The San Francisco call., 1898-05-28
BANKS PAYS
 THE PENALTY Hanged at San Quentin
 Prison. TWO MURDERS AVENGED. NO EVIDENCE OF FEAR ON THE
 GALLONS. His Crime the Killing of a Woman and Her Aged Father in San Diego County Nearly Three
 Years Ago.
TWO MURDERS AVENGED.
NO EVIDENCE OF FEAR ON THE
 GALLONS.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

SAN QUENTIN, May 27.-'No, ] have nothing at all to say"
 With these words in response to a query from a prison guard, Joseph Japheth Ebanks, the San Diego mur- derer, stepped upon the deathtrap in the execution chamber at 1030 o'clock this morning, and Hangman Amos Lunt adjusted the moose about his neck. One quietly spoken word, Good by" 7" to his spiritual comforter, Rev. Father Lagan; then the black cap was drawn over his features, the hangman lifted his hand, and Ebanks shot through the trap in expiation of his crime. Life was pronounced extinct by the physi- clans in ten minutes and thirty sec onds.
 The execution was witnessed by few people, mostly guards, newspaper men and several citizens of San Francisco and San Rafael Drs. E. E. Hill and J. L. Zabala, of the Harbor Hospital, were present by invitation of Prison Physician Lawler, while Dr. Paul Alex ander of San Anselmo was present by invitation of Warden Hale.
 Ebanks retired early last night and seemed to sleep soundly, but was up and dressed in his convict apparel at 4 o'clock. This garb was changed to cit izen's clothing at o'clock Shortly be- fore Father Lagan arrived at 10 o'clock Warden Hale entered the doomed mans cell and started to read the death war rant. Ebanks grew impatient and said he cared to hear no more before the reading was a fourth finished. He re- mained in close consultation and pray ar~ IIvifh "a h T a erGT ha fir10a came to mount the scaffold. Preceded by the priest, chanting the rites of the church, the murderer, supported by guard on each side, ascended the steps with a firm tread. His face was slight ly flushed and it could be seen that he was under a strong tension, but, in the current slang of the day, he died game"
 After the drop, Drs. H. J. Partridge and F. Jones counted the heartbeats. They ceased in ten and a half minutes. After the body was cut down EbankS' neck was found to have been broken by the fall. Under Father Lagan'S direc- tion, Coroner Eden of San Rafael re- moved the body to his undertaking parlors, whence 1t will be taken to Mount Olivet Cemetery for burial.
 The crime for which Ebanks forfeited his life was the murder of Mrs. Harriet Stiles, aged 50, and her father, aged 85 OOlu OA ANiH CA A4Ce1A CSCdAioidCJ ht1AA Diego County, on September 10, 1895. The evidence was purely circumstan- tial, but so damaging that the jury, without much delay, brought in a yer dict of guilty. His execution was de- layed until this time by legal technical ities and appeals to the State and Uni ted States Supreme Court, the same procedure being followed as in the case of Durrant.
 The murderer was 33 years of age, and though born in England. was reared in the West Indies, where he had wife and three children. Negro blood flowed in his veins.
 Ebanks protested his innocence to the last, though singularly enough he admitted that his fate was just on ac- count of his having disobeyed injunc- tions received at his mothers knee.