Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-01-17

Crowd from the jail StePs-Hts
COmposure on the SeaHOId-A he" |
view of the Bloody Crime-The
Trap SpruDg-CrOwds FOLLOWING
the Hearse-Scenes and Incidents
The majesty Of the law in the case OF one
Of the most strocious crimes that has ever
disgraced the criminal annals of our county
was yesterday, shortly after noon, vindieat-
| ed IN the death upon the scaffold Of Jesse
/ Williams, alias William Gibbons, colored
| man who had not yet reached the age OF
manhood. The fendish character Of the
| crime, of which he was found guilty, the
| peculiar circumstances and mystery sur
rounding it, and the shrewd and skill
| full manner in which link by link the chain
was forged by Lieut.. 7. J. Sheftsll Of the
/ police force, who undertook to "work up"
! the case, which led to his arrest, served TO
| invest the tragedy and the execution OF the
| criminal with intense interest, especially
among the colored people For the past
several days the hanging had been the sole
subject Of discourse among them, and as
the day appointed for the fulfllment Of the
mandate Of the law grew near the interest
and excitement increased.
On Sunday, from early in the morning
! until nightfall, hundreds of eOiored people |
| hccked to the Jail to see and converse with
| the doomed man, some impelled by morbid
| curiosity, others by sympathy and regard |
/ for one whom they had known. Among |
these visitors were the father, mother, |
| sister and brother Of the condemned. The |
| father, q venerable, respectable looking |
colored man, seemed deeply affected at the |
| impending fate of his son, whom he stated |
| was only seventeen years of age, and was |
| born at Hilton Head, s. c., in 1864. The |
| appearance Of the unfortunate youth, how |
| ever, indicated that he was fully twenty |
| years old He was medium size, athletic |
! figure, and evidently possessed excellent !
/ health. His father, IN a conversation with |
! the representative of the MORNING NEWS, |
/ said his right name was William Gibbons, |
but that he was generally called Williams, |
and after his coming to Savannah, some |
/ three years ago, became known as Jesse |
( Williams. The mother is a middle aged |
woman, belonging to that class rapidly be |
| coming extinct in the South, known as 'old /
| family servants" The sister Annie is a !
| young Girl, whose distress at the ap- /
preaching fate OF her brother was at /
/ times painful to witness. George Gibbons, |
/ the brother, who also goes by the name OF |
! Williams, a man about thirty years of age,
! had recently served out a sentence on the /
| chain-gang OF this county for some INSIDE
meanor, and returned to his home, in Hill
| ton Head, but came over with his parents
| and sister last week to see his brother
! Since their arrival here they have been con-
| slant visitors at the jail and remained with /
| Jesse until the closing hours on Sunday |
night. Every consideration was shown }
| the doomed man by the Jailer, Mr..
| Waring Russell, and no visitors to
] him denied admission |
until Sunday evening, when he request
/ ed that he be allowed some rest, and it was
understood that yesterday none but his i'm
mediate family, spiritual adviser and few
/ personal friends would be allowed to see
] him before the awful hour which was to be
! his last on earth. At halfpast seven o'clock
| Sunday night he was left in his cell to the
/ comfort of his own thoughts, to await the
| coming Of the daY when he would be
| summoned before the Supreme Judge to
answer for his doings on this earth. Here
| we may briefly review the
HISTORY OF THE CRIME
which has brought this young, vigorous
/ cOlored man to the scaffold, and we
/ do so with the hope that bis fate may
| serve as a warning to those whose evil i'm
| pulses prompt them to a violation Of the
/ laws Of God and man.
| On the morning of the 18th of June last
| this community were startled with the re
/ port that an sged cOlOred watchmsn at
/ Coa6ley & Jones wood yard, on the canal,
! at the western limit OF the city, had been
/ found welteriDg 10 his blood in the little
| Office at the entrance to the yard, with his
! skull fractured and his body mangled.
! There were evidences that the iaul murder
| Of this old man, who had paid De forfeit Of
1 his life by a gallant defense his trust,
wss the result OF an attempt at berry. The
/ crime, however, vas clOuded in mystery, no
/ clue to the perpetrators of the hOTrid deed
| being obtained, though the Coroner pro-
] longed patient investigation several days
I in the hope that some light would be thrown
/ upon the bloody crime, but to no purpose.
! Several parties who were arrested on sus-
| piciOn were, afier examination, found to |
| be innocent and were discharged, and the
! CJrOuer's jury having no definite lnfOrma-
| ton or evidence, were constrained to render
/ a verdict that the old man Toby Lark, said
| to be over 80 years Of age, had ne. his
| death at the hssds OF unknown parties.
| Time wore On, and as is the common fate Of
! ali earthly affairs the remembrance of the
/ bloody tragedy which had so shocked this !
| community began to pale, and became, as It
were. dim recollection Of a terrible dream.
| But though this was apparently the case,
| the reality was different, and one Of our Of
! icers was quietly and patiently working
with the determination that this faithful old
darkeY's death should not 90 unavenged.
/
| discOuragements and trials which beset the
detective in feTetiBg cut crime, committed
| in an Isolated locality at the dead hour Of
the night and the discovery of which was not
made until hours after, when the perpetra-
tors had safely escaped. Suffice il that he
was successful, and in September last, hav-
ing woven the last mesh in his net, deity
threw IL and caught jesse Williams, Sidney
Clark and William Green.
THE ARREST
was soon followed by indisputable proof OF
the guilt of Jesse Williams, his scknowl-
edged confederates, Clark and Green, hav-
ing confessed to their completely IN so far
that they had consented to embark In the
scheme 10 rob the wood office, but protest
ing that when they found that murder was
the inevitable result of the success, they had
become affnghted and led. On the 18th of
Dece nber, at the regular term Of the Supe-
rior Court, Jesse Williams was placed
on TRIAL FOR HIS LIFE.
The case occupied the attention of the
court the entire day, the prisoner being
well defended by Messrs. W. II. Wade and
P. j. O'ConnOr, who were appointed for
that duty. The State, through her Solicitor,
w. G.. Charlton, Esq, made out strong
case, showing that on the night of the
murder Sidney Clark and VIM. Green had
gone to the wood yard with Jesse Williams
for the purpose OF robbing the safe. VIII
liams obtained admittaDce to the office by
representing himself as q raft hand with a
load OF wood for the firm. He then as
saulted old Toby Lark, who resisted his
further advance, and, notwithstanding the
great age of the faithful Waterman, he
made gallant struggle. Youth and vigor
were too great for him, however, and he
was overcome and brutality murdered. |
During the struggle between Toby and
Williams, the cOnfederates Of the latter,
Greene and Clark, who were waiting on the
outside, became frightened. and, according
TO their statement, ran off. About one
O'Clock, or an hour or so after this
affair, It was shown that Williams
appeared at q house where another friend, |
by name of Milton Gilbert, (who had origi-
nally consented to go into the scheme. but
failed to meet at the rendeZvous,) was |
staying, and told him he had ''downed" the
old man (meaning Toby Lark, and asked
him TO 90 back to the place aud rob the
safe Gilbert refused, and Williams made
the attempt alone. Subsequently he con-
fessed his participation in the crime 70 a
cOlored woman named Lizzie Lee, but as
serted that Green, and not he dealt the
fatal blows. He eluded arres. until Sep |
TENDER, as stated. With such evidence, so
clearly and conciselY presented to them by |
the Solicitor. and after an impartial charge
from the Judge, the jury had no trouble in
coming TO ? decision, and after an absence
OF ten minu'es, came into court, and