The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-05
HENRY WHITE FINALLY HUNG.
HIS LAWYERS ELEVENTH HOUR
EFFORT TO SAVE HIM FAILS.

The Prisoner Goes to His Death
BraveIy But Has to Make a SUI
preme Effort to Keep From Break
ing DOwn-His Neck Not Broken by
the Fall and Death Caused by
StrangulatiOn He Makes No
Speech From the Gibbet-One of
His Sisters Urges Him Not to Get
Nervous.
Columbus. Ga, June 4.-Henry White,
the last of the principal actors in the
greatest tragedy ever enacted in the his
tory of Columbus paid the penalty of his
| crime on the gallows this afternoon, the
drop falling at :S2 O'clock. The young man
mounted the gallows attired in a neat
black suit, with a standing collar and
white cuffs, smoking a cigarette, which
he threw away as he knelt on the gallows,
while Father Sch.enke entered up prayer
| for the salvation of his soul.
Sheriff Bowles adjusted the black cap.
and asked White if he desired to make
statement.
"No, sir, I will not say word" he re-
piled.
The rope was placed round his neck, and
turning to the crowd of guards in the Jail
yard, White said; Goodbye to you all,
gentlemen"
Great beads of perspiration stood out
upon his forehead, and his face was almost
| blood red.
A moment later Sheriff Bowles, with a
blow of a hatchet, severed the rope and
the body plunged through space a dis
| tance of five feet. In three minutes his
pulse went up to 1O6, then began declining
and at 1:42 both his heart and pulse were
still. His body was cut down at / AS, the
doctors having pronounced him dead, death
resulting from strangulation.
The corpse was delivered to the family
of the deceased and the funeral will take
place at o'clock tomorrow afternoon.
There were no exciting scene or incidents
of any character in connection with the ex-
| ecution. A thousand or more people con-
| gregated in the vicinity of the jail, but all
were quiet and undemonstrative White
spent the morning hours with his mother
and sisters and his sweetheart, Miss Viola
Lambert, who clung to him faithfully dur
| ing his trouble. 1t was remarked by ev-
| cry one that they had never seen a man
| so cool and collected go to the gallows.
From the time of his arrest last October
until his death he never faltered or broke
down. He was baptized by Father
Schlenke Jan. l and died Arm in the belief
| that his soul would be saved.
Whites counsel. Col. Thornton, made
every possible effort in his behalf even
going to the United States supreme court
and to the state supreme court twice, The
last time this morning to seek a man.
damus compelling Judge Butt to stay the
execution until alleged newly discovered
testimony could be heard. The result Of
this effort was given in the following tel
egram received at IL O'Clock: To Henry
White, care Jailer Phelps: The supreme
court has refused to grant a. mandamus,
and the governor refuses to grant a re-
spite. l have done all l can for YOU
and may God have mercy on your soul
c. J. Thornton.
When this telegram was read to the
young man his face turned deathly pale
and his lips quivered, but he made no
comment. One of his sisters threw her
arms around him and said: Now, Henry,
don't get nervous; you know YOU said
you would not" He kept his resolution
TO the last moment.
AS White knelt on the gallows, while
Father Schlenke was praying his entire
frame trembled. He shook hands with
only two men. Robert Howard and Or.
Mansfield.
He ate a hearty dinner at / o'clock,
consisting Of steak, ham, eggs, coffee ana
three biscuits. after which he smoked n
cigar, and then asked for his bath, fol-
lowing which he made a careful toilet.
White is the fifth man to die as the re-
suit of the awful tragedy which took place
on the streets of Columbus, Oct IA, 1896.
On that day. without cause or motive. as
far as ever developed, White and his IA
ther, ]. A. White, both of whom we're
drinking freely, the old man with a Win
chester and the son with a pistol, shot
down and killed Policemen Richard Adams
and William jackson. All the evidence
showed that 1t was murder in cold blood
Father and son repaired at once to their
home, a short distance away. officer
Charles Roberts went TO the house, knock
ed on the door and was shot dead through
the door. In some way, young White es-
capped from the house, but the old man re-
mained and defied arrest Brave men vol
unteered to take him dead or alive and
rushed upon the house, forcing open the
door. They were met by fire from Whites
Winchester and zeno Pickett fell with a
wound in the groin, but did not die Old
man White was ridded with bullets.
Young White was captured that night and
brought back for trial. He was convicted
I'm December and sentenced to be hung In
January, but pending a hearing before the
supreme court sentence was deferred. The
saddest event in the history of Columbus
occurred on oct. Is. last. when the funeral
OF Policeman jackson, Adams and Roberts
occurred from ST. Luke's church.