The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1896-04-02
BLACK HISTORY Of CUBA.
ANOTHER CHAPTER ADDED IN
THE GARROTING OF FIVE
CUBANS.
death BY SLOW STRANGULANON;
The EXecutioners Manipulated the Iron
Collar in a Bungling Manner-Spec-
tators Turned Away With Sick
ened Faces-Cuban War News


times has there been more sickening
spectacle than that which today attended
the execution of five Cubans. The men
had been condemned to death by the gar
rote as ''murderers, violators and incen-
DIARIES" Troops were drawn up in hol-
low square, in the middle were placed the
chair and post.
Ruiz, the public executioner, had depu-
tized an assistant to conduct the affair.
The condemned men having received the
Offices of the church were brought into
the square to meet their fate. One of
them had confessed his guilt and affirmed
the innocence of all the others, who also
protested that they were guiltless. The
first man to die took his seat in the chair
calmly; the iron collar was fixed around
his neck and the cap drawn over his face.
Then the eXecutioner tried to apply the
screw, but was so excited that his hand
slipped repeatedly, with the result that
the victim died by slow strangulation,
emitting the while the most distressing
cries. The second victim was accom-
plished with even more distressing awl-
wardness and delay, the eXecutioner be-
ing almost on the verge of collapse as he
performed his horrible function.
The protests of the officers and priests
forced Ruiz to undertake the third exc
cution, but he did little better than his
assistant had done.
The fourth victim Of bungling garroters
was likewise tortured, and then Ruiz
literally fled from his post, leaving his as
sistants to put to death the fifth of the
unfortunate Cubans, who escaped none
of the agonizing experiences that had at
tended the execution of his fellows.
The whole affair has left upon those
who witnessed it and upon those to whom
it has been described feeling of the ut
most horror.
1t was seen when the acting executions
er first twisted the lever or screw handle
controlling the garrote, that he was ter,
ribly nervous, and this rendered him SO
weak that his hands slipped repeatedly
from the lever. There were horrible
smothering, choking cries from the scat
fold, and it was only after a long period
of agony for the condemned man and
almost torture for the spectators that
the Cuban was pronounced dead.
The eXecutioners, priests, soldiers and
prison officials present turned their
heads away in horror and became dead
ly pale as the stifled sounds came from
'n m, sulereIi
ne terrible performance was repeated
Gn t ne secosu victim, Who' upon reach
lns lne platform, hlaue an ehoft 10 say
Sun ~ tne people surrounding
, ,,Inia, out .hs eAecutioher nahq was
Piucgu oyer ms NOUN, ne was nastlly
Dnndied INTO me deadly char and in an,
I I;i Ioit tL .ne iron coliar was AROUND
tho 49, G'.It tms zap was over MS face ana
-, m, , Us ~ .he eNer hau Deeh
au, s;lans 4 f on anu announcer horrible
eAPe BE- ti; tol the Spectators. ~
by 'his 'ilife tne prison olnclals; the
p tude I'M hnd ol5cels III collllland OF the
uoops Iau enuuIeu 50 hlucn that they
opnuni uelouiiceu .he eAecutioHer ana
saaeroI5 upon 5 nm IN ~ sst uoMn from ine
81, nI" no u ailu iet anp.her man take MS
pr eoo,,;dI,i,e upJ u 'ne ae'iils eAecut!oh-
en =; rea t,;ae Jaitu upon lhe execution
,ana n-on,ei, ,; naleiieiIe h"iH, VINO, from
, ~, ~ y, IL; - iooheu upon as pelIs
H. h;, IL M iine; W Gonie anu neip
hntto Uus on m,s uiiiloui 1E nul~ hau ilttie
fonrtb Tnhoms n,,t nf ~ tne o, iiiiu I'M, anu
woS ~ ,onound uu, VI .n Wo th ntre
;noonan or, ord '''l P,,;a . d. NE oliiclul
from tho deatb most ins;st;nr IL, nlo NM
tones th,t HE a Isis; n,,,st e Gr;nl, tho
dav,s VOL, Tho ossis+ant or rm rnu
acoin fried biS bonJ NJ +ho torr;I'In =
screw and was os mnIuolw nc bofora i fnr
there was anothnr scane of borrnr vbich
nearly cansnd Strons, mon 70 fa;Ut hofnrn
tba fifth Cnban,S life w,oS nrnnouncod
eytinct po'e'"
And +bep +bo bod;oS uoro oortod
away. tba Sbomofoood ovocrt;onors
pathered IN tbe;r sicbon;ng fron,a yrori,
and tic acceSso,;eS tba Sr;nStS nr mSon
and otber officials bur,;aJ AVA, tbn
troons uora ,norohod ", n,
Inortars and onotbor nbontor boJ hnon
added to tbe blacl, history of Cmho
Near Jaguev Chicot the Insurgents have
hanged monument inbabitant named
Colonel pawn has been engogod with
IN insurgent band under La Crete and
Iolasso at the Cantabrla plantation, pro
I.;,, ~ nn d ne iIlsursents iost
~ ' h,, anu .;, ueiu ft gnu ues.r3se9 an
, .;np1 ensihe "l'er us escort had re-
C ,.o1 l. a.. aie; ; mas peeR twlce en-
'aSeu VIII u 'Ee Insurgents at Mahicargua,
'r 10y ot santa cara.
Ine eilelily los. siA klsieu ana the troops
,apluieu 4uantlty Oh ammunition ana
iieuiciI ne sixteen prisoners nave ar
'ived mere under escort; Ihey include
me lnsurgeht leader Manuel Linares,
VINO was captured py .he Wadras bat
anon Ir, III tne province OIL fihar del RIO.
ne lns9rgehts nave burned eight