The Russellville Democrat., 1888-08-16
THE END AT LAST.
Brooks Alias Maxwell Finally Pays
 the Penalty for Killing Preller.
And Is Launched Into Eternity In Com pany with Henry Landgraf the Murderer ot Annie Tisch
 Maxweirs Crime.

ST. LOUIS, Aug 1f.--Hugh NJ Brooks,
 alias Walter H. Lennox Maxwell, the 1 murderer of Charles Arthur Preller, and
 Henry Landgraff, who killed his sweet
 heart, Annie Tisch, are no more, the
 sentence of the law having been executed upon them at nine o'clock yesterday
 morning
 | Maxwell spent his last evening on earth smoking and talking with his guards. A few minutes before midnight both pris- oners retired and Landgraf slept until
 morning Maxwell awoke at two o'clock complaining of being cold. He drank a cup of coffee and spent the remainder of
 the early morning hours reading Belassy's True virtue".
 It was half past five o'clock when Father Than administered the sacra-
 ment to Maxwell and Laudgraf in
 Maxwell's cell Maxwell had given up
 all hope and seemed resigned, but when Sheriff Harrington granted delay until
 nine o'clock to give the fullest oppor- tunity for further respite, he frightened up only to become resigned again when the last hour came.
 | The hours of vigil during the long night
 waiting for the fatal approach of dawn
 were agonizing enough to the doomed prisoners, but they were as nothing to the
 short respite of three hours. Every
 moment was an eternity, and yet the sec-
 onds. the minutes and the hours flew by with terrible rapidity. Doubtless the de- lay was ordered by the sheriff in the spirit of mercy and fair play and with the intention that if Governor Warehouse should change his mind about the respite the reprieve would not come too late, but ! nevertheless it meant the prolonging of Maxwelps agony.
 When the postponement of the exeou- ton was announced the deputies, by or der of Sheriff Harrington. placed both prisoners in Maxwell's cell and shielded them from observation. The contrast between them was great indeed. Land- graf's phlegmatic nature bore him up well in the terrible ordeal His all nights sleep had visibly refreshed him, and he appeared cheerful. Maxwell looked on the other hand as though nine -tenths of his vitality were gone. His hands were as cold as ice. The relaxation to his overs trung nerves caused by the unexpected delay left him trembling like leaf. He managed to force down couple of cups of hot strong coffee, which inspired little warmth in his blood- less frame. His features, however, still retained their haggard look; deep lines were drawn about his mouth as he had already in imagination suffered the horrors of a thousand deaths. But itwas a physical rather than a mental weaken ing. the collapse of the body rather than of the mind and heart His voice did not tremble, though 1t was lower and huskier than usual.
 At S:46 a. m. a squad or police, in charge of Sergeant Campbell, marched into the jail and formed line from the gate to the cells of Maxwell and Landgraf. who had been separated by the guards few minutes before. Through this lane then marched a procession, Sheriff Har- rington first, then Deputy Sheriff Joseph Harrington with the death warrants, then Deputy Sheriff Mike Fortin with the pinioning ropes, and then several other deputies. The death war rant was read by the sheriff to Maxwell and Landgraf, and the arms of both were ti,, ,,d behind them by Deputy Sheriff For tin, Then there was q cry of "back!" and the crowd surged away from the cell doorsL
 The procession left the cells at S:53 a. m. In two minutes the deputy sher- ifs and, ,the doomed men were on the scaffold
 The black caps were placed over their heads neither saying word, the nooses placed around their necks, and in another minute the trap was sprung. Landgraf fell six feet and Maxwell seven feet and the fall broke the necs of each. The bodies hung motionless without Q jerk of the limbs, as Doctors Priest and Jacob son announced the varying pulsations.
 Maxwell held his erucifix for six minutes, when it dropped from his nerve less fingers. In thirteen minutes Land graf was declared dead by Dr. Jacobson, but it was four minutes after when Dr. Priest released his hold of Maxwell's wrist, saying: He's gone"
 Even in death Maxwell surprised ob- servers The medical men had all pre- iicted that his vitality would be found to be less than Landgraf's and he would die sooner.
 Deputy Sheriff Michael Fortin stated that both Iandgraf and Maxwell had shown great bravery and fortitude, but the calmness and control of Maxwell sur passed any thing of the kind he had ever witnessed. "It is not every man that would exhibit nerve enough. when he lost step with me in the procession to catch up with trip as if he were leading lady down Fourth street" said he.
 The police arrangements were perfect and Chief Huebler and Captain Joyce deserve great praise for the order main- tained.
 Crowds gathered outside the principal entrance to the Four Courts about hYe o'clock in the morning and remained patiently waiting until after the drop fell in the hope of catching stray bits of in- formation.
 brief resume of this most remarkable case in Missouri jurisprudence may not Dc out oi place at this time. Hugh Mottram Brooks, alias w. H. Lennox Maxwell, alias Theodore Cecil d Auquier and c. A. Preller, his victim, became acquainted on the passage over from England on the steamship Cephnlonia Tn the early part of 1885 Brooks was endeavorlng 10 make his way to New Zealand, where ne ex- pected to meet a profigate English acquaint- ance-a curate named Evans--with whom he had become involved in some shady transac- ton in the neighborhood Of his home si Hyde, England It transpired that Preller was head ing in the same direction on business trip Tor the firm for which he was representa- five. and as Preller was well supplied with funds and Brooks was not, there arose the first incentive to cultivate Preller's acquaintance and friendship This Brooks proceeded to ac- complish by course of mendacity and deceit that would do credit to the most accomplished American bunco-steerer
 Arriving in America, Brooks remained in the East while Preller journeyed Westward, and by appointment the two met at the Southern Hotel, St. Louis, about the beginning Of April 1885. It would seem that Brooks had by thls time about reached the limit Of his Financial re- sources and desired to obtain assistance from his friend to enable him to reach the destina- lion he had set out for-New Zealand. Prelier, though liberally supplied with means for his own needs was not prepared to carry double, and so intimated to his friend, and then began the connection of the scheme which resulted Tn one of the most sensational crimes that has
 ever blackened the annals of Missouri. Just
 how the deed was accomplished will probably
 never be known. but that Preller was killed in
 some way by the administration of chlofoform is settled. Then came the disposal of the body
 pv packing it in a trunk after denuding the feat
 ures of their hirsute adornments tc
 prevent indentihcatlon, and the label ing 1t with the now famous words: "So Perish