Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1882-07-07
Execution, Of Guiteau.

of Col. Patton.
Execution Of Guiteau.
HE CLAIMS HIS INSPIRATION TO THE
LAsr-HIs CONDUCT DURING THE LAST
DAY-ON THE sCAFFOLD HE OFFERS
UP AN INSANE PRAYER AND READS AN
INSANE POEM.
&C., &C.. &C.
The execution of Charles w. Guiteau,
the assassin of President Garfield, took
place in WASHINGTON on Friday last, just
a year. lacking two days. from the date of
the murder. The condemned man babe
his sister, Mrs. Scoville, farewell the day
before. We give below the graphic &C.
count given by the N. Y. Sans Washing
ton reporters of the execution:
Guiteau after retiring Thursday night
lay quietly on his cot for half an hour
without stirring. Then he seemed to be u
little restless. and did not become entirely
quiet again until midnight, when he ap-
parently dropped off into sound sleep.
He did not stir again until shortly after
the sun was up this morning. When he
arose he found DR.. Williams at the door
of his cell. He greeted DR.. Williams pleas
antly, and said he felt very we'll and had
had delightful Dirt am.
He seemed to be very anxious about his
break fast. When it was brought to him
he ate with the zest which has been char
acteristic of hlm during bis confinement.
He ate Deefsteak, potatoes and an ONE
| lat l,,Dx II 1n bod
finished told the cook that be would want
his dinner early. He thought he would BIZ
satisfied if it was brought to him at IL
O'Clock. Then he stepped out into the
corridor, and began to walk listlessy up
and down. He wore no coat OF waistcoat
and had no collar on, but had put on the
dark trousers which he was to wear to the
gallows. The death watch thought he
seemed to bS even more quiet and self
possessed than he had been op any other
day this week. He was inclined to talk II
little, and asked some informal questions
of the death watch which did not indicate
any depression of spirits.
After he had finished his exercise hs
called for pen and paper, Sat down at the
little pine table in front of his cell, and
wrote for fifteen or twenty minutes He
was making copy Of the prayer which he
proposed to offer on the gallows Ti,t
death watch looked at him curiously AZ h.
wrote rapidly and with firm hand. Cur
teau explained that he was writing in al.
clear and distinct hand as possible, be-
cause he wanted to have no trouble in
reading the prayer upon the ScaffOld
There was not the slightest indication in
the handwriting of tremor, and he signed
his name to the prayer in bold letters.
Meanwhile the final preparations were
made at the scaffold. The double bolt which
upheld the drop was thoroughly oiled again.
The rope was put in its place and tested
with sand bag weighing 200 pounds The
drop was allowed co fall back against the
cushion, and the executloner twil ched the
slide rope to be satisfied of its proper ad-
justment People began to throng the
immense round corridor, and there was the
noise of hurrying footsteps, the click of
telegraph instruments, and outside could
be seen rapidly gathering throug, whe
looked at the darkly curtained windows
which concealed the gallOws and stood
there until the end.
Guiteau must have heard some of these
preparations, for alb )ut 10 O'Clock he sent
for DR.. Hicks and said to him in an earn.
est tone, that be desired to be hanged as
soon after noon as might be convenient
He was particularly anxious that all pre-
cautions should be taken to prevent AN &C.
cident. AS DR.. Beard had predicted, his
mind seemed burdened with the care of
details. He seemed to fear the breaking
of the rope, the untimely fall of the dlop,
or some untoward accident. He was as
sured by DIR. Hicks that every precaution
had been taken, that be need not fear land
that a decent execution of the death SEN
tence depended wholly upon his own con-
duct. Having been thus assured, Guiteau
asked for bath, and huge tub of water
was taken to his cell. Ho plunged into it
with evident delight. When he came out
he seemed to feel intense satisfaction in
the glow which the brisk rubbing had i'm
parted. Content with himself and his COZ
dition, he began at once to prepare his
body decently for the scaffold. Always
uneasy, unless his mind was occupied. and
always intently occupied with even the
tri1e that might be at hand. he seemingly
forgot the gallows In his zeal in preparing
for it. When his eyes fell on speck of
dust on his congress boots, be fumed and
fretted about this until it occurred to him
that he could have them polished. He sug-
gested the idea to the guard. The throng
saw negro bootblack enter the corridor
with his box and brushes, and the sight
was SO strange that it caused comment
No one surmised that man about to die
would be particular whether his boots
shone or not. Gulteau was delighted with
the bright polish, and he made light and
pleasant remark to the negro. who came
from the corridor grinning with delight
thereat. But the episode helped keep the
mans mind busy. and the UNCONSCIOUS ma
terialistic bias Of jail officers made them
put far more faith in the efficiency of such
means to ward off prostration than they
did in religious consolation. The assas-
sims preparations were temporarily sus-
pended when he had arranged his snowy
shirt, his black trousers and his shining
boots satisfactorily. A new idea came to
him. Would the guard let him have pen
and paper? The guard certainly would
and glad enough. Perhaps thereby anoth
er fifteen minutes or even an hour would
DO occupied. The inner guard whispered
to the outer guard, and the outer guard
beckoned to funeral-looking special dep
uty, who seemed weightlly impressed with
tbs message and its Importance, for it was
with far more dignity than that which
characterized Warden Crocker's reading
of the death warrant that he gave the pa
per, pen and ink to the inner guard. Gui.
teau sat at once at the little wooden table
and his pen began to scratch over the pa
per and make great black marks thereon.
Whatever it was that he was writing, it
was plain that he was intensely interested
in it. His lips moved and he seemed to be
conveying his thoughts to paper orally
He wrote for twenty minutes. When he
had finished he read the matter through.
1t was a rude hymn which no chanted on
the galiows. 70 him, clearly, it was poe
try inspired directly by Heaven. He was |
SO greatly affected by it that he laid down |
upon his bad and wept bitterly. There |
upon tie death watch, seeing tears and the
PROSTATE form of the condem ned, decided |
that the dreaded collapse had come. He
aignalled to tia guard and the guard nnai.