The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1891-07-07
KILLED IN A FLASH.
New YOrk'S Four Condemned
MurdererS Perish at
Sing Sing.
NO ROASTING THIS TINE.
JugirO's Fight for Life-Lawyer
Haire Accuses Judge LacOmbe
of Murder.

Death by electricity came 70 the four
New York murderers lying under SEN
tence at Sing Sing prison in the early
hours Of this morning. The first exc
cution occurred at 442j< and the last at
COG. The witnesses state that the men
died easily. Jugiro was the only one who
made fight for life.
sLocUM.
Slocum was the first man TO die. He
was awakened at half past three a. M,
and as he sprang from his cot rubbing
his eyes he asked. as it timef'
"Not quite yet." Principal Keeper Con-
navghton replied, "but it will soon be
now. my boy" Slocum gave a sort of
gasp as be realized that mis- last hour ha d
come. Nevertheless he steadied him
self, and after tremulous minute or
two he said.-"A1l right, will be ready"
He bathed his face ana hands and made
quick preparations Cor his breakfast
While he was waiting for his last meal
| on earth his spiritual advisers came into
| his cell and passed about fifteen minutes
| with him. lie received holy communion.
| His breakfast was ready. He ate spar
| ingly of boiled eggs and coffee. and at
BIS he signifed that be was ready for the
| supreme trial.
He walked steadily to the awful room.
| His arms were tied behind his back, and
a strap on his legs allowed him TO step
| about twelve inches at pace.
No time was lost. When the death
chamber was reached Slocum walked to
were tied and his arms and head firmly
fixed to the proper places. He was ready
in moment.
A moment later Warden Brown touched
the Dell and the current was applied. He
| died quickly. Present reports indicate
that in Slooum's case execution by eiec-
tricity proved success.
sMILER.
Five minutes after he was killed the
black smoke from the stack told that
| preparations were being made for the
next man.
ened Smiler had been aroused, and while
Slocum ate his breakfast Suiler was be-
ing prepared for his crisis by the Rev. Mr..
Edgerton.
Exactly thirty-one minutes after Slo-
GUMS dead body had been removed from
the chair TO the autopsy room Smiier was
placed In the seat of. death. In the frac-
tion of a second after the straps were Sc
cured the fatal spark was applied, and
Smiler's soul was on its way to join that
Of Slocum.
WOOD.
II Olc Oh Tue luLI ldluleu, Dub httUeI
Connaughton's presence OF mind Quelied
consequent disturbance. Wood was pre-
pared next and he was executed at thirty
eight and half minutes after five
O'Clock.
THE JAP FIGHTS
The Jap, that big. muscular Shfbuya
/ Jugiro, who, iii 1T OF rage. stabbed TO
death one OF his countrymen, was to come
next The flag or death for him was red.
1t was believed that the taking of the
foreigner to the chair would be a hard
task, and that there would be such a
scene in the death chamber. as the jaunsy
warden, who talked OF killing men as he
would of his beheading chickens for his
Sunday dinner, could not forget as long
as he lived.
The Jap had queer ideas about
the death. He believed that when
he was taken, to that mysterious
room beyond he was to be tor
tured. He had said, as well as he could.
that be would hght before he would sit
in that chair. A displacement OF the
wires or OF the harness, caused by
struggle, would mean torture. OF all
men to take the job of controlling MIN,
Keeper Brown was the best. He is not
the kind of map to treat a convict or a
condemned wretch with too much con-
sideration.
The time that elapsed before the signal
of his death was given, showed that he
fought for life.
Ii was all over presently, The law had
been carried out to the letter. and the red
flag went up. The Jap died at GOO
O'Clock.
The entire time consumed in executing
the four men was an nour, twenty-three
and one-half minutes
guard this morning said that it was
found necessary TO take Jugiro from his
cell by force.
TIE time between Slocum and Jugiro's
execution was one hour and twenty-eight {
minutes. This is and average OF twenty
nine and one third minutes for the last
three executions.
Assuming that Slocnm took but the
average for execution, four men were
summoned, prepared for death and killed
by electricity in Sing Sings chair in one
hour and forty-six minutes.
Before the entrance Of the witnesses the
executioner had entered this closet from
the other room, and sat waiting for the
signal from the Warden to turn the
switch.
Who he was Is not known and Will not
be known authoratively. 1t is generally
supposed that the executioner was con-
yict from the prison detailed for the duty.
QUITE PAINLESS
Chaplain Law, OF the Tombs Prison.
one of the witnesses of the execution, was
interviewed. At first ne refused TO say
anything. After much effort, however,
he was persuaded 10 say lhaU he conSlQ-
cred the execution to have been successful
in every respect In each case, he said,
death was instantaneous. and, so far as
appearances went. perfectly painless Not
one of the four struggled or showed any
sign that death did not come as quick as
a flash"
JUDGE LACoMBE'E RESPONSIBILITY.
Lawyer Hare whe went TO Sing Sing
yesterday. and whose stay granted by
Judge Lacombe was vitiated yesterday
afternoon by the same judge because
Haire was not down on the rolls of the
United States Supreme Court, bitterly
condemns Laeombe.
"This execution breaks my heart" he
said, " and IL was technically murder.
Judge Lacombe has acted in an illegal
manner and resorted TO tricks to avoid
stay IN the proceedings. | prepared
papers for writ of habeas
corpus and presented them to Judge
Lacombe on Saturday. These papers
were filed with the clerk of the court
The filing of writ is the ginning of an
action, and after notifying the Warden
that such action was pending he had no
right TO set aside the papers.
believe that If ever an innocent man
was convicted, that man was the negro
Wood. / have just discovered evidence
which, had stay been granted. would
have entitled Wood to new trial"