Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1899-03-23

Was Reasonably Composed and Went
Firmly to Her Dooni--The Closing Scenes.
Sing Sing, N. Y, March 20. Mrs.
Martha Place, who murdered her step.
daughter and assaulted her husband
with an axe, was executed in the cleo
trio chair at tho prison hero, this
morning. v..
MADE NO SCENE.
Mrs. Place died at 1l.O4. She made
no scene. The first shock lasted four
seconds. The voltage was 1,TG0 1t
was reduced to 200 for 81 seconds.
A second was then given.
Mrs Place went calmly TO the chair.
She leaned on Warden Sage's,, arm.
Her eyes were closed and She seemed
neither to see nor hear. She murmured
prayer. ft
DEATH WAS INSTANTANEOUS. 'N
Two women attended her, one a
prison attendant; the other a ply
Mrs. Place was calm beyond expeota-
tion. No one has walked into the
death chamber as sereneIy as she.
Death came with less struggle than
was ever witnessed here before. Death
was instantaneous. just as she sat
down in the chair she said ''God help.
me" - i7f%
NOTIFIED ny THE WARDEN.
Yesterday.at noon Warden Sage de.
cided to again notify Mrs. Place Of the
day of her execution, and to tell her
that she must be ready. She had been,
SO hopeful that she would be spared,
until Gov. Roosevelt announced his de-
cision not to interfere with the course
of Justice, that the warden felt it would
be simple mercy to warn her of what
she must undergo.
Mrs. Place met him in her quiet way
and he said:
II have come, Mrs. Place, so that
there will be no mistake; so that there
may be no misunderstanding and to
explain to you that you are 10 be ready
on Monday morning at IL o'clock"
The woman looked at him and said
simply:
~ will be ready; / will put my
trust in Cod
After he left her Mrs. Place cried
little, but bore up wonderfully well.
She had understood, she said, that she
must die.
No one about the prison knew that
Monday had been set as the day. of
execution. An execution day is a day
of gloom. The days of joy in Sing
Sing at best are few, but when the
doors of the death house are to be
opened the convicts show their appre-
citation of the awful event; they speak
in whispers, wondering when it will be
over, and when it is over there are long
drawn breaths of relief.
In the evening, the Rev. DIR. Cole of
Yonkers came. Many years ago the
woman with whom he prayed attended
his Sunday school He was warm
friend of hers and he is deeply affected
at her end. He spent tho night in the
warden's apartments and today he pre-.
pared Mrs. Place for her death.
After he left her, Mrs. Place had no
consolation hut her Bible. She
promised that she would bear up we'll,
and though suffering keenly, she main
tanned her calmness.
With her, in her room all night, was
Mrs. Kathryn Coultry, one Of the ma
irons. She had been one of Mrs.
Places regular attendants. In the adj
joining room Keepers Kannane and
Lavery were on the watch. Hitherto
the matron had been accustomed to lie
down beside her ward, but all last
night she sat beside her in a chair, and
never for moment did she trust the
condemned woman to herself Mrs.
Place got up several times and looked
from her window at the storm that was
bowling across the Hudson. Her at
tendant went with her; and SO the
cheeress, dreadful night passed.
Mrs. Martha Place was brought to
Sing Sing Prison July 10th last. She
tainted when she was sentenced to
death by Judge Hurd in Brooklyn.
She wept convulsively when she entered
the prison. She was greatly affected
when she learned that the Court Of
Appeals had refused her new trial.
and again when Gov Roosevelt ruled
that the law should take its course. In
all the intervals, at the trial and dur
ing her days in prison, she was calm
and dignified. She had said and be-
lieved that she would not suffer the
penalty of death.
There was noticeable change in the
woman when she was told few day;
ago that she was not to be respited
She acquired in that time the same de
neanor that all those show who have
gone to the chair before her. :
At times these periods of acute suf
fering of both mind and body gave il
to these. Then there was calm ant
then apathy. Mrs. Place who farce
we'll in the prison, improved greatly il
appearance for time, but in the las
week she ate little and her sleep wa
frequently disturbed. She expressed
herself warmly for the kindness sh'
had been shown. She cried when sh'
babe her keepers good-by.
HER LAST NIGHT ON EARTH.
Early today the following officia
statement was given out in the war
denis Office:
THE matron reports that Mrs. Plac
did not lie down until half-past
o'clock, and then did so without re
moving her clothing. She then slep
well until G O'Clock. The early part O
The night was spent in reading he
Bible, in being read to and in CONVEX
sation with her attendant.
"A number of times after reading
chapter she knelt with her sttendan
and prayed.
She is reasonably composed thi
morning and ate some breakfast witt
apparent RELISH"
WITNESS IN THE DEATH HOUSE.
At 10. 40 u. m. the witnesses sun,
moned to attend the execution ascende
the steps leading to the death house
In less than minute the doors OF Tn
building were closed.
The IL men entered the death cham
her at exactly 10. As. At II. so Warde
Sage left the house for Mrs. Place
room. He remained away eight mir
ntes.