The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-01-02
NEWS OF THE BOOK WORLD

Richard Harding Davis GuiIIotined-Be-
headed by Order of Literary Emer-
gency Court for Lese Majestic to the
Cause of Letters-ReveW Of Sensa-
tionaI Trial of "one of the Worst Lit
ecary Criminals in History"
"Dick'' Davis has paid the penalty of
his crimes against literature.
This morning, just as tthe dawn in rus
set mantle clad was stalking DER the dew
OF -yon high eastward hill, the cold blade
of the literary guillotine severed the lit
erary, head of zone Of the worst literary |
criminals Of all times
| Davis walked to the guiIlotine like a |
hero; like a hero from one of his own !
books. When asked if he had anything |
to say why the sentence of the Literary |
Emergency Court should not then and
| there be executed he at first seemed about
| to speak; then his square jaw set and
! his lips frightened, and with a look at his
| guard, which said, II am ready he took
| a step toward the instrument Of death,
paused while his guard blindfolded him,
then, guided by the executioner, placed his
neck in the fatal circle, and a moment
later, amid awful suspense, swish the
cleaning blade leaped from the latch
which held it., and the head, which had
devised improprieties in writing for the
youth-particularly the maidens-of the
| nation fOlleQ, lIlCO the DdSheL, WHICH
squeaked sickeningly in the ears of the
shuddering spectators as it felt the sud
| den weight
"Lese majestic to the cause of letters"
| had been avenged
/ The criminal had exhausted every re-
source in his efforts to overthrow the YER
dict of the emergency court, but without
/ avail AS a last resort he had appealed
/ to the governor for a reprieve, but the
governor would not listen; the record Of
the supplicant was too dark; justice de-
manded the extreme penalty of the law
1 The execution was the sequel OF the
trial of Richard Harding Davis. alias
'Dick," as reported at length in The
. Literary GuiIiotine, Davis had long
been regarded as one of the, most
daring criminals in his line in the district
of North America. Consequently, when a
| court with jurisdiction in such cases had
been organized with Mark Twain as chief
Justice and Oliver Herford and Myself
as associate justices, Davis was the first
|, criminal brought to trial, Charles Battell
, LOOMS appearing for the prosecution.
Mr.. Loomis for the prosecution put the
. substance of the offense charged against
Mr.. Davis before the court in these words:
: At the appropriate moment intend to show
that he has made use of several words in his
writings improper for the eyes OF ma1de .s as
;, guilty.
Formally the charge was .lese majestic
to the cause of letters" tending to de-
base literature.
Davis daringly undertook to act as his
own attorney and the impaneling of a
jury was begun. In the court records, as
: reported in the Guillotine the work is de.
: scribed thus:
+ But little time was wasted in securing twelve
: good men and true for the trial of the case,
n as of the forty-two men examined only one con-
! fessed, blushingly, to having prejudiced his
u Judgment by reading story by the accused
$50 have read or my STORIES, nave
i you?', said Davis, with smile Of assurance
It (Which one was it"
y g THE Kings Jackal.'"
e tsWell, now, in view Of that fact, would
: ask If you believe in capital punishment"
. more than ever ;,
IS s.Peremptorily challenged announced the de
One Of the important witnesses was tn
president of the Young Ladies' Selec
+ Boarding Schools Association of America
" "Her testimony against the prisoner wa
: to the effect that since his advent in tn
10 literary world the gas bills of the varlou
% institutions in the association had in
J., creased in alarming degree. This damn
) ing, tho incompetent, irrelevant and i'm
= material testimony was offset by !
1T shrewd move on the part of the defense
J described in the record of. the trial thus
4 III have nothing against you, Mr. Davis ! salt
the president Of the Young Ladies' Select Board
n ing-Schools Association of America; "you seen
"a to be a nice, gentemanly young man n, tn
gas bills, what am to do about them?'
n Send them to me, madam, and Will pa
| them,'' was the magnilOquent reply. and ther
l. was a suppressed tintter of applause.
g1 Davis himself was put on the stand t
=, secure his own admissions as to author
= ship as a part Of the record and to dis
y cover whether there were any mltlgatln
r circumstances attending the crime.
IN 1t was further proposed to read "a Sol
~ der of Fortune to the Jury that TIL
" members might judge for themselve
s. whether the crime charged in the indict
ment had been committed in that bOol
:, but the jury protested.
i bench held a consultation, in the cours
il, of which Mark Twain said in answer to
question by Myself:
- read the first chapter, and the next .mornin
my valet had appendicitis.
The trial. full of sensational features Xix
a those here briefly recited, was a long on
-, and drew immense crowds. But at las
= it came to an end the jury returned
~ verdict Of guilty without leaving the boz
Of and Mark Twain pronounced sentence
II which was completed in the execution pei
- formed this morning. Before suffering Lit
IN erary decapitation, however, Davis wa
10 compelled to submit to two weeks solitar
", confinement with set Of Balzacs work
accessible to hand,' that he might b
I'll given "a chance to see how a man writes.
lg S.
he This is a, somewhat liberal taste Of til
G very readable humOr ana satire to
" found in 'tThe Literary Guillotine,' a boo
whose authos is to us unknown The nal
e. ration Of the decapitation Of Mr.. Davis
is our own eve are compelled to say, in jus
tice to the unknown author Of the book
e. The story of the trial is condensed frol
ne the book itself.
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