The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1903-11-06
5;;ll MEN WHO RlL:RiOTlR0CluTl,Hs. i j: Z i,ll, 3 :
AISSPerson Of Mystery.S Has Put seven:


ty -four Persons to iDeath, {
81 V hen ,he killed the Fan Wormer
boys in; the state prison at Dannemora
last week State Electriciant Ed ward
;F.ssDaYis finished i his Seventy. fourth
execution y BY Z ectricity. S or these
seyenty-one occurred in this state,
Two 10 massachusetts, and one, IN. Ohio,
says the NewSY ork SUM- ~ q q
This man, who invented the electric
chair, owns the patents omit and is
the only man who can be absolutely
depended upon to conduct an execu.
tion without a hitch, iB remarkable In
other respects. Thus, whenever he
goes he flocks by himself. He rarely
speaks to any body unless he Is spoken
to 1Hrst and then he is found to be q
most affable person, more than anxious
TO talk about himself and his. work.
He will cheerfully answer any ques-
ti0n put to him, no matter how per-
sonal 1t may be. About his work he
is absolutely cold blooded. He looks
upon an execution as a matter Of bust.
ness, nothing else. In this he re-
minds tne very much OF little Joe
Atkinson, the old !Tombs hangman,
who was as cheerful an executioner as
one would care to meet. 5.s
My dear sir, I do not kill these
men," said Mr. Davis just after. the
Van WOrmer execution to an inquirer.
The people OF the state of New York
acting through Judge and jury, kill
them. l am simply the instrument
OF the law. I work the machinery by
which the State of New York takes
the lives Of murderers." DAVIS Is a
little gray-haired man of 80. Ask a
New York politician who is the hard
est man to find in the city and he will
tell you Tim Sullivan. Ask state
official at Albany, especially Superin.
tendent Of Prisons Collins, who is the
hardest man in the state to find and
he will tell you Davis.
Davis is living mystery. He slips
from place to place, never maintain
ing residence In a given locality for
any length OF time and rarely letting
anybody know where be is. Every
once in while he appears suddenly in
Albany, maps out his work for the
next few months, and then goes away
again, whittier nobody knows. He
can be absolutely depended upon how
ever to put in. appearance at the state
prison where there is to be an execu-
tion several days before 1t is time to
take place. .
He goes right to the death chamber
and gets everything In readiness, and
after the execution he goes away as
silently and as mysteriously as he call.
The state prison pays Davis $3.50 fol
each man he kills. It has tried re.
reatedly to buy his patents, but be
will not sell. II he should die there
are probably plenty OF men who would
be able to work his apparatus, but 1t
would be more or less an experiment.
even If an electrician willing to dc
the work could be found. Davis
mysterious movements are attributed
by some to a fear of assassination.
Davis was asked about this recently
and laughed heartily. He rece Ives
many threatening letters, be said
but he pays no attention to them.
The night before an execution Davis
goes to bed very early and leaves WORD
that every precaution is to be takcr
not to have any noise around his room
lie sleeps like top and wakes uE
bright and early. His works in the
death chamber, outside Of preparing
the apparatus. is very Slight. n:
looks on while the keepers strap th,
men in, then puts his t-S::..:ssi:si
switch and turns on the current. GHt
never leaves the switch after the firsl
shock until the man in the chair. Il
officially declared dead.
Very naturally some people have ar
aversion to Davis because he Is tht
state e1ecutioner. Far from being an
noyed by this, Davis is rather amused
at recent execution Davis took din
ner at hotel near the prison. NJ
Adolph Godot, French physicis
refused to sit at the table with him
picfering to wait until he wa.
through. Davis calmly ate his din
ner, reading his paper the while, ane
then smoked two cigars while th,
hungry boarders waited for him to ge
away. Davis has no assistant. HI
does his work, alone, and unpleasant
as the work may seem, he certainly
does it we'll. .-
| THE WINTER WILL RE coin