Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1891-07-09

the electrician drew the switch and the
electric current rushed through the death
circuit and the body in the chair stlt
fened again against the straps The
time OF the contact was not made
public. Dr.. Mcdonald has the record OF H.
The stop watch did not regulate the length
Of the contact this time The same ur
happy event that brought the Kemgnler
execution 10 close made sudden end OF
Slocum's experience in the electric chair
The skin ana flesh Of the leg and almost i'm
mediately afterward the skin OF the fore.
head began TO smoke. DR. Mcdonald again
signaled the electrician 20 turn the switch. the
current was withdrawn and instantly the body
collapsed again. This time there was no re.
Spouse from the muscles. The figure hung
silent and motionless In the straps There was
no doubt that Slooum was dead
The electrician signaled the engineer the
dynamo stopped and the whtrring sound that
sounded so closely to the waiting ears OF the
watchers without through the silent morning
air had died away. The wardens as
sistants stepped forward and looseued
the electrodes. One by one the straps
which confined the body TO the chair were un.
buckled Unlike those OF kemmler Slocum's
remains were so limp they would have slipped
from the chair as the last strap was uufastened
had not the attendants held them in place
Frcm the chair Slocum's body was carried to
the adjoining apartment. where II was laid out
on ore of the long taoles placed there for the
autopsy.
The autopsy on the bodies of the exc
euted men was begun at 1890 and the
first body operated upon was that of
Slocum. DIR. Mcdonald was in charge
of the autopsy and was assisted by DIR.
| Ward, DIR. Townsend and DIR. South
wick The autopsy of Slocum was
confined most!y to the brain and heart
to find out how the strong current had
affected them The brain of Slocum
was congested and at every place where
the contact was made TIE tissues were
burned and destroyed.
CRIMES OF THE MEN
James J. Slocum lived at z Che rry street and
had been baseball player and Z common la
borer. He had long been a wife beatcr, but
commonly pounded his wife with his lists and
kicked her On the night OF December 81 1889,
he went home and took ak which had been
used by his wife to break up boards for fuel,
and beat the woman's brains out with It. He
was convicted in March, 1890 before Judge
Martin. and was originally sentenced TO die
during the week beginning May OF that year.
Harris A. Smiler was at one time Salvation
army captain. He was printer by trade, and
had developed rare faculty for getting mar
ried. At the time the murder was committed
| there were three women living to whom he
! had been married, and none of them
had been divorced The last one 10
| go through the ceremony with him,
| Maggie Drainey, was his victim He had been
living with her az 2sl Seventh avenue, but on
| account OF his brutality she had determined to
lesse him. He went home drunk on the night
/ of April 8, 1889, and when she refused to pro m.
Use to remain with him he shot her to death.
! He was originally condemned TO die in the
week beginning August H. 1890 but the ap.
peals taken have saved his life thus far
Joseph Wood was one Of the negroes EN-.
| ployed in building the new aqueduct One
payday In May, 1882 he got in one OF
the fights common among the gangs OF
laborers employed there. His opponent
was an Italian. Carlo Rum, also an
aqueduet labGrer. RUN was killed. Wood
has always asserted that he took RUNS life in
self-defense. His case was taken to the su-
preme court Of the United States on the novel
plea that Wood was not tried by his peers. be.
cause no negroes were on the jury The appeal
served only to prolong the prisoners life
The last OF the four common specimen
neither better nor worse OF the crews of the
ships that sail out Of the port Of New York.
His name is Shibuyc Jugigo, ana he Is a native
of Japan He was living in one Of the James
street sailors homes while awaiting
the pleasure Of the boarding house boss in
the matter of putting him on hoard of o
ship which he had alrea,y signed
articles to return TO Japan. He got INTO dis
pute with countryman, Mura CaHni, about a
berth in the forecastle in the ship Jugigo got
a carving knife and stabbed Cauni TO death in
| the course Of the fight that followed. His
case was taken TO the United States supreme
court by Roger NJ. Sherman, the plea being
that Jugigo had no legal defense because
his attorney, Jonn B. HeinzeImann. had not
been admitted to practice at the New York
bar