The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1889-03-13
HOW HaneIHe FEELS.
Story Of an Idaho Miner Who
Was strung Up.
As soon ~ tAs Pressure h Ca the
vIctIm FaIls Asieep-LiAbie to
Caase ss.re Throat.

Cause ssre Throat
While in Idaho. in the autumn OF
Ilsss snorthesst slope Of Cariboo
mountain, bingham county,, !
learned that neig hboring gold placer
uliaer had once been hanged by
miners to extort q disclosure of the
hiding place OF his ~clean-up" OF gold
dust some SI3.00o or more. Here
seemed 20 be chance 70 get infornla-
ton from first hands; testimony more
II full and trustworthy than any ! have
ever seen produced for publication
The man Is an IYishman. with bur a
slight though variable residue OF
brogre TO distinguish him from other
frontiersmen. His reputation is that
of very close. very shrewd, very de-
teruined old bachelor: hard working
in the extreme, expert and successful
as q business man, especially in ex-
tracing gold from gravel by the help
OF water-whether BY pipe. rocker or
pan-and probably worth $50 900 or
$40 900.
l found him In his Iow-browesi, sod
rooted cabin. no companion but his
eat. no furniture but dingy bunk, q
few rough chairs and stove, q pair OF
gold -sssales sitting on the window
ledge, some clippings from illustrated
| papers pasted on the walls. and tsug-
gestive of the terrible mountain win
tersl a pair of the srowshoes univer-
SALLY used thereabouts, 10 or II feet
long ny four 10 six inches wide. thin
and elastic.
The old man, despite his reputation
/ for crnstiness, always seemed 10 take
to me. and We strolied out to the
placer. which had been his working
| place for over Is years. 1t was desc
| lation OF boulder-strewn bedrock, 3
| few acres in extent, bordered by Nc
Coy creek on one side, and on the
other by the face of the gravel bank
| containing unknown millions of cubic
wards of "pay-dirt." Seating our
selves on convenient boulders. we fell
| into talk
Said /: .They tell me that some
| robbers strung you up to make you
tell where you kept your dust?"
.'They did, sir. "
well, now, there's been great dis
| cnssion going on among humane peo-
pie as to whether hanging is or is not
| painful death; whether murderers
| can't be put an end TO in some more
merciful way. Have you heard about
lit?n
II don't behave have
well, it's so, any way. And l
guess you know more about the sub
ject in minute than the philanthro-
pists can find out IN a year..
| He laughed. II shouldn' t wonder
Il wish you'd tell me all about it.
The world ought TO know what you
know: and / may publish what you
say If you have no objection; but
don't need to give your name. Don't
talk about it il you don't want to; but
! hope you won't mind giving me the
facts
mot the least in the world
We'll, does man suffer when he's
hanged 2"
Fl omit my own interlocutions and
throw his answer into single para
graph in order that it may be copied
by papers which cannot find room for
the whole narrative.
When the rope first squeeZes a
mans neck il hurts his skin some
what. My throat and neck were sore
and swelled for week after | was
robbed. But just as soon as the pres
sure is on. he knows no more about it.
Ii Just went TO sleep, and that was
the end of it until began to come to.
They strung me mp three times
before would tell, and between times
they were thrusting their guns in my
1 "a, 4 IN, oh - \,
tied, they threatening to blow my dam
brains out; but just said / had no
dust. The last time, l judge, was a
long time coming to; | guess they
thought / was dead. When I woke
up, kind o. dazed like, was sitting in
the chair, and they were hunting
around the place. Then they threw
the rope over the beam again. and /
pointed To stone in the hearth !;
they dug there and got a tomato-can
full of dust about $1,000. They
wanted more, and were going to kin
me again; but / said that was all /
hrd, and they could kill me If they
liked. 1t was getting daylight then,
and they went of. | sat quiet and
stupid till the neighbors came and put
me to bed"
| The Supplemented, unexcited, bust
nesslike earnestness OF the old man
left not a doubt in my mind of the en-
/ tire truth of every word he uttered.
We walked back to his cabin and sat
down. The one room was ceiled with
| cotton cloth, nailed to the rafters, and
| whitewashed. Under this two poles
ran across from wall to wall.
| They stopped at neighbours
house first, and took what they could
| get--that was after midnight. Then
they came on here, and Knocked at
| my door. / got up and lighted my
lamp and went and opened the door.
| | could Just see lot of men with white
cloth over their faces, with holes for
| the eyes and every one had gun
pointed at me. | thought some of the
boys We're playing joke on me, but
they pushed me back and came in.
They had a long halter-rope with 'em
they had stole from the other house
but they took down my clothes-line
and tied my arms"
Didn't they say word2''
''Oh, yes, they we're shoutin and
hoilerin' all the time-cussin' and
swearin' an askin' me where hid my
ciane-up.'
What did you say2''
guess told EN- 10 go to hell
that | hao sent off my clsne-up-or
something. | disremember what.
1 Then what did they say2
4 "oh, they hollered, Kill the old
-l Hang him upl' an more of the
like. Then they put the halter-rope
round me NECK, and threw the other
end over that hame there" Point
| ing TO the cross-stiek nearest the door.
They stood me up under IL. and
asked me would | tell And when
shook my head they pulled me up.
After they let Won down the last
time where were your
'rettiri in that rockin' chair there.
| An there sat till after daylight.
when the neighb0rs came from the
house they whit 20 before they came
| 10 mine.
What did you say and dog''
II couldn't say much. They gave
me drink OF water and tied rag
round my neck. and laid me down
on the bed there. And then see
that the divvles had missed canful
Of dust that stood right open on the
shelf behind the stove IL was so
open and careless Iookin' they never
touched ii. Ii had between four and
tive thousand in il. -
The Keen GRAY ax-az &sxf- Lt..d asOs3