The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1897-04-15
SENTENCING y MURDERER.
What Judge John Bolton O'Ncnll Said
Forty-Fivc Years Ago in Passing
Sentence Oh Il Young Man for Muir
der.

. MI NOUN Love. OF Hickory Grove,
sends the following document, which
Is copied from the Unionvillc journal
OF 1882, to the Gorkvillo Enquirer for
publication. n young man named
FhlncaS IL. johnson had been convict
cd OF murder, and the court OF appeals
sitting in Columbia had refused to
grant him now trial. Tho prisoner
was in attendance upon tho court OF
appeals, as WAS the custom in those
days, and it became the duty of Judge
ONeall to pronounce the sentence OF
| INC court, which was done rs follows
Phlneas johnson Young man, how
can say to you, in tho awful language
OF the inspired prophet, set thy house
in order, for thou shalt die, and not
live - Yet it must be done. You arc
before mo now, in the morning Of life
In Il few brief days you will be cut
OF, and the place which now knows
you, shall know you no moro forever"
1T Is my duty to say to you. that the
nature of your crime forbids the pos
slbility of pardon hcrc. Your only hope
G. 'ardon is in the murciful atOnement
offered you and all men, in thegbroken
| body and streaming blood Of him who
cried, Father, forgive thcm, for they
| know not what they do"
| Your crime. awful as 1t is, must be
set before you, in the hope that it may
40 you and the community good. TO
| creep upon IL poor woman, in her own
| solitary cabin, in the stiffness of night,
| with her nursing at her feet, her first
| born wrapt in infantilc innocent slum-
Der by her side, when preparing the
scanty portion OF vegetables for her
and their food, and to shoot her az a
annals OF crimc. When to this is added,
the guilty wretch who completed this
dcs d was her scducer, tho father Of her
| lt'lcS Ones-whcre, oh where, shall
we find another as foul blot on hu-
manity :;
70 you, at least, her person ought to
have been sacred. For you, she had
made herself the guilty, degraded be-
Ing, to whom beauty was u reprOach,
character was infamy, and affection
was hatred. For you she had left
fathers house and plenty, and had be-
| come dependent on almost charity,
for food and covering. TO you, sho had
given tho pledges of her love, in the
starving, degraded children around
her How could you, young man, sluy
her, who had thus given her all to
you? How could you level your gun
at the head which had often been pill
lowed in guilty affection upon your
bosorn Remember, ! beg you to re-
|
forever into everlasting tUrments, un-
less you can feel that mercy, your Sa-
vior's dying mercy, has removed the
guilty weight OF it from your suul.
1T Is necessary, too, young man, for
your own sake and that OF tho section
Of the country pea Ridge, Of Union
district), from which you came, that it
should be said, | fear your crime is the
consequence OF Tic gross immortality
and vlco which has too much there
ab0undcd. Female virtue has there,
| am told, lost It's appropriate value.
Seduction is not regarded as a crime
and concnbinagc is not at all rare or
disgraccful. Will you not, rs you ap-
proach the gallows, say with me, shame
| upon such state OF things You will
be, most probably, the first white man
hanged in Union district and fearful
| Will be the commentary Of your fate,
upon such a state Of morals.
Is 1T true, tnat you and the deceased
once were members of the same reli-
giOus community? Can it be, that YOU
forget that the weak and lovely being
by your side and your sister in he
house OF your sister, and that violating
her confidence you snatched crown OF
peace from her head, to place upon it
one OF shame Oh if these things be
SO, think upon them-pOnder them
night and day, for they demand fear
ful reckoning and account.
From you turn, and with me | hope
you will in thought also go, to the
house OF your parents What is there?
Peace ? No .Oh, no! ( can, in imagi.
nation, hear your young wife frantical-
ly asking to be allowed to share your
prison solitude; your mother, like
Rachel, weeping for her children,
and would not be comfOrtcd, for they
were not" your father, once respect
able, now broken down, and lamenting
like David for a Absalom, "oh, my son,
would to God that | had died for
thee !" Who has caused this scene OF
mourning? Must | say, guilty young
man, thou art the man ~
Sad and awful as all these thoughts
and "reminiscences may be, they are as
nothing TO that which is before you |!
Death, q shameful death, in q few DAYS,
must be met and suffered. On young
man, do not die forever.
GOD ID before you as ho ever has
been willing to be gracious. He still
points to the atOnemcnt offered on
Cavalry, He still says, "wash and be
clean"
| have no doubt that, although q
murderer like Massey. you may yet
have his hope OF pardon and peace.
have heard with great pleasure. that
you have, az you believe, experienced
already that hope.
BE not deceived Wrcstc c0ntin-
ually, like good old Jacob with the
angel Of tb" cOnvcnant, and say like
him, will not let thee go till thou
bless me-"
May yon have that blessing May
, God pass you through the dark valley
Of the shadow Of death and enable you
to say, 81 will fear no ill, for thy rod
and thy stan doth support me-"
The sentence Of tho law is that YOU
. be taken hence to the jail of Union
district; that you there be safely and
securely confined till Friday, the 18th
day OF February next, on which day
r between the hours of 10 in the fore
: noon and in the afternoon, you will
be taken by the sheriff of Union dis
trict to the place OF public execution
| a nd thprl hn "a 4 4: