The age-herald., 1901-06-25
A Murderer's Prayer and Ills Wife.


 A Murderer's Prayer and Ills Wife. Affrlghted women and children pause in Twenty-first street morning and evening and shudder at the cries of doom that come from Alonzo Williams, a negro mur- derer, condemned to be hanged next Fri day forenoon.
 Twice day, at least, about to 10 o'clock in the morning and about to g o'clock In the evening, Williams falls to praying, in a loud and weird monotone that can be heard two blocks away from the fortress-iilxe granite prison of Jeffer- son county.
 The listener In the street below cannot make out the words of the condemned man, but apparently he repeats incessant- ly and without variation one sentence of five or six words of petition to the AL mighty Judge who marks even the spar rows fall and who hears even the black murderer's prayer.
 It seeais unearthly, that despairing cry of the fear-crazed man who will be hanged on Friday until he Is dead, dead,
 
 happy worshipers hurrying to St. Paul's Catholic church, near which the jail is situated, heard the passionate praying of the murderer. and many, startled. half paused, knowing not what they heard paused and then hastened to the place of their own happy prayer with that wild pleading of distress from behind triple hov <,% @t, ringing in their ears
 The murderer's fierce monotone is kept up for an hour or two, and then 1t seems to suddenly subside in sob of exhaus- ton, and all is still. As viewed from the street and as heard the prisoner is ap- parently confined in a cell in the top tier of the jail behind a window that Is screened by immovable steel slats, each slat tapping over the one below somewhat as shingles upon a roof, though not touching In any instance, thus providing ventilation. but preventing the sunlight from breaking in and making it impossible for the condemned man to obtain a clear view of the outside earth which he is so soon to quit from the awful platform of the scaffold.
 The impassioned praying of the hapless negro has been going on that way for many weeks, and thousands of passers- by have heard it and shuddered, most of them knowing its terrible significance.
 Last night man stood on the opposite side of the street from the jail leaning against a green oak and vainly trying to make out the words of the murderer's prayer.
 Mister. is that Frank Miller praying?" he heard woman's voice asking-Frank Miller being the white man condemned also to be hanged next Friday, for the murder of Policeman Adams.
 The listener turned to ascertain from whom came the question, and before him stood three negro women, with two trembling black children. He answered them,. saying:
 Tt is Alonzo Williams. a colored man. who is to be hanged on Friday for the murder of another colored man."
 The three women shook with terror in the shadow of the oak, and the two chii- dren covered in between them moaning. Just then Williams prayer seemed to break louder than before upon the steaming air of the hot night, and the three women as one cried;
 My Godw
 The children moaned piteoously. The man, uncertain, looked at the little party uneasily. One of the women was weep ing silently. He looked at her intently, and a beam of light falling through the green leaves lit her dark face in silver radiance. She turned her eyes to him.
 And your" he asked. His wife"
 The murderers prayer died away in a sob.