The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1891-10-01
A DOUBLE HANGING.
ED. POWELL AND jim LEEPER sTRErcH
HEMP AT LAST.
Desperate Efforts Have Been Nade to Secure
Communication of Their Sentence by Pow
ellis Mother but Without Avail "A
History Of Their Crime
Special to The Statesman.

Special to The Statesman.
GATEsvILLE, Tex, Sept. 29.--Ed.
Powell and Jim Leeper were hung in
the Jail yard this afternoon ut 2
O'Clock. Yesterday, when the sheriff
read the governors message to lot the
law takes its course, Powell was ST.
lent, but Leeper said, "Let her go.r
Mrs. Powell, young Powell's mother,
who has left no stone unturned to Sc
cure change in the sentence, hear
ing of the message became enraged
and told the boys to die like men
and pay no attention to religion;
if there was God he was unjust
Leeper never lost his disposition to
joke, and broke into a laugh when
taking his seat on the platform. Both
men spoke, protesting their innocence.
saying they were not afraid t. die,
stopping at intervals to smoke. Rev.
John Bateman, minister of Waco.
said "Let us pray" and the sheriff.
prisoners and all on the platform
knelt in prayer. On rising to tlieir
feet Powell said: "One thing. I for
goo. feel my sins are forgiven and
| will go to heaven. wish all CT you
wealth, health and prosperity, and af-
ter death may go to heaven"
Both men died with scarcely a
struggle. Powell's body will be con-
veyed to Memphis, Tenn, and Leep-
er's to his sisters home in Callahan
county, Tex.
Powell and Leeper were hanged for
the murder of j. Il. Mathis in Decem-
ber, 1889, for the purpose of robbery.
All that money could do to save them
from the gallows was done, but. with
out avail. Powell's mother is wealthy.
A REVIEW OF THEIR CRIME
On the morning of Dec. II, 1880, j.
Il. Mathis, w. III. III. Harvey and
others went to Gatesville with cotton.
On the way home about dusk, Mathis
was stopped by two mon, who, IN an
attempJ to rob him of the proceeds Of
his cotton sales, shot and mortally
wounded him. But q few minutes
later, at the same place, two persons,
one of whom was clearly identified as
Powell, assaulted and attempted to
rob w. III. H.. Harvey, Will Harvey
and Jack Bates, shooting the former
in the attempt. In resisting the as
sault w. III. HI. Harvey struck Powell
two blows on the head and back with
q heavy whip handle. PowelI's com
panlon resembled Leeper, and was be-
lieved by one of the witnesses TO be
him. Other witnesses saw Leeper
and Powell together ON that road
Two hours before the time
of the assault, which fact both de-.
fendants admitted, but claimed to
have returned to Gatesville, ten miles
distant, before dark. Powell was ar
rested the next day, and an examina-
tion disclosed two bruises ON his back.
such as might have been made with
Harvey's whip handle, and his ear
was bruised. Alibi was the defense.
but they could not locate themselves
by good testimony until the morning
following the murder.
Before his death Mr.. Mathis made
the following statement, the neces-
sary predicade having been laid for It's
use as evidence:
81 was coming home from Gates
vile. Just after dark, near the ten
mile post, at Riley's branch, some one
grabbed my mules, which were hitch
ed to my wagon. The mules SHE'D
and jumped from the road. At this
time man stepped up to the left side
OF the wagon, presented pistol at
me and said, Give up your money!
L pulled on the reins, but the mules
made lunge and broke loose from
the man holding them. The man at
the side of the wagon then shot at
Ime, the ball passing just back of my
neck. My little boy was sitting on the
wagon seat and pushed him into
the wagon bed. Just then / came up
even with the man who held the
mules ana he stepped forward and
put his pistol close to me and shot me
through. The other man fred another
shot and missed me. / fell forward IN
the wagon. The mules ran and soon
overlook balance of the party, who as
sisted me home. / noticed the two
menj just before my mules were stopped,
but supposed it was some Of our party.
Did not know either of them-one was
taller than the other; the short one
caught the mules and he was the man
who gave me the fatal shot.u
A Gatesville saloon keeper testified
that Powell and Leeper were IN his
saloon nearly all day and that one of
the Mathis party bought whisky and
exhibited a large roll of money, but
could not say that defendants saw It.
X. b. Wells met defendants ON the
road before sundown, one riding bay
and the other blaze-faced sorrel
horse. At the place of the killing
tracks of two horses were found, and
one fitted the sorrels track, which
was of peculiar shape.
w. III. I'll. Harvey, who was robbed
near the place where Mathis was
shot, and only few minutes later,
identified the defendants as the
parties who assaulted him. The gen
eral opinion in Coryell county is that
the evidence was complete and that
there was no doubt of the guilt Of
these parties.
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