The Iola register., 1891-07-17
death Come. quick and Painless.

Death Comes Quick and Painless.
SING SING, n. Y, July flames j.
5locum, Joseph Wood, Harris A. Smiler
and Shihuk Jugigo were killed by cleo
tricity in the prison this morning, IN
conformity with the law of the state.
Slocum was executed at 4:42 o'clock,
Smiler at 5:l3, Wood at 5:3s, and Jugi-
go at sos.
The executions went of quietly. All
of the men were killed on the first con-
tact. There was no struggle by any OF
the men. They were strapped down
and made no resistance of any kind.
Every precaution was exercised here
to avoid the mistakes which made the
Kemmler affair at Auburn in part q
failure. The causes Of the accidents al
Auburn were known to the warden al
Sing Sing. and they had been antici-
pated in the arrangements for the exc
et.tion Of the fou, mea. The tested
voltage in the dynamos had been
brought up to 1900, while the estimated
voltage which was turned into Kemm-
ler's body was $50 The weakness OF
the current at the Kemmler execution
was chargeable III part to the slipping
of the belts on the dynamos, and es-
pecial precautions had been taken TO
avoid this.
At 10 o'clock last night all Of the in
vited witnesses to the four electrocu-
tions had arrived, the last arrival being
3 man from Albany, and the two spirit
ual advisers of the condemned men.
Fathers Creedon and Hogan. The lat
ter being dressed in their priestly gare.
They visited the cells of the condemned.
but as all the men were sleeping, it
was thought best not to awaken them.
The priests then retired to their room
for the night, being warned by the war
den to await an early call. Many ofthe
witnesses also retired, the reDGrters sit
ting on the grass plat opposite the pris-
on seeing them quite plainly. Some OF
the witnesses sat in the warden's room
until quite late, talking. while others
walked the terrace.
Deputy Warden Conuaughton came
out late and said the condemned men
were sleeping soundly and had eaten
their light supper with relish. He
would not say as 70 whether the men
talked about their fate last night or
not. They retired early. Jugigo hard
lv said ten words all day and was sullen
and morose.
WARDEN BROWN TALKS FREELY.
At midnight all was quiet about the
prison and the only signs OF life were
the reporters keeping vigil on the hill
the prison and the guards pac-
ing in front. The curtains were pulled
dow7n in the Office but Warden Brown
was still up and about.
At midnight the warden had long
talk with the United press eerrespon-
dent
''They are all awake" he said. 81
was Just down to see them They are
very quiet but they evidently know
something is coming"
Mr.. Brown denied that Mr.. Hogan
had brought any papers Of any official
character with him. He brought
himself and nothing else" said he.
The death warrants came here when
the men were last resentenced. let me
see-that was June second, think. |
have had them in my safe ever since. :"
Mr.. Brown said that no papers had
been served on him IN the WOODS case.
He had the opinion of the attorney gen.
eral on the appeal put forward by
Woods lawyer as claim for a stay of
execution. He would not say what, it
was, but said: ''If no other papers are
served on me before the hour set for the
execution, you can say that all four men
will be executed
With the first gray CLEAN of day
light every prison electric light was
out and the weary newspaper reporters
who had kept vigil OF the hillside began
TO look for indications OF activity about
the prison. Inside the warden's house
at $50 more quiet reigned than at any
time during the night. The dynamos
were not running and the prison had
its usual appearance of quiet. The
armed guards and the group of news
paper men in the roadway were the
only reminder Of the event about to
happen.
PREPARATIONS BEGUN.
At AS the engineer In the dynamo
house to the north of the prison began
firing up for more steam with which to
run the fast compound engine. The
black smoke rolled from the chimney
and very soon clouds of steam showed
that the engineer was ready at any
- A.lyr hic 6irrraa1 In foo H. A.90
o'clock the dynamo was running at
steady pace, only waiting TO be in
creased as the signals came 1t was
run for several minutes and then stop
ped, the test evidently having been sat
isfactory. In the warden's house in the
meantime all the shutters had been
closed, so that the movements of those
within could not be seen. But there
was q suspicious stiffness about the
that coupled with the sound
Of the whizziRg OF the dynamo, made
the observers without all the more
watchful. The window blinds of the
dining room were closed tightly and no
view could be obtained Of tie interior.
bat il was known that at about Ais
o'clock breakfast had been served to
the condemned men in their cells and
the witnesses in the warden's house.
It was apparent as early as $50 3 N
hat preparations were being made for
The execution, for at that hour the elec- !
.ric lights at the prison and in the VIII |
age were extinguished- The guard al
he Jail remarked: Something is go
ng on, for our lights never go out until |
or $50 o'clock" 1t was shortly after |
hey had been extinguished that there |
vere evidences Of more steam being |
made in the engine room and the omi- |
lous whizzing of the dynamo was heard.
.AsT MOMENTS OF THE CONDEMNED.
Seated in their cells, with only the
rails and the iron door between them
I'D the engine of death, the condemned /
nen heard nothing Of the busy prepara-