Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-10-29
JUDGE GARY's LAST WORDS,
Passing Sentence Upon the Convicted
Anarchists-To BE Hanged by
the Neck Dec. 3.
From the Chicago Tribune. /

From the Chicago Tribune
In tones so low and sympathetic that those
not Immediately around the bench could with
difficulty catch the import of his words Judge
Gary began his address to the prisoners.
When he came to the formal pr, uouncne of
the sentence, even Parsons, seemingly in spite
OF himself, fixed his eye upon his face. Spies
Astened to the words of doom with steadfast
eye and defiant smile. schwabs face was
grave and inscrutable. Neebe looked excited
Flelden pulled at his long beard. Lingg and
Flscher gave no outward signs of emotion, and
Engels manner was as stolid as ever Far
more h sgitated than the prisoners Judge
As ne pronounced the words changed by the
neck" he paused. turned in his chair, and the
e eoaGl%aing h words , until dead were barely
sentence is as follows:
O.. lam n, quite well aware that what you have
to the world; yet nothing has been said which
weakens the force of the proof or the conclu-
SONS therefrom upon which the verdict is
know that if the verdict stands it must be exc
cuted The reasons why it shall stand have
Gon for a new trial.
-, am sorry beyond any power Of expression
for your unhappy condition and for the terrible
a oI to you neither reproaches nor exhorta-
5 9sint M ho t shall say shall be said in the
IalnS nope that few words from place
delegated the authority to declare the penalty
OF violation Of their laws, and spoken upon
an occasion as Ms 50 solemn and awful as this may
| ed by the ignorant, deluded, and misguided
men who have listened to your counsels
hope; for if men are persuaded that because
OF business differences, whether about labor or
anytnlng eise they may destroy property and
assault and beat other men, and kill the police
if they, in the discharge OF their duty, inter
fere to preserve the peace, there is little ground
Il Is not the ehey W msuen a TO any waning
peaceable, frugal, and laborious poor, to endure
the tyranny of mobs who, with lawless force,
and life, where, when, and upon what terms
they may earn q livelihood for themselves and
their IN 1 families. Any government that is worthy
OF the name will strenuously endeavor to secure
TO all within its jurisdiction freedom to follow
the lawful avocations and safety for their prop
erty and their persons, while obeying the law,
| man responsible for the natural and probable
consequences of his own acts. It holds that
| the murder that is committed pursuant to his
advice, and if men band together for forcible
resistance to the execution of the Law and ad-
|. wise murder as means of making SUCH resist
| ance effectual whether such advice be to one
man to murder another, to numerous class
to murder men of another class all who are so
| banded together are guilty of any murder that
| is committed in pursuance of such advice.
The people Of this country love their instisa-
| property. They will never consent that by vio-
ience and murder those institutions shall be
broken down. their homes despoiled, and their
| property destroyed. And the people are strong
enough to protect and sustain their institutions
and to punish all offenders against their laws;
and those who threaten danger to civil society
if the law is enforced, are leading to destruction
| whoever may attempt to execute such threats.
The existing order Of society can be changed
| only by the will of the majority. Each man
has the full right to entertain and advocate by
speech and print such opinions as suit himself,
and the great body Of the people will usually
| murder as q means of enforcing, he puts his
own life at stake. And no clamor about free
speech or the evils to be cured or the wrongs to-
be redressed will shield him from the conse-
quences of his crime. His, liberty is not q liz
cense to destroy; The liberation that he enjoys
he must extend to others, and not arrogantty
| assume that the great majority are wrong and
may rightfully be coerced by terror or removed
| by dynamite
| It only remains that for the crime you have
committed, and of which you have been convict
ed after a trial unexampleS in the patience with
which an outraged people have extended to you
every protection and privilege of the law which
you derided and defed, that the sentence of that
| law be now given.
upon the records of the court. In substance
and effect it is that the defendant Neebe be i'm
| prisoned in the State Penitentary at Joliet at
hard labor for the term of fifteen years.
And that each of the other defendants, be-
tween the hours Of ten o'clock in the forenoon
Of December next in the manner provided by
the statute of this State, be hung by the neck
| until he is dead. Remove the prisoners.
| Capt Blackburn Honor knows that we in
tend to take an appeal to the Supreme Court in
behalf of all the defendants. I ask that there
until Dec.3.
Mr. Grinnell-H the court please, that is q
matter that usually stands between counsel for
the defendants and the State. Every possible
facility will be granted you, and no order can
possibly be entered OF record which would not
be other Of but that will be allowed, Everything
VI in hat mil f1ot
good sense and propriety dictate.
Capt Black-That is sufficient.
| Instantly upon the announcement Of tho
sentence all was confusion. Every eye waa
turned upon the prisoners, who rose from their
seats as though from force Of habit and without
volition. The spectators rose also and the rela-
tives of the condemned men pressed forward.
The court called sharply for order and the
bar. The women shrank back and the prison.
ers hastily resumed their sents Only for an
instant, however, for the bailiffs, seeing that it
heed the crier's gavel, but rushed forward and
threw her arms about her husbands neck
face in his neck and he bent his head
until his face was concealed from view
for erS she
leased him and turned away, her dark face
hard and tense and her eyes dry. AS she
about his brother neck, and the two men hid
their faces on each others shoulders. Spies.
with O careless smile on his face. shook hands
with his sister and other relatives and spoke q
few reassuring words to their fearful express
sions Of sympathy. Az he turned to 60 Mrs.
Parsons rushed up to him, threw her arms
about his neck, and kissed him vehemently on
the lips. The other prisoners received the ex-
pressions of sympathy quietly and fled out Of
court without betrGying emotion of any kind,
handsome Louis Lingg looking even more in
different and scornful than usual.
Some Further Excerpts from Parsons Six
Hours Harangue.
Do you think, gentlemen of the prosecution,
that you will have settled the case when you
, are carrying my lifeless bones to the potter's
field? Do you think that this trial will be set
tied by my strangulation and that of my col
leagues? tell you that there is greater YER
dict yet to be heard FROM The American people
will yet have something to say about this attempt
to violate their right which they hold sacred
It is proposed by the prosecution here to take
me by force and strnngle me upon the gallows
for these things have said, for these express
sions Now, your Honor force is the last resort :
it is the last resort of tyrants it is the last re-
sort of desposs, of oppressors and he who
would strange another because that other does
not. believe as he would have him. he who would
destroyanother because that other will not do
as he says, that man is despot and tyrant,
and unworthy to live. Now, your Honor. speak
plainly; speak as an anarchist; speak as d