The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1897-01-06
STORY OF The CRIME.
Sketch Of The Offences for Which the
Death Penalty Was Paid.
COLD FLOODED MURDER ON SCHOONER
blow Charles Wiliinms Killed George
Sic Bess Aboard the caroline A.. The
shooiingo of Emma I.nncby william,
Dodd I'm AiIyniown-Hcraic Fight
of CUmnsci for Their clients.

IS The crime for which, Downing and
Williams paid the penalty this morning
with their lives were both committed in
this city and within a few weeks of
each other.
Williams crime was ono of the most
: cold-blooded in the records of the Nor
folk police department. Downing's was
but little less II determined effort To take
human life. but instead OF of his intend
ed victim he killed an inoffensivc woman
Emma Lane.
HOW WILLIAMS KILLED BESS.
On the afternoon of Saturday. April
18th, by mere chance. the bloody
crime which sent Charles Williams tn
the Sailows was discovered |, had been
committed the previous night and
would have remained undiscovered
longer than ii did but for the fact that
Captain Davonant. of the schooner JOS
eph Aram which was lying only about
fifty feet from the Caroline D., sent
messenger aboard The schooner. upon
whose deck the murder had been COM
) united. The boy carried n message for
George Bess, the watchman who was
kept aboard the schooner by Hemmins
way & Co, 10 whom she belonged.
Instead of delivering his message.
however, the frightened youth rowed
back to his vessel with all speed. bear
ing a terrible tale of bloody decks and n
brain bespatted cabin. Investigation
revealed the fact that while She was
lying out In the stream alone and with
broad cNpanse of water between her
and any other vessel. the schooner
Caroline u. had been the scene of as
foul murder as had ever been done.
BODY THROWN OVERHEARD.
No corpse was found aboard her
and whether her lone occupant, the
negro Bess, was the victim. or whether
he himself had committed tho crime was
unknown. y bloody axe was found on
the deck and leading from the gang
way to the rail there was n broad trail of
blood, where the body had been dragged
y to the side and thrown overheard. Dill
3 gent fishing With oyster tongs soon re-
lieved poor Bess Of all suspicion of hay
ing Killed any one. His skull had been
s shattered with the bloody axe found on
s deck and 1t was his brains that were
+ spattered over those same planks.
All THE INQUEST.
-gf THE murder was At once reported to
police headquarters and Coroner Char
ters and Chief of Police King hurried Ia
y the scene The former summoned Il
jury of inquest, consisting OF W. T..
4 Beane, James Lillston, {. 4. ISeanc, n.
b. Lecato, w. Fl. Webster and f. G..
s. story, Jr.. who viewed the body and had
s 1t removed to the station house where
4 fifteen pieces OF the skull We're removed.
The then Chief of Police King workcd
S the case UP himself and on the Mon
day following the commission OF the
crime he had lodged in Jail the man who
was hanged to-day.
STRONG EVIDENCE.
The evidence against Williams was
very conclusive. His blood-stained UNI
4 derclothing furnished damaging testi-
mony, but the conflicting stories told by
the prisoner We're fully as injurious to
& his plea of innocence as were the optical
s evidence of his clothes
Z the police found In his trunk Il complete
suit OF clothes ana a hat. all the prop
erty of the murdered man.
The prisoner was talked To every day
by the. Chief of Police, In the effort 10
make him confess to the crime. Will
liams would sit unflinchingly while the
! bloody axe ana the fifteen pieces of his
( Victims skull were placed before him.
s but he would never touch any of the
y gruesome relies.
He stoutly denied being aboard the
schooner at all on the night of the muir
der, and claimed To have been in his
room. However. ELIZA Dempsey. the
woman with whom he boarded, declared
that he did not come home that night
: until almost day break.
HIS FIRST CONFESSION
AT last. one night Williams broke
down and confessed To Chief King that
e he had really killed Bess with the bloody
Ratchet that was found on deck. He
and Ress had, he declared. been play
y Ing casino for cents. He had won AZ
cents when Bess insisted on playing foi
% centsca game: AT this rate Williams
won three games, when he laid down
his hand and declined to play any more
II was then, according 10 S:le confes-
sion. that Bess started after the pris-
q oner with a knife. Williams claims To
4 have fled up the Gangway, but being
closely pursued by Bess, he grasped the
axe. which was lying on the deck, and as
his antagonist approached, knife in
hand, he struck him. AS he did so Bess
he claims, fell overheard. He then left
I in the Carolina DIS skiff a $50 O'Clock
Saturday morning.
n & DENIED THE CONFESSION.
81 This confession was repeated before
the Coroner's jury, written out and the
4 prisoner signed and swore to 1t. But a
sensation was launched when the case
was first tried before Justice Burroughs
in the Police Court.
. Judge Nicely, who was to have con
Quoted Williams Defense having with
h drawn from the case. his place was
faken by Attorney r. G.. T.. Page. who
entered for the prisoner the plea mot
Y guilty" When Williams was put on the
stand he denied both the confession
made to Chief King and it's repetition
sbefore the Coroner's jury. The docu-
\ Inent, he said, had been gotten from
him by threats and promises. Attor-
sney Page moved that the confession be
Is stricken out, but Justice Burroughs
would not consent, claiming that with
B out the confession even the circum-
z Btantial evidence was strong enough to