Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1905-12-13
Judge Blalr Imposes Death Penalty On
McWilliams,

The following is areport Of what
took place in the District Court at
Independence last Friday, when
Judge Blair sentenced William Nc
Williams to be hung on the 18th
day Of December 1906:
Mr.. McWiiliams, you may stand
up please. You have been indicted
by the grand jury of this county for
the crime of murder of your little
daughter, Lois Susan McWilliams,
to which Indictment you have plead
guilty. Under the law it became
the duty Of the Court to ascertain
by the calling Of witnesses the de-
Of murder Of which you are guilty.
The Court has taken that testimony.
and the Court has found you guilty
Of murder i'll the first degrees, and
according to previous appointment
this is the day and the hour fixed
for your sentence. Have you any
thing now to say why the sentence
of the court should not be pronounc-
ed upon YOU?
No sir.
Mr.. McWilliams, you may stand
up again please.
1t becomes my painful duty now
to pass sentence upon you. 1t has
long been the custom of the Courts,
in passing sentence upon prisoners
brought before them to give some
advice to the prisoner, in hopes that
when they are liberated from prison,
if they ever are, that it will benefit
them, that they will reform from the
criminal life, but in this case no adj
vice can possibly be given; the mo
ment you land inside Of the peni-
Tertiary, you are away from all
friends and away from the commu-
nifty in which you lived; you can
never return again to your relatives
or to your friends or neighbors, or
to the community in which you have
lived. The world is outside of your
prison CONTINENT, SO that no ad
vice that this Court can give
can possibly effect you. You have
been charged with heinous crime,
that Of killing your little daughter,
and this was done according to the
testimony and according to your
confession in the coolest Of blood; it
was an atrocious crime, and in con.
nectlon with this you murdered the
balance Of your family, and while
that is not involved in the trial of
this case, it does lend color to
your act in the killing Of Your little
child; it shows the condition OF your
mind and the object Of punishment
in cases of this kind, and in all
cases in fact is il possible to meet
out such punishment to the offender
as is just and proper; but one object,
and one great object, is to protect
the community Now the commu-
nifty can be perhaps as well and as
securely protected by separating you
from them in life sentence; it can
also be protected by a sentence Of
death. Now so fax as you are con-
cerned death punishment is no
greater punishment than you de-
serve. So far as the community is
concerned it would be Il complete
protection as we'll as it would pro-
tect them by giving you /. life sen
tence. The showing made here by
your attorney, which has been listen
ed to with a great deal ofinterest by
the Court, and the reference to your
condition by one Of the physicians,
Doctor McGready, shows Conclusive
ly to my mind what is the true state
Of your mind and of yourself, that is
that you are moral degenerate.
am satisfied that you are moral de-
generate, and yet he says that you
are morally responsible. | don t
think there can be any question but
what you are responsible for the act
of killing this little child, and also
responsible for the killing of your
wife and other children; and can
see no SAFER way 10 protect the pub
lie against degenerates, men who at
times have a morbid condition OF
mind which leads them to commit
such grave offenses, than to pass up
on them the sentence Of death. OF
course while you are confined in the
penitentary, if a life sentence should
be pronounced upon you, you
would not have the facility for mur.
dering any one inside that you have
outside aud yet you might do it..
The opportunity might occur while
lou were with the workmen, it
might occur while you are being
marched to and from your work, it
might occur while you are marched