The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1890-08-07
THE CRIME

For which Kcmmlrr Paid the Penalty Yes
| terday-tlis Previous Career.
kemmler was a man OF low menta
and moral qualities. The surrounding:
OF his birth and early life were very bad
His father was a butcher in Philadel
phia, where William, the murderer, was
born In 1860. The boy grew up In the
shambies and In the market place. His
parents sent him to school for a brief pc.
rtod, aud several times he saw the insids
ola church and heard the services there.
These feeble influences constituted the
only contact the boy and man ever bad
with things pure and good.t
In 1887, kenml ,r marIiel a worthless
woman named Ida Porter, In Camden,
N.J. Two days later be found she had
been previously married, and lie loft her
to live with Matilda XIegler! They NOV.
ed 10 Buffalo, n. Y. Kemmler frequent
y found bis mistress purloinipg ntouey
from his clothing, mud he suspected In.
fidelity on her part. They quarreled,
blows were exchanged; Kemmler be-
came hopeless druakard.
On the iDorningoi March 20, 1889, all
Buffalo was shocked by the news OF the
brutal butchery Of a woman ut No, 52G
South Division street. The woman xiii.
ed was "rillie Ziegler," and the mur.
deref was kemmler. The murder was
the first that had been committed In
the State Of New York utter the law TO
kill murderers by electricity had become
operative.
kemmler was arrested, and in the
meantime tho unfortunate woman waa
removed to the hospital. Her face, arms
and breast were covered with blood, and
she was insensible. She fingered in
comatose condition until the next day,
when death ensued before she had ones
regained consciousness, aud she was,
therefore, unable to make an ante.mor.
tenn statement. The only eyewitness
was four-year.old daughte. Of the vic.
tim. who said: Papa hit mamma with
the hatchet when she Vas lying on the !
floor" '
The couple in Buffalo had lived under
the name Of Hart. The victims father,
n PhilAdelphia huckster, named Tripner,
came 70 Buffalo and identified the body
OF the dead woman as his child. With
him came Henry kemlnler, the murder.
eFs bFother, who had married sister of
the dead woman. The woman was de.
scribsd by the Buffalo papers at the time
as prepossessing bruuette Of about l35
pounds, and quite stylish looking.
Alter his arrest Kemmler refused to
talk OF the crime, iand at one time there
were doubts as to his sanity. He made
no attempt to escape after the assault.
W men pressed to give reason for the
deed he only said, 81 wanted to kill her,
and the souner hang for it the bet,er.d
Nearly $500 in cash was found at his
room. The coroner's Jury pronounced
kemmler murderer. and Immediately
after the inquest he was taken from the
jail to the police court and arraigned on
charge OF murder in the frat degree.
he pleaded guilty, saying he had no
use for lawyer.
Judge Childs sentenced him TO die
within the week beginning June "a,
1889, by the application of electricity az
provided by the code. at Anbnrn State
prison. Counsellor Hatch took escep.
tions to the sentence, upon the ground
that the punishment was cruel and un.
usual and contrary to the spirit OF the
Constitution. kenmler reached Au.
burn Friday, May "a, at midnight. A
writ OF habeGs corpus was served rpon
Warden Dufston Just before the fatal
day arrived, and upon June % an ex.
haustlve argument was heard by County
Judge Day. The whole argument was
as to the constitutionality OF the law
substituting electricity for the gibbet,
upon the ground OF the former being
cruel and unusual. Judge Day dis.
missed the writ, and the case was taken
to tho General Term OF the Supreme
Court at Rochester. where the constitu.
tionality OF the law was upheld. The
last resort was the Court Of Appeals, and
here, too. the decision was adverse to
kemmler's counsel.
The criminal was ,resentenced 10 die
in the week beginning April 2s, 1890.
1t is likely kemmler would have been
eleetricized on April 80, but on the 10th
a United States writ Of habeas CORPUS
was served on the Warden, and the case
was then carried to the United States
Supreme Court on the point OF cons,i.u.
tionality OF the law on the same grounds
as urged in the State courts. Tie New
York courts were upheld in the final |
appeal, and kemmler was again sen. |
fenced to be killed in the week begin.
ming August !.