The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-08-24
SLOWLY STRANGLED.
Four Murderers Hanged in the
TOmbs Prison.
TWO DIE MOST TERRIBLE DEATHS
Oue's Last Words were Words of Blasphemy-
The Attendants Turn Away their
Faces-Mrs. Maybrick.

New York, Aug. 23.-Four murderers of
women-Patrick Packenham, Jack Lewis,
colored, James Nolan aud Ferdinand Caro-
lin were hanged in the yard of the Tombs
prison this morning. There were two
scaffolds and two men were hanged on
each. Packenham and Nolan were first
executed on the scaffold which was erected
on the Franklin street side of the prison.
The drop fell at 6 ;55 o'clock. Eight min
utes later Lewis and Carolin were hanged
from the scaffold on the Leonard street side.
Sheriff Flack and Under Sheriff Sexton
entered the prison at 6:15, followed by
twenty deputy sheriffs, all in black clothes
and wearing silk hats; each official wore
his badge of Office and carried a staff.
They marched into the corridor, ten of
them taking their places at the Leonard
street and the others at Franklin street
wall. First jury of twelve men, news
paper representatives, entered the prison
yard and two minutes later a second set of
jurors filed in and marched to their places
The last rites of the church were admin
istered to Packenham and Nolan and
q 40 they emerged from Jail, accompanied
demned men were pinioned, and over the
shoulder of each hung black cap. Pack
enham's face was of CHASTITY pallor, but
his step was firm and he looked unflinch-
ingly into the faces around him. Nolan
hardly appeared to realize his position.
There was half defiant look on his eoun
tenance. After the men had taken their
places on the scaffold, they both grasped
the hands of the priest and wrung them
fervently, then Hangman Atkinson tied a
white cord about the legs of Nolan, just
above the ankles. His assistant did the like
service for Packenham. In the twinkling of
an eye the black caps were adjusted and
at "a signal from Atkinson, the bodies both
We're jerked into the air. At 7:l0 Nolan
and Packenham were pronounced dead, but
their bodies were permitted to hang for fif
teen minutes longer.
While this scene was being enacted pre-
parations were being made for what proved
to be the most shocking spectacle that had
ever taken place within the walls of the
Tombs prison.
BY many persons Carolin, who was
German, was not believed to be of
sound mind although the experts on
his trial declared him sane. There
seemed to be a screw loose somewhere, and
every prison keeper or deputy sheriff who
ever had to watch him said So He muir
dered a woman, who passed as his wife, in
a small back room in a Stanton street tene-
ment He butchered her with a Ratchet.
The scene grew out of a drunken quarrel.
Lewis and Nolan, like Carolin, had each
murdered his mistress, and like Carolin
also both were hard drinkers. Packen-
hams victim was his wife; he, too, was
drinking man. The Tombs prison at
present contains two other men, Giblin and
Carlton, under sentence of death, and tif-
teen men and one woman waiting trial for
homicide.
The hanging of Carolin and Lewis in
several aspects is probably unparalleled.
A gaunt sallow faced man had come around
from where Packenham and Nolan were
dangling and made brief inspection of the
instrument of death. Then he disappeared,
and a minute later Hangman Atkinson,
Immediately after finishing his first job,
came around back of the prison and stood
behind the box. Now Carolin and Lewis,
with the priests, came through the
door. Lewis, the negro, walked I'M
steadily the first dozen PAGES but
quickly recovered himself. He was
smiling and as he caught sight of a
deputy who had been especially kind to |
then he walked over and shook hands with |
two more. Father Gelinas gently urged |
him towards the rope that was to strangle |
him. He smiled and looked fearlessly |
around him. Carolin had the butt of ci- |
gar between his lips and was putting Wig |
orously, blowing great clouds of smoke into |
the faces of the priests. His face was pale |
as the face of the dead and the scowl upon |
it was almost Economical. He glared at the |
priests as he turned around and felt |
the rope touch his shoulders
Splitting the cigar stub from his mouth, he |
broke out into blasphemy that horritied !
the spectators. Atkinson had just pin |
Toned his legs. When he spoke, looking sui
lenly at the three priests, he suddenly ex-
claimed 81 die an innocent man; God0d-
it, didn't do this thing.n
Lewis, who had then been pinioned half
turned his head and addressing his COM
panion said: ''What's the matter with
you anyways Why don't you die like a
man?'
81 will die like man." shrieked Carolin.
His face turned perfectly livid. ~ will die
like man, an innocent man,
The words were scarcely out of his mouth
before the hangman clapped the black cap
over the murderer's face. The assistant
Atkinson gave the signal and the |
weight fell. Instead of bounding up as
Packenham and Nolan had done, the miser-
able wretches went into the air with so lit
tie force that there was scarcely any re-
bound at all. Lewis Immediately began to |
struggle in the most sickening manner. He |
threw his legs about so violently as to kick |
off his slippers. Then he began to gurgle |
and choke. The rasping, wheezy sound |
came from under the horrible cap for fully |
ten seconds. His body turned and swayed |
and his movements were so painful that !
half dozen men turned away their heads. |
The poor creatures were slowly strangled. !
Carolin's body was also violent, but he |
uttered no sound. The weight fell at 1903 |
o'clock and at 7:10 both men were dead. |
The four bodies hung for half an hour, and |
were then cut down and placed in plain /
collins.