Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-03-17

intervals conversed with the guard who was sit
ting outside the door of the cell Ii was the
final death watch. that had been maintained for
nearly . week without intermission. A light
repast of tea and toast Was taken to
the cell, but Schneider refused to touch
it. The sentence of the court named
the time of execution a. between s
o'clock and noon, but il known that the
hanging would not take place within the first
two hours at any rate. Warden Burke WAS
determined there should be no undue haste.
He wonld wait until it was certain that there
wss no chance o. a respite being granted from
the White House.
This ~as not looked For however. and il was
thought that the execution wonld take place
about 1880 o'clock. The decision o. the presi-
dent last night not TO interfere was looked upon
as final and beyond all recall.
REV. Mr.. PARsoS RETURNS.
little after s O'Clock Rev. Mr.. Parson
! rived at the Jail and was at once taken to
Schneiders cell. The reception he met with
was practically the same as he has had on the
occasion of his other visits. BY this time the
sun was obscured BY the haze once more and
the jail corridors looked gloomy in their bare
ness. Everything was neat and clean in the
extreme.
3 All through the morning the telephone bell
in the warden's Office kept up a constant ring
ing and the officials at the jail were kept busy
answering questions o: every description from
people who wanted to know just what hour the
execution would occur. The carriages and
cabs began to arrive No to the west door OF he
Jail to deposit their loads of those who had re-
rrxit %a as+a cha
They stood about the rosunda in the oaice
waiting for the word to be given that Warden
Burke had gone to the condemned mans cell
to read the death warrant
PREVIOUS SERVICES OF THE sc,rFoLD.
| The scaffold is that erected shortly after the
present structure was opened and tine first VIC
tim was James Madison Wyatt Stone for the
murder Of his wife. 1t was then erected out
side Of the Jail and Stones hea' was cut of by
the rope. Since then it has been used in the
execution of the following:
! Edward Queenan and Babe Bedford, Novem-
Der l9, 1880; Charles Guiteau, for the asssssina-
7 ton of President GARFIELD. July 80: Charles
/ Shaw. June 49, 1888; John Seangster. alias Hud-
son. May Is. 1885; Louis Sommerfeld, April
! 80, 1856; Richard Dee, April 80, 1886: Antonio
Mardello, alias Frank Roses. May %. 1886; Nell
son Colbert, May /, 1888; BENZ. Hawkins, May
%, 1880.
| THE DEATH WARRANT.
| While all this was transporting in the more
public part of the Jail Rev. Mr.. Parson was sit
ting with Schneider in his cell. Notwithstand-
ing the fact that Schneider showed less feeling
I than one would have expected under the cir
| cumstances the meeting was snll q
pathetic one. Mr.. Parson is the pastor
Of the Church Of the Reformation
which the Schneider family INTENDED when
they used to live on Capitol Hill and it was
from him that Howard a boy received his
religious training. Mr.. Parsou has taken
deeply to heart the blow that has fallen upon
the family and be was with the condemned man
until the end came today. He walked with him
to the scaffold and spoke q prayer for the soul
OF the man who was about to come to an un-
timely end.
For several hours this morning Mr.. Parson
sat with Schneider upon the cot in the narrow
cell.
SCHNEIDER wEPr BITTERLY.
Schneider wept bitterly aud showed signs Of
complete collapse. From Bible that he had
brought to the Jail with him the minister read
a number of selected chapters that were ap-
=
hope of salvation in return for repentance COM
| ing even at the eleventh hour.
Mr.. Parson also brought with him letter Of
farewell to Schneider that came from the mem
bers OF the distressed family II was not long
letter, but it was infinitely sad and had q
marked effect upon the young man. 1t was q
last word of goodbye from mother and brothers
to the Youngest of the family, whom they were
~.
consolation, q word of hope, and yet the ones
who wrote that last note knew when they were
writing it that the next time they saw Howard
Schneider it would be a cold corpse.
In response to request from the family
Warden Burke ordered that no autopsy should
be held over the dead body, and that as soon a.
the doctors we're sure that death had come il
should be turned over to the undertaken who
was to prepare it for burial
THE Undertake. AND THE COFFIN.
At 10 O'Clock the undertaken appeared in
the rotunda with the coffin. 1t was carried
past within few feet Of where the
living man still sat in his cell. Il was
plain walnut box with no inscription
upon the lid. II was placed in the
adjoining corridor near the scaffold, and i'm
mediately after the body was cut down it was
laid In the coffin and shortly after was re-
moved from the Jail.
About an hour before the execution Schnei-
der was given . milk punch. It was the only
nourishment he had been able to take during
the day and he swallowed it with an apparent
relish.
During Schneider's last hour upon earth Rev. |
Mr.. Parson and the colored evangelist Mr. |
Roberts, were with him. Mr. Roberts sng . |
hymn, Jesus Save Me-" and endeavored to |
have Schneider repeat the words after him. his |
efforts being crowned with some measure of |
success The two men prayed earnestly and |
exhorted him in stirring words, but to the end |
their advances were met in only . half-hsartsd |
manner. Schneider went to his doom % be had /
lived for the past year. apparently obdvious |
and careless.
D1ANArIc SCENES n TEE PRlsox.
The scenes in the prison this morning were
dramatic In the extreme. Up to the last /
minute IL vas believed that the President /
would grant ct least brief respite to the con-
demned man. This he refused to do Yestsr-
day every effort to ave the man had been sx-