The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1894-12-15
Death of a Notorious Libertine
In England.
VICTIMS WERE PLENTIFUL
Five Beautiful Young Girls Ensnared by
the Fluctuations OF This
Don Juan.

14OnQOllg LEU J.--JdAl4CS LNSclNS VIM
after weeks trial was convicted at
Chelmsford on November 10 of the muir
der of Florence Denis, was executed in
the Jail at Springfield near that city.
Ellington was the executor. Hon.
Edgerton Green, the high sheriff, re-
fused to allow the presence Of repre-
sentatives of the press and also de-
clined to give any information concern
ing the last moments of the condemned
man or the matter of confession. In
accordance with the new rule adopted
by the home office, Read was not noti-
fled Of the time appointed for his exc
cution until a late hour the night be-
fore. High Sheriff Green and Under
Sheriff 0. B. O'Geep, led the process
sion to the scaffold.
RECORD OF A LIBERTINE.
When James Canham Read paid the
penalty of his crime on the scaffold
period was placed to one of the most
remarkable cases in the criminal annals
of Great Britain. Almost from the day
of the discovery of the murdered girl
the entire country seems to have fol-
lowed the progress of the case in all
it's labyrinthine mazes, and although
all the surroundings tending to fasten
the crime on Read were purely circum-
stantial ninety-nine out of every hun.
dred people had made up their minds
that Read was guilty.
James Canham Read was a cashier
in the employ of the Royal Albert Docks
Company in London. Thousands of
pounds passed through his hands every
week and his salary was in proportion
to the responsibility to the position. In
the suburbs of London he had a COM
Portable home, devoted wife and four
children. To these the young man, for
he was only 81 years of age, apparently
paid every attention. He provided lib
orally for their requirements, took
them to places of amusement and to all
outward appearances was a model
father.
But it was the story of DR.. Jekyll and
Mr.. Hyde over again. While appar-
emily a reputable citizen Read was
libertine such as lola has yet to de-
pict. There was something about him
that seemed to charm and fascinate
the other sex, no matter how precise
or sedate they might be, while his un-
restrained libertinism was aggravated
by his callous behavior to the poor
dupes of his Wiles. How many victims
are to be placed to his account up tC
September, 1889, was not developed in
the trial. In that month, however, while
walking on the pier at South End, a
watering place, he met a Mrs Ayriss,
the wife of milk dealer in comfortable
circumstances. Within tWenty-four
hours he had accomplished her ruin
and the liason appears to have been
kept up until the spring of the pres
ent year. Through Mrs Ayriss, early
in 1892 he made the acquaintance of the
latter's sister, Florence Denis, a beau
tiful girl of fifteen. 1t was not long
until she too fell a victim to the liber-
tineism of her sisters paramour. Mrs
Ayriss swore on the stand that she was
in ignorance of this fact until after
the murder, but the evidence went
strongly to show that she was not only
familiar with the facts in the case but
actually connived in the division of
her lovers attentions with her sister.
Two children were born to Mrs. Ayriss
and of both of these she admitted Read
was the father.
Confined as he was to his office at
the docks five days and a half a week
it would seem impossible that Read
could have carried on a liason of this
character so far from home without
arousing suspicion. 1t was here, how
ever, that the consummate deviltry of
the man served him in good turn. His
weeks work was done at noon every
Saturday and he invariably took the
first train from London for South End,
returning early on Monday morning.
To his confiding wife and children he
explained that business in connection
with the dock company took him down
to Woolwich every week. To Mrs.
Ayriss and Florence Denis his story was
that he was a drummer in the tea bus
mess and had only Saturday after
noon and Sunday to call his own. In
order to cover up his tracks he had
about five different names and as many
addresses through which the women
might communicate with him, any
misgiving they might have on this
score being swept away by plausible
explanations. Early in the present
year Reads visits to Prettiewell where
the Ayriss family lived became less fire.
quent, but this he explained by saying
that he had been in different parts of
the country.
THE MURDER.
1t was late in May of the present year
that Florence Denis found herself in
an unfortunate condition and in a pa
thetic letter to Read she implored him
to protect and shelter her from disgrace.