Sart
we'll and Deputies II. l.. Sartwell an
p. l.. Knap he proceeded to the cell G
the condemned. The crowd wa
+ hushed. every eye followed the Sheril
{ and his posse, and the dim corridor
f were actually CHASTITY in the SEM
gloom which pervaded them, an
f which was accentuated by the uncel
tain chickering's of a dull-flamed lar
tern that hung from the right CALLER
above the scaffold.
THE MARCH TO THE SCAFFOLD.
| A very few moments and tn
5 sheriff emerged from the cell closel
! followed by Father Smith, of MeaC
( vile, and just behind the latter til
: dropping form of Tracy, shrOuded
S black and supported on either side b
t Fathers Dent and McGinley. Faith,
t Mckinley walkeda trifie ia advanc
;. holding within easy reach sf Tracy
i lips crucifix, on which was a grave
S image of Christ. On this the eyes
e Tracy rested without ceasing, ar
z during his passage down the first fligl
h of stairs he kissed it repeatedly viii
s responding to the invOcatiOns of ii
n priests. His head was bowed, but h
S step was slow and firm. Every h
). was off and all eyes were fasten
l. upon him, but there was no RESPONSE
b look from the prisoner The low
!. toning of the priests and the measur
Is tread of the awful procession were T.
v only sounds that disturbed the omi