The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1900-09-06

OF long hill and had been enclosed
within space about twenty feet
square by a fence sixteen feet high,
which completely shut out view from
! the outside.
AT about 1890 O'Clock Robinson, the
sheritfs, several newspaper reporters,
and the two colored preachers ascend
ed the scaffold and arranged themselves
on the platform At this junctnre, the
east side OF the enclosure gave away
and fell heavily to the ground,
leaving the gallows and the doomed
man exposed to the full view Of the
hundreds that stood banked far back
up on the hillside. Guards were placed
across the open space in front of the
gallows and the crowd kept back.
Rev. Paris stepped forward and, M
voice quivering with emotion, read
chapter from the Bible. and turned
and grasping Robinson ty the hand
asked if he was ready to die. to which
he replied he was Rev Bonds then
came forward and offered up TO God a
fervent supplication for tie salvation
of the condemned mans soul; his voice
rising and falling in tones that evidence
ed emotional excitement. After the
prayer, Robinson shook the preachers
hands and told them goodbye" ex-
pressing the hope that he would meet
them in heaven.
Robinson was then asked if he desired
to make statement. With seeming
indifference, and perfect nonchalance,
he stepped to the edge of the trap and
in a clear, measured voice said.
Let me tell you, friends white and
colored, never commit the crime /
have. Woe be unto the man who COM
mits it. Teach your children never to
commit it. If / had not committed it
here, | would have somewhere else. |
want you all to forgive me, and when
it is all over here | want to meet you
all in heaven. / committed the crime
and / don't deny it here and won't de-
ny it in heaven. ! just want to pass
away. This is all have to say"
His voice betrayed not an emotion,
not culver, and his statement through,
he turned and with the same exhibit
tion of stoicism, watched the officers
tighten the leather straps around his
lower limbs, apparently unmindful off
his fast approaching doom.
He was led out on the trap and the
rope placed around his neck, the knot
being adjusted at the left ear AS the
black cap was being drawn over his
head, Robinson turned his eyes toward /.
heaven, rs if in mute appeal, then thess
cap was pulled over his eyes, and God'sa
bright light shut out from his gael
forever. The negro then begun to-
sway slightly, and Deputy Sheriff 1
Anderson supported him from behind b
Sheriff Bishop stepped back from the
trap, raised his hang and counted Zone,
two, three ~ As the last numb was ut
tered, Deputy Sheriff w. T. Dewberry 7
pulled the trigger and at 10:44 O'CLOCK
Robinson's body shot through. 2thk
death trap. reached the end of tHE
ropes coil where he swung until lie
was extinct, paying the penalty OF 40
outraged law, exemplifying in avail
truthfulness the Divine sentence, "rheh
wages OF sin is DEATH" III
In sixteen minutes thereafter Robin-sf
son was pronounced dead by the doc-gs
tors and his body was cut down and
turned over to his father, Derry Rob-
inson, who had come upon the scene.
Robnson's neck was not broken and
he suffered death from strangulation.
The crowd was quiet, orderly and So
Der and the only open exhibition of
sentiment was made just as the Negroes
body shot through the trap-a number
of voices sending up a cheer of "Hurrah
for Cobb county !"
Although the duty was a grewsome
one, Sheriff Bishop and his deputies
performed their unpleasant task
promptly, no hitch occurring in the
proceedings, and every preliminary
conducted properly, carefully and cor
rectly.
Robinson's father asked for the body
and it was turned over to him. He
said he wanted to take the body back
to Anderson, s. c., where Robinson's
parents, wife and two children live.
A small collection was taken up but
proved inadequate to defray the ex-
penses, and later in the day the body
was again surrendered to the sheriff
and the cadaver was taken to the med
ical college in Atlanta, as the law d.
reefs.