The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-07-01
IN THE JAIL.
Only Limited Gathering at tho Execution
The Assassin's Mail.

Only a Limited Gathering at tho Execution
The Assassin's Mail.
WASHINGTON, June 24.-As the time APP
proaches for the execution of Charles Jules
Guiteau for the assassination of James A..
Garfield, the public interest is renewed in
the great criminal as well as in the circum-
stances of the crime. There are, as yet, no
preparations for the execution, nor will
there be. any till day or two before the
hanging. The scaifold and rope are ready
and an hours notice would sutllce,so tar as
preparations are concerned. stood under
the beam this morning and tried to imagine
the scene shortly to take place there.
The atmosphere was cool and vault
like in the jail corridors. Inc
dark faces OF the occupants
at the cells above looked down upon us and
watched the deputy warden as he described
the mechanism of the machine of DEATH
The high scaiiold looks out of the barred
windows of the outer wall on the two sides,
east and north, An open field OF daises, Il
wide and sluggish stream shimmering in
the sun. woods, corftields and waving grain
beyond. That is the last of earth without
on which the eyes of the assassin will rest.
Within bare walls and grated windows rise
on either side, tier upon tier. And there is
one cell and window just near enough so
the occupant might reach out and touch
the scatl6d on which the eye might linger,
for in that cell is to stand the man whose
hand will spring the trap which is
to launch a soul into eternity. The cell Is
empty now while all the Others seem to be
occupied On execution day this cell Will
pe occupied and all the rest empty. This
is the custom. Who will stand within that
cell not one of the eager, excited, painting
crowd that will stand below the scallold
will know. For the barred window Will be
blinded so that the executioner will neither
see nor be seen. He will hear the precon-
certed signal, the dull, heavy thud ana per-
haps the pattering of feet on the stones be-
low ms the crowd files out. That is all.
1t will be a very limited gathering there
to look upon with last look--peI-
haps smaller than ever attended
an execution in the district. General
Crocker is sensitive to unjust news
paper criticism and will rigidly adhere to
the requirements of the law. This admits
of the presence Of Il coroner's jury, twenty
citizens, all jail officials, prosecuting, ON,
GERS, certain near relations OF the murdered
and of the murderer physicians, police,
etc. All together these sometimes number
u
pressure for admission is unprecedented
and applications come from all parts Of the
country, These have well nigh worried
General Crocker into his bed. he will be
glad enough when all is over.
ROW GgIrEAU TAKES 1T.
The condemned assassin still receives q
large daily mail. / saw this morning
among his letters postmarks.of Philadel-
phia, New York, Chicago, Boston, 81.
LOUIS and minor cities, There was anoth-
er diotic package containing The last nail
to Guteau s coffin, from the Caloric socie-
tv, Detroit, Michigan" Which nail was
neatly painted railroad spike, the head be-
ing surmounted with skull and cross bones.
/ have no doubt the man who sent it
thought it was funny. There is large col
lection of these tangible evidences of idiocy
and insanity. But they have been waAed
on Guiteau, for he has been humanely
kent in ignorance Of it ALL He has seen
none of them, And if ne had seen them
he would simply say, IL am Gods man
and these be cranks and scoiters." lie Is
lust now having high old time with
Brother Hicks, his religious adviser. lie
saws Brother Hicks. means well, but don't
understand that he, Guiteau, has more di-
rect communication with the Deity. Con-
trary to general expectation, Guiteau i'm
proves in flesh and nerve as he approaches
the end of his tether. You will not be sur
prised if / say nine out OF ten want to see
him hanged on time, without any nonsense,
because | presume that is the prevailing
sentiment everywhere. Perhaps many
would be surprised, however, and perhaps
incredulous also, when | say that nine
out of ten here who have ever seen and
talked with this man who is so soon
to die on the scaiiold, will say that he
is insane. How do | recoacile the two
statements? Well, some OF these will say
that he is not insane to the extent of ir-
responsibility for his crime and the rest will
consent that he should be hanged anyhow,
on general principles. | have seen and
talked with Guiteau dozen times, in jail
and out, and | cannot come to any other
conclusion than that he is an insane man if
there ever was one, and this is the testi-
mony of most of the newspaper men in the
city. These are not of a class of sentiment
talists, everybody knows. Their inter
course with the assassin has been strictly Of
a business nature. They are good judges
ofhuman nature-as good as, if not better
than, any other class of men you could
name. There is as little of the namby-
pamby among them as can be found among
bodies of men. They abhor the crime OF
assassination, and are by cultivation an
incredulous set of fellows Correspond
ence Philadelphia Times.