The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-07-24
WHERE TO PLACE THE GUILLoTrNr
The Question Presents Something of
Dilemma In France.
From the Pail Mall Gazette.

~ IN
From the Pail Mall Gazette.
Now that the prisons OF Paris-Mazas
La Roquette and Ste. Pelagie-are to be
pulled down, leaving but one grim survivor
La Sante Ga model, Il msnamed, estab-
lishcdment, for there the discipline is
stFicter than elsewhere). the question has
arisen. What is to be done with the gull
lotlne? Hitherto all the public executions
in Paris have taken place Ia front of La
Roquctte. Now another site must be found
The corner OF the Rue St. Jacques was
thought of at first, for there the guillo-
tine used TO be erected years ago. But ii
is a little far from La Sante, where the
condemned are in future to be lodged. A
free snace at the back OF the Sante was
next hit upon. a door might be made
through the prison wall, and the prisoner
would only have few steps to make be-
fore reaching the instrument of death
Here also there are no neighborlng houses
abutting, only the dead walls OF a convent
ana of the Hospice du Midi, 50 that no
curious spectators could overlook the final
scene. But the nuns and the hospital pa
tents raised a wall OF protest. Why should
their tranquility be thus invaded by the
ghoul-lke Dclbler and his band?
AS an alternative 1t was suggested that
the executions should in future take place
wLthin the walls Of the prison, and their
publicity thus be suppressed. A municipal
councillor has taken up the matter and
If he gains his point, other towns and COM
munes will doubtless follow the example
Of Paris. That there should be any diff
Guilty whatever in carrying out such a re-
form Is due to the circumstance that In
country like France, where revolutions are
frequent and the guillotine has bad po
litical record, the publicity of execution is
a certain guarantee. The public feels SAT-
er. IL would be q mistake, however 10
suppose that the publicity of these scshe
has been otherwise than extremely res
tricted of late years. Those bloodcurdllng
tales about crowds of nameless nightblrds
shouting "a mort A mort" outside the
prison walls until the wretched victim was
brought forth have made, and still make,
excellent copy" but they must be taken
with a grain Of salt. Only a day or two
ago the Debats, which Is in favor of pri-
waite executions, spoke OF the disgraceful
incidents at Carrara's execution last Sat
urday AS a matter of fact. II any dis
graceful scenes took place II must have
been the perfect of police and his friends
who created them, for only a few privi-
legged persons (among whom are certain
jouranlists), to whom the coupe-hle, or
pass Of the Prefecture of police, has been
1ufnlSHeu can ColHS Ntttil Si6ht VI eHo
execution.
There is only one house In the neigh
borhood Of La Roquette from the roof OF
which a glimpse OF the guillotne can be
obtained. The few available places there
are let at fifteen to twenty-five francs
each. Three lines of police keep back the
general public--a very dirty public. as a
rule-at a great distance away from the
open place in front of La Roquette prison,
and only those In the first rank can by
any chance catch even faint view Of the
cross beam Of the guillotne, which In the
dim dawn looks like q splash of black II
Is no longer even possible for these outer
spectators to see the knife fan, for re-
cent improvements have made the guiilo-
tine a much smaller and more delicate
instrument than II used to be. The two
parallel uprights down which the knife
Slides are q third shorter than they were
formerly, and are no longer painted
bright scarlet. but a dirty Vandyck brown.
The knife, which 10 usually represented
In the Illustrated papers as great, TRAN
gular piece Of steel, has now almost
razor like shape, and Is weighted with
mercury let into a reservoir at the top
OF tho blade CHE ak Of the German ezooo-