The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1882-05-27
The Exemplary Mr.. Dux.
a SKETCH PICKED UP ABROAD.

oPShtu NIuc III tNco anu CalS ttS
heard this fragment of conversation.
At the moment | was standing on the
threshold of a cell. But such a cell.
1t looked more like boarding house
parlor; the windows were barred, it is
true; the walls were whitewashed, and
the lock Of the door was ponderous;
but on the floor there was a soft car
pet, and against the wall were arrang-
ed chairs and ottomans.
Ia the middle of the room, some of
them seated, some standing, dozen
ladies, in visiting costume, formed a
circle arsund gentleman. The lat
ter was in correct evening dress
white cambric tie, swallow-tailed coat,
white kid gloves, and boots that re-
fected one like a polished shield.
That's the assassin" whispered
the detective who was showing me
round, (ten dollars a day, meals not
included }
I could not restrain a moment of
surprise.
It's James Dux," he continued,
taking no notice, he's under sentence
Of death"
In the monotonous voice OF a pro-
fessional guide he went on to tell me
the story Of the man who was the focus
Of so much attention.
a criminal of the highest class,
| this Dux. He had began in an intel
ligent way by only attacking respecta-
| bic people, worth ten thousand dollars
or so. -Four times he has cheated the
gallows. The first time he bought off
the witnesses, the second time he bot
off the jury, the third time he did bus
mess direct with the Judge But a
fatal accident was his ruin. The pa
per he found on a banker he assassina-
ted, turned out to be counterfeit
James had killed q confrere by mis-
take. Not being able to get together
money enough to make his innocence
clear, he was found guilty. He was
going to be sent aloft, when a comrade
starting in trade offered to buy the
fraudulent paper at sacrifice. He
said he calculated he could pass them
on his customers out west With the
sum thus realized James was able to
persuade the governor of the State to
take disintereSted view of his case,
and he was let off.
" But DuX never got over the turn
it gave him. He became kinder stu
pid-lost his head. He took to rob
bing the first that came in his road.
One evening, in an out-of-the-way
suburb, he knocked out the brains Of
an old man with a sledge- hammer for
the sake of an old watch of no value.
Caught III the act by young police
man, who thought he had chance to
distinguish himself, James was brought
up at the Assizes for the fifth time
The evidence was overwhelming, the
defense weak, the jury Indifferent
While the dozen in the box were try
ing whisky cocktails, Judge Blackstone
rose in the middle of cloud of cigar
smoke and pronounced sentence of
death, giving the poor fellow but three
months leisure to read his bible in.
His time is up this afternoon"
and that is the prisoner" | asked,
the man in the dress clothes? "
"Yes, that's Dux," he answered.
He's converted, you know. At pres
ent he's a great object of interest. Our
richest ladies pay all his expenses.
The best families come round regular
ly to comfort him. He is going to die
beautifully, we expect. 1t is great
victory for the Hardshell Baptist
church. You'll see that James will
make truly sanctifed end"
Meantime the assassin reconducting
one of his lady visitors to the door,
passed quite close to me, and | had
the opportunity of taking his likeness
in my mental camara.
He was a low-sized, thick set, i'll
built man, with a face blotched with
whisky pimples, a low forehead, cold
eye, and the limbs Of long armed
ape What sinister and grotesque
caricatlre this bestile wretch was, all
tricked out in the garb of good society,
his big bony toes making humps on
the patent leather of his dandy pumps
and his close-cropped hair gHstening
with some perfume, which could not
kill the fetid odor that eXuded from
his vulgar body.
A lady advanced toward the assas-
sin and presented him with an inn
mense white bouquet-the symbol Of