The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1903-10-08
THREE BROTHERS DIE |
IN ELECTRIC CHAR
Remarkable Trio Of Youthful
and Hardened Criminals
Pay Penalty.
TOR OF THEIR CRIME
Murdered Their uncie At Night, and
Convicted On Testimony Of an
Associate go Remarkable
Group OF Criminals.

SSsHHormer brothers, Willis, Burton and
Frederick. paid the penalty OF their
crime of5Sshooting to death their Uncle
Peter a. Hallenbeck, in the electric
chair In Chester prison this morning.
The entire proceeding from the start
OF the first man from his cell, to the
doctors declaration Of the death OF the
last. consumed but fifteen and onethalf
minutes and no untowald incident
marred the execution OF the laws pen
atty.
b condemned men did not sleep last
might until nearly 3 this morning. but
tossed uneasily upon their cots. Keeper
Murphy awakened the men shortly aft
er Z and they Immediately dressed
themselves In the clothing which they
wore at the execution-gray flannel
shirt and dark trousers, each with the
right leg slit to the knee to ALLOW the
attachment of the electrode. They took
no breakfast, in accordance with the
Catholic requirement to come fasting to
their communion, which priests admin
istered to them later.
Ready for Their Fate.
Prison Physician Ransom visited the
men in their cells this morning and
closely noted their physical condition.
Warden Deyo had decided that the
men shouts go to the chair in the fol-
lowing order: First, Willis, the oldest
and most impressionable; second, fred
erick, who has seemed most hardened
and at all times shown more braNado
than the others: third, Burton.
Keeper Murphy, who was in the cell
room last night, said he had never seen
men better prepared tor death or more
fully In possession of their nerve. In
conversation with Murphy. Burton Van
Wormer said:
It have no more fear of the electric
chair than of this meal I am about to
eat. I am not afraid"
Eaid:@MI y wish -~thsrsSwers
three chairs instead OF one, so we all
could go together. The hardest part of
1t all is the suspense, but we are ready.
We are grateful for the kindness which
everybody about the prison has shown
u.s."
j Frederick, the youngest, showed not
the slightest evidence Of fear. and while
dressing said:
We'll, I suppose by this{time tomor-
row we shall be in Kinderhook," evi-
IDENTIFY intinlating the brothers expect
ed their bodies would be taken for bur-
'al to their home.
No Hitch in Execution.
The men walked from the doors of
their cells in car Of their priest and
thanked on either side by prison depu-
ties, with calm demeanor but extreme
pallor. During the first execution Fa-
Their Charbonneau remained in the cor
rider between the death cells reading
prayers to the remaining Van Wor-
mers. Every precaution was taken to
prevent the remaining men from hear
ing more than the departure of their
brother from the room. The doors had
been padded and the interstices stuffed
with cotton so the steps of those who
removed the lifeless body from the
death chamberto the morgue could not
be heard.
Three applications of the current and
four minutes time were required for
the execution of Willis. but only two
applications of the current We're nec-
essary in the ease Of Frederick. and
two minutes from the time he crossed
the threshold of the room the doctors
pronounced him dead.
The bodies were carried out into the
prison morgue and the summons for the
last brother was taken back by the
guard. Either Burton was taller than
his brothers, or he sat UP straighter in
the chair, for the strap which is intend
ed to v the eyes did not reach high
enough to blindfold him, and as the
current was switched on he was still
looking owe the upper edge of the
strap toward the priest. He was killed
even o quickly than the other two.
Only n application of the current was
required, though it was retained slight
5ly longer at full pressure than in the
other CAGES.
Father Delanger said after the execu-
ton that the last hours of the men
were spent in exceeding quiet, with the
stridtest attention to spiritual inter-
ests which We're their sole concern.
The End of Hope.
The last glimmer of hope for the three
Van Wormer brothers disappeared Mon
day wheil Governor Odell refused to admit
to audience Mrs. Van Wormer, stepmother
of tn4 three criminals sentenced to die in
the electric chair today. Mrs. Van Worm
er, Who is the only person above earth
who easl.good word for the three boys,
called at the executive chambers to make
a final appeal for clemency.
Governor Odell returned the answer that
he had fully considered the case, that he
could see no reason for pardon or even
for a Communication of the sentence, that
the death penalty must be carried out
and that consequently an interview would
be painful to both as we'll as profitless.
Mrs. Van Wormer accepted the decision
as final and left the city, returning to her
home In Kinderhook. The condemned
prisoners, the eldest OF whom is 26 and the
youngest II years Of age, bore the sus-
tpense with the same c%oolness they showed
during trial and became still more a mys-
terry to tho alienists and criminologists
who made them a study.
Began as Mischievous Boys.
In few cases of criminals have the steps
through which they passed been as clearly
marked as in the case Of tAsYan Wormer
boys, Willis, Burton and Fred. They como
oflgood stock, their father being a steam
boat engineer n their mother a very re-
ligous country woman The boys were
left motherless when the eldest was only
10 years old, and. though their .stepmother,
whotwas also their mother'e sister, gave
the boys every care ard attention, they
paid little heed to her, and their father,
owing to the nature of his duties, was sell
dom at home.
AS boys they were known as ths Aost
mtschievous lads in the school at Green
dale, N. Y. and revealed their future ca
reer only in their delight in torturins ami
mails and ~lpersecuting smaller boys. AS
they grew older the torture of animals be.
came q passion for them and all the do.
mestfc animals in the n~eighborhood fel,
their cruel ingenuity. The neighoors rose
against this. but no one had any author.
ity over the boys and they stood together
30 closely that any netghbor who pun
ished one was sure a few nights later to
0~5 AA>ANN ~ 80