The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-04-23

TWO ELECTROCUTED
Wife-Murderers Pay the
Penalty of Their Crimes
at Sing Sing.
HERnANN's HARDENED HEART
He Treats His Terrible Fate as a
Jest-pOstalka's Abject
Cowardice.
HERMANN's HARDENED HEART

SING SING, N. Y, April %, 1886. There
was a double execution at the state
Prlson here this morning. The victims
were Louis P Hermann and Charles
Pustolka, both of New York CITY. bath
Germans and both wife murderers. Herr
mann SHOT and killed his wife during a
quarrel on July II, 1895, and Pustolka
STABBED his spouse to death on August
zS last because he suspected her of in
ndeiIty. Hermann asked as special
favor to be executed first. and War
den Sage granted the request, though he
had originally intended send Pustolka
to the chair in advance Of his associate
Victlm- The Warden was undoubtedly in
nuenced in his first decision by a d.
sire 10 nave the more disagreeable part
OF the affair over as soon as possible.
fustolka was of a highly nervous tenn
permanent, and it was feared that he
might make scene in the execution
chamber while Hermann was stolid
and apparently Indifferent to his fate
and no trouble was anticipated in his
case. The witnesses to the executions
We're invited to be present at II O'Clock
and the major portion of them arrived
on the train reaching here from New
York at 1888 A. NJ. Shortly after eleven
o CLOCK they assembled in the prison offics
ana We're escorted to the execution cham
Der by Warden Sage and his assistants
Hermann was brought into the cleo
trocutlon chamber at Ills, and at u:l7:so
the current was shot through his body.
after oo seconds it was turned eff and
Df. irvine, the prison physician, made in
examination, as a result of which he an
nSunced that the man was not dead. At
f,h lS me current was again turned on al
tull Iofce Tor fiye seconds. Another exam
nation was made by Dr. Irvine. folIovrefF
by tne other doctors present, andf- : ii :2l
f1eearrmann 81 was pronounced dead.
,Hefrnann,s body was removed from, +1a
cnalr and placed on a dissecting tall1e IN
room adjoining the electrocution cham
e:, psr, ana new set of witnesses was ad-
l2lAa was brought into the room a II 40
he uid not make the expected scene h41f
MaiKed va nrmly to the. chair. AT l1:45 20
me ne signal was given by DR.. Irvine and
me current was applied for 50 seconds
AFTER a little more than minute If WAS
II IL se sseu ~ OF Agaln foT seconds, and at
1ii.4o i.4o the doctors declared the second VIC
tim dead. Both executions were r,ro-
hounced entirely successful
s,aol ne LWo Victlms of the law did not
steep much last night, though in the
ease OF Hermann there was apparently
no dread of his approaching doom. He
retlred at midnight and slept soundly
hea
aWoke with good appetite. ate a hearty
breakfast of beefsteak and eggs and ar
ter chatting with the guards for time
Wells. SapiaiH
Fustolka was unnerved by the near
approach OF the time for his execution.
ana was unable to obtain any rest urril
ABOUT s,.S tne time that Hermann awoke,
When ne fell asleep through sheer ex-
haustlon- He was awakened at seven
clock, and after declining to eat any
preakfast H received his spiritual advisors.
the Rev. Fathers Creeden of Sing Sinr-
and Bruden of Poughkeepsie. who re-
NAMED with him to the end Both of
the prisoners had callers yesterday.
hermann was visited by his brother
from Philadelphia and his brother-in
law from Brooklyn. He enjoyed the visit
out was not apparently affected when
they departed. Pustolka's visitors were
the Youngest of his five daughters, aged
years, and a number of sisters of a
Satholc order. The parting between
Pustolka and his little girl was one Of
the most painful scenes ever witnessed
Witnln the prison, and it was this trv-
ing ordeal which so affected the con-
demned man and left him this morninx,
without nerve, of which ne stood 80
much in need.
The witnesses of the Axecufions 1vara .~
folows:- s-o1is were "a
For Hermann, d. l.. A. Prefonta;na
I1 Lr. .; M Clark, Dr. William J. O'Sulli-
citi,. cgn II, r.. Rooert Milbank all Of New York
Thomas G.. Fennel, of New York. counsel
I5f Hermann; Arthur j. Krum. Of
4sw 4SenOpF0, T9,,z GSnn: Sita,! III Henry Walter Of
Vernon; e,e eiI,cl1; and DR.. Charles E. Willard, of
:, For ,Pustolka-Dr. E. E. Tull, of New
delphia; DR.. George Leitner. of Piermont.
n Y; Dr.; c: D. Morris of Pawling, n.
J J.; Dr. Rr Charles 4 les P Cook, Of Hudson n
lam H. Brown, of PeekskfH, n. Y: S r.
Lyon, of New York City; Herman L.
Eoth, OF New York City. and DR.. Robert
Selden, of Catskill n. Y
press representatives who witnessed tbs
death of both victims The executions
Were entirely similar to the preceding
present method of infiicting the death
penalty was again demonstrated.
hermann was accompanied to the
death chair by Chaplain Wells, and
Pustolka by Fathers Creeden and Bru-
den. The highest voltage employed in the
case of Herman was 1890 and in the
registered 1900 After turning the Cur cur
rent on at full force in each case it was
decreased to 500 volts and then shot IN
again to the full voltage at the end of
delay or between one and two minutes
the full current was again applied for
about five seconds in each case
State Electrician Davis said that both
than previous victims, and while there
were no evidences of consciousness in
either case after the first application Of
the current it was thought best to re-
peat the shock in order to eXtirlguish the
last spark of life if any remained
As soon as the second execution was
concluded the bodies of the two victims
We're turned over to the physicians for
post morten examination.
The autopsy in the case of Hermann
was performed by Drs. vissmann and
D,Sullivan of New York and Deland of
Philadelphia. and in the case of Pustol-
ka by Drs. Brooks of New York Lett
ner of .Piermont N Y, and Sheehan. Of
Sing Sing.
Carl Feigenbaum of New York will be
the next victim of the death chair at
this prison Invitations to his execution
which Is to take place next Monday
were mailed today by Warden Sage. This
will leave. as the only occupants of the
condemned cells Tuefl Tuckenitz of New
York, whose conviction was affirmed by
the Court of Appeals last week. and who
is to be resentenced tomorrow. an6 Vim
cenzo Nino. who is thought to be insane
and is likely to escape the death penalty
on that account