The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-12-11
Went tn the GaI1ows Laughing, Made
Megarden!, the Drop Fell.
HIS LAST NIGHT IN JAIL
SPENT THE TINE IN FEASTING, JOK-
ING AND TELLING STORIES.
Career of One of the Most Remark
able Criminals of the Day-The MUIR
der for which He Was Punished.

MINNEAPOLIS, Dec. Hilary Hay
ward, the murderer of Miss Catherine Cling,
was hanged in the jail here at 2:05 O'Clock
this morning. He made a statement that
took five minutes to deliver and while not
making a confession, said he hoped God
would forgive him for all the harm he
had ever done. He walked to the gallows
with a laugh on his lips and went down
with the trap just as he uttered the words
lightly:
LET her go, Megardenp'
The command was directed to the chief
deputy Prior to the execution theecon-
demned man maintained the nerve which
has made him famous. He took his last
supper shortly after 1 o'clock and was sur
rounded by the deputies and the death
watches. Just before the death warrant
was read Hayward turned to his brother,
DIR. Thaddeus Hayward, and said:
You know / am a great believer in
spiritualism. If 1 get safely on the other
side will send message to you
At 2 o'clock Hayward listened to the read
ing OF the warrant. Soon after Sheriff Holm
berg entered and the condemned man said
earnestly: ct want to ask you a last
favor Please let me pull the trap. 1t will
save you lifelong anxiety and will give me
eternal satisfaction
The sheriff replied: 'I cannot do it, Harry
know my duty"
On the scaffold Harry made an extend
ed statement. He said that to please the
several pastors who had called on him he
would say: "God forgive me for what 1
have DONE"
This is looked on as a confession. The
trap fell at 2:O5 o'clock and the wonderful
vitality of the was shown by the fact
that he lived for several moments after
the trap fell. His neck was broken.
Before dark last night morbid crowds had
assembled in the vicinity of the jail. There
was nothing to see except the gray walls
and the occasional opening of the heavy
doors to admit some official. yet they lin
gered in the vicinity waiting for the tragic
| event. At midnight the throng numbered
several hundred.
Hayward's swell dinner. the last supper
| as he profanely expressed it, was served &C
coriing to his desire shortly after 10 o'clock
| last night and he partook of 1T with APP
parent relish. Rev. Father Timothy ar
rived shortly after-not upon the summons
of the condemned man. but in case that
at the last moment desire should be ex-
pressed by the hitherto unrepentant man
for spiritual adviser.
During the evening Hayward held a
lengthy conversation with his attendants
and laughed and joked on the subject of his
approaching execution. AS Captain Sand
berg was covering the windows of the jail,
looking into the alley, Harry noticed him
and shouted That's right; block out the
| gaping crowd There will be no visitors
| after o'clock in the morning. People
| wishing TO see me will have to call at the
morgue, as 1 intend to change my quar-
ters,' and he laughed as he said It. To
| the newspaper men he said: 81 would like
TO see the account of how this thing came
| out and about my actions the scaffold."
| and again he laughed as if he were COINS
to a picnic instead of to his DEATH
Hayward spent a considerable portion of
! last evening telling stories and listening
to stories by others. 1t being his last night
he was allowed quite a privilege and was
| continually surrounded by friends. He was
gay and jovial all the time and gave every
| indication that he would go to the gallows
as he would to dinner. He spoke about his
wife occasionally, for he insisted she was
| his wife. He said he gave her $50 to-day to
make her feel good. He passed cigars
around freely and talked about his great
meal The toast he proposed at dinner was
4
| the girls whom / love-" He gave II in the
| French He said he could never hang I'M
| less there was a crowd present. He want
| ed to see the people and suggested that
| it would have been better to have the scat
| fold outside and have seats arranged so
| that every one could see it AS sample
| of his conversation the following can be
| quoted. Sheriff Holmberg came into the
| cage and Harry said:
How are you sheriff? 1 am as fine as
| silk. You and 1 are the chief actors to-
| night, arnt we, sheriff. He seemed TO
| never think of any hereafter. About 1920
| last night stenographer was admitted TO
| Harry's cell and he finished the statement
| which he had been spending considerable
| time on lately. There was large crowd
| around the jail and the city. was full OF
| deputy sheriffs and chiefs of police from
| all over the State. all anxious to the
execution.
Harry Hayward's latest invention. that
| he was married secretly in August 1894 to
| Miss Stella Goodman, a theater super
numerary, seems 10 be thoroughly exploded
Harrys desire to see her apparently in
| spired the secret marriage story, but the
| sheriff took no stock in il, and the doomed
man was not permitted to see the girl
Hep mother dessres that f fhe
| story is false and that her daughter had
| not seen HAYWARD for three years before
| his arrest. She had forgotten ever having
| met him until his arrest recalled the fact
| She is but seventeen now. She has sent
/, him many flowers during his Incarceration
Not one Of Hayward's relatives takes any
stock in the tale.
Detective QuinIan yesterday revealed a
plot of Harrys to escape death, in which
the condemned man put the utmost conf
dence. He had seen fakir show in which
a man was apparently hanged. but es-
capped death by wearing concealed har-
ness TO which the moose was attached. He
wanted Quinlan to hunt up the fakir and
get the harness. He was TO bride the sher-
in to adjust the moose to the harness and
his narents were to fix the doctors so
that they would pronounce him dead. His
body would be turned over TO his relatives
and he would escape to South America.
s.Tsnt will come back he added Ito haunt
and ruin my brother Adry." Quinlan ap-
parently acquiescei. but did nothing In the
matter. -,
local paper in an extra asserted that
Harvard confessed his connection with the
murder of Catherine Cling TO county physi-
clan Frank Burton last night. The asser-
ton created no interest, however, as Hay
wards damaging admissions TO detective
Ouinlan and to his brother, DR.. Thaddeus
Hayward, had already been published.