The Indianapolis sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1880-1904, 1885-05-16

Something Al Snt tie Man vino Was to
Have Been Hnsg On Friday.


hENSSELAbR, lnu., May ia 5caU9lu
painted black, q gibbet, trap-door. an ON.
inous spring. the clicking of which Is sug.
gestive Of darkness and life gone out, are
what your correspondent saw to-day. But
Wiebren Warmer breathes easier, because OF
respite granted by the Supreme Court of
the State, which get aside the sentence of
death passed upon him for the murder OF
John Dreger last October.
The circumstances of the crime ara yet
fresh in mind, and the atrocity of the muc.
der, the artfulness of the man in Gecoying
his victim to the river, and then the mo-
ment his back was turned, slay him as
ceoliy as person would have killed dog,
are matters too terrible to be forgotten by
al outraged community.
WartIer plead guilty, on the superstition
that the Judge was opposed to capital pun.
ishment, but after hearing the evidence, he
was still found guilty, and sentenced to
death. Now the point Is, Can @ Judge SAN
tence to the death penalty on q plea of
guilty, without trial by Jury?
1t seems that the pross cution claim that
In this case there was no trial, and the SEN
tence was passed on the admission of guilt
by the defendant, and the unmittigating
circumstances Of the murder rendered no
other decision adequate.
The case will probably go over to the octo-
Der term OF court as it Is not likely an ap.
plication for q rebearing in the Supreme
Court will have been filed before the expir-
alton of sixty days owing to the absence and
illness OF The prosecutor. Samuel e Yeo-
man, the Sheriff, bad completed the prepar-
atoms for the execution. The gib5et post is
seventeen and half feet high, the arm from
which the rope is suspended is five feet long;
the scaffold is nine feet high, the floor twelve
feet square and the trap four feet square,
The trap itself and the opening are different
from the usual method, and were planned
by Sheriff Yeomsn and made by John
Chamberlain. Instead of dropping the trap
from one side 1t is made with an opening in
the middle, and by the action of q lever
joint and iron Rrms, each half of the door 10
thrown down and back against the floor bs.
cath, which is held securely by steel springs.
The handle to the epparatua for springing
the trap is three feet long and is concealed
within a box ct the side OF toe scaffsld. The
iron lever running from the handle parallel
with the floor toward the trap or csntev is
two feet long and is secured 10
joint or spring, from which an arm OF iron
extends to escn corner parallel with the end
OF the lever OF two feet and two inches in
length, where they are fastened by swivel
Joint To a strip of iron running the length
of the trap. These are securely fastened to
the floor by half-inch iron bolt six inchss
beyond the osDter, thus leaving sufficient
room for the arms tc work.
the body perpendiculsrly through the aoosr
tufe, and occasions 10 swaying, as the usual
form Of door often does. Tho appliance has
been tested repeatedly with bags of sand
weighing $50 pounds and found to work per
fectly.
The gallows are surrounded by An
eighteen foot enclosure large enough ID &C.
commodate 200 persons.
The man who came SO nearly being hanged
to-day is, upon first sight, OF a mild aud in.
offe .sive appearances; forty years old, five
feet and nine inches in height,
weight 100 pounds: erect in carriage
OF medium brown hair, egg she'll blue eyes,
and fair complexion, with q weak, nervous
mouth, one would not select him as the per.
petrator of such a cold bloojsd affair.
why did you do such thing as this, for
which you are suffering?" we asked him
"To keep my woman and children from
suffering"
Gould you get no work."
"No," with q shake of the head.
But he was your best friend"
Sim sorry did tim sorry" ne re-
turned.
The prisoner told your correspondent tina.
he came from Holland two years ago. that
he WAS married sixteen years ago to-day-the
day be was to have been executed-to Ange
Jane HuiszeDgs and had FIVE children, who
are all at the County Poor Farm. He was
iucarcerated on November 4. His cell is bare
OF everything save a comfortable hammock
cot and blankets. On the table ia
the corridor into which his
cell opens. were newspapers and q
few pictures. He watches each one furtively
with an expression OF inquisitive interest,"
He has been incident in the extreme since
living in the county, aud cupidity was the
sole motive of the crime. The victim lad
provided his family with food aud at the
time of his murder had accompanied Wart-
ner for the sole purpose of eating fish for
his WARMERS family.
Your correspondent cav tho krn5ls of
clothes Wartner buried belonging to his vic.
tim, the iron pumps which ne took with him
with which to sink the body, and the shot
gun with which he struck him with and
broke In two. then using q sharp splintersd
point 10 finish the fencish work by jsbblng
it into the neck Of the dying man.
Rumors ara rife in the county that If hu-
man life, outraged justice and violated law
can not be indicated legally, there is anoth-
er tribunal more potent. 1t is TO be no ped
that law and order may be observed IN the
continuance of the case.