New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1885-11-25
EXECUTION or LOUIS REL.

EXECUTION or LOUIS RIEL.
He Meets His Death Like . Brave Man,
and Declines to Make speoch Upon
the Gallows. 3.5
All efforts having failed to secure q fur
ther respite, Louis Riel vas executed at
Regina, n. w. T.. Monday, the 18th inst
i q At last it appeared thathe had given up all
hopes OF escape from. his terrible fate, and
had made up his mind to die bravely. He
DID not retire the night previous at all,
but remained up, praying most OF the time,
and cOnversing with Pere Andre He
went over the events of the two rebel
lions, and said, while he admitted having
made mistakes, he always had the good Of
his people at heart and he could die with a
clear conscience. About II O'Clock he took
his last meal on earth. Before passing out
on the scaffold a signal was given and the
party stopped. The priests and Riel
kneeled to pray. Riel's clear voice could be
heard above that OF the priests, repeating
the prayers OF the Roman Catholic church
used in cases of death. The litany was re-
I cited. Slowly sbut surely the service drew
to an end. The priests repeated the pray
@ers slowly as if to prolong the
life OF the poor man every moment
they could. But at last the end came,
and the party rose from their knees. Riel
looked calmly around. His eyes were OBJ
served to be moist and some fancied they
heard a sob escape from him, but he soon
stltied any feeling OF weakness he might have
felt, and summoning up that courageousa and
manly bearing which he always possessed
. he said firmly, in French, Gentlemen am
ready; do your work" At signal from
Deputy Sheriff Gibson, the hangman APP
peared from the gloom OF the corridor. He
was masked. and presented ~ repulsive.
spectacle, as his black eyes could be seen
through small apertures in the mask,
cleaning through.
HE HAD AGRUDGE.
His name is Jack Henderson, and he is
the same who hanged Corners. He owed
special grudge against Riel, having been i'm
prisoned by him during the Red river re-
bellion in 1870, and he pleaded as par
ticular favor to be allowed to hang his old
enemy. He carried in his hand some straps
with which, under the direction Of Gibson he
bound Riel's hands behind his back
While this act was being performed, Riel
gazed through the aperture at the fatal
moose, which, suspended from heavy
beam, was dangling before him. slight
shudder seemed to shake him for an in
slant, but that was all, and the next mo-
ment he stepped firmly out OF the building
and on to the scaffold. AS he stepped out
he repeated Ave Marias.
AS Rie stepped upon the trap he con-
tinued to ejaculate: SIN God I put my
trust" Before the hangman adjusted the
white cap, Sheriff Chaplain stepped up to
J hing to say before the sentence OF the
(. Ourt ia execnte1 rnOn vO119D
-, For a moment Riel was silent; then to the
reat surprise OF all, he answered in a firm
y pice. "No." He was told he would have
20 minutes to pray, and he repeated the
!. ord 8 prayer. He invoked the aid OF Je-
Uus, Mary, Joseph and the other saints
father Andre and McWilliams stood faith
llly by him and to their exhortations to
+ sand firm, Riel said he was not afraid
: o die. II believe in God to the last" he
shook hands with him, when he thanked
the physician for all he had ever done FOR
him. The rope was now adjusted by the
demonstrating hangman, who also drew
he white cap over Riel's face. Then Faith
McWilliams was asked to repeat the
i lords prayer. Hccommenced in slow and
: neasured tones. The suspense was terrible.
nd could not last much longer. When the
fords, Lead us not into temptation"
ere reached, Deputy Sheriff Glib
pm nodded to the hangmar, who
ept his eyes fixed on him. With
slcdge hammer he struck the bolt, which
shot back into its socket and as a conse-
quence shot Louis Riel, the leader OF the
half-breeds and whose name will ever livein
Canadian history, into eternity. The drop
was nine feet, and the victim fell with ter
rible force, SO that his neck was broken in
'stantly.