Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1884-03-28
PACIFIC SLOPE.
IsrsOAt OIsrArcuEs 10 rnE kEOoSD.UMoS.l
execution al PIacerYIllc.


Peres was hanged here to-day for the murder
Of William and Jacob Wirges. The crime
was perpetratsd on the night OF the 29th of
November 1888. Oa the afternoon OF that
day, Peres wss at the winery kept by the
Wirges Brothers, aud was considerably under
the influence Of the wine he had taken. BE
had dispute with William Wirges concern
ing the number of bottles Of wine he had
purchased William, who was also iutoxics-
ted, insisting Peres had had three, while the
latter claimed il was only two This wrangle
was dropped ana another begun. between the
two, as TO whether or not Peres, who was .
Csstillap, spoke the Language correctly,
William saying he (Peres) did not. This
quarrel was still in progress when the witness
who last ssw the Wirges brothers alive left
tie place. and st that time William was sitting
in chair, with his hesd dropped on his breast,
half s.upihed with wine rousing up st inter
walls to continue the argument. The rext
morning Peres came TO the winery from his
cabip, which is two or three miles away, and
from there went to neighboring house, and
reported that William and Jacob had been
killed. On the arrival OF parties at the scene
of the tragedy, jacob was found near the
door with knife wound in the lsl5 side OF
his necg, aud cut. apparently from the same
instrument, across his left hand jast below
the wrist In close proximity, with his feet
I
HORRIBLY MANGLED AND BRUISED,
His head cut and goshed, evidently by stove
earth-plate, found in the room ell covered
! with blood. Besides the wound made with
the tove-plate, the body Of William bore evi.
denco that the murderer had struck him with
q bootjscs. and had also used the murderous
knife thBt had ended the life Of jacob, cut
being found over the bIeas;bone, but which
di3 not penetrate through the bone. Marks
on the body also proved that the murderer
| hsd jumped on his victim and the sppesg.
aHce ct the room indicated that the struggle
had been of considerable duration. The evil
deDce on which Peres was convicted was
wholly circumstantial. His version, given on
lis own behalf, on his trial was to the effect
that after the lsss person who was 81 the
winery that afternoon had left, other than
William, Jacob and himself ard j. rad be.
c1me dark. he spoke Of going home, but they
urged him to stay all night, and he concluded
20 do so /; lying down on = sort Of @ bench IL
the room, where the dead bodies were found,
placing his coat under his head, aud after q
while dropping off into sleep. How long
he slept he did not remember, but he was
| awakened by some one
HOLDING HIM BY TIE THROAT,
And another person having hold of his feet
lie spoke to them and told them to Z" let ge,
but received uC response and, thinking they
meant to kill him, he then reached down ana
took his knife, which was in his bootleg,
and styuck at the one who had him by the
throat. This one, which ne claimed was
William-though 1t was dark, the lights being
out, and ne could not distinguish clearly
Immediately fell over, after being struck
with the knife; the other then dragged him
eff the bench upon the floor, where Peres
succeeded in getting hold of him and eu-
deayored to stab him with the knife, which
he soon lost in the scuffls both were on the
flor, aud his (Peres) hand coming in cor
tscs with the hearth. plate, he took it to de-
fend himself. THIS story he strictly adhered
to on his oross-eNaminstiop, and in an inter
view held with him shortly before he was re-
spited, and before he knew the respite had
been granted or petitioned for, be reiterated
it in the most solemn manner.
THE ACCEPTED THEORY
Is that the quarrel between William and
Peres, about the correctness of the latters
| language, continued until Peres, who was
known to be very passionate, became so ex-
ssperated that he hrst struck the other with
| the booti ack, rendering William insensible
that Jacob, hearing the noise, came in and
was met at the door by Peres, who strucl. at
him twice with his knife the first blow being
warded off by Jacob with his left hand, and
| the next striking him in the neck and killing
him almost instantly. After this, bloody
| 6nger-mark5 on the wall near where he was
| lying, going to show that be had endeavured
| the raise himself up, William revived, and
was attacked by Psres with his knife. which,
not entering the body, by reason of striking
the breastbone, he seized the hesrth-plate and
! FINISHED HIS BLOODY WORK.
| He then left and went home to his cabin.
! washed the blood off of his person, except a
| strip on the back part of his left arm, which
was found by the officers after his arrest
changed his clothes, went TO the winery the
next morning, and finding that the dead
| bodies had not been discovered, reported the
double murder himself, saying at the tin,
that he came TO tbs winery that morning b.
| the request of the others, who desired hin
| to cut a tree down for them that day. Going
into eternity with a prctestation of the truJh
| OF his story on his lips, the exact manner in
which William and jacob Wirges net their
! death, or the motives which actusted their
murderer, whether fear CT passion, will never
| be known, but there sre few, who know the
| entire circumstances, who credit his tale and
believe other than that when Francisco Peres
was swung from the scsffJld by the command
of the law he received the justice that was
his due.
The Execution OF Mcdowell.
| Los ANGELES, March 27th-Much inter.
at San Bernardiuo of Mcdowell, the uur.
derer of Maggie O'Brien. The general feel
ing is that the sentence is just, and while
there is a warm sympathy for the sffiicted
relatives, it is felt that the hand Of justice
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