Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-12-09
STORY OF THE CRIME
For Which Mary Mabel Rogers Paid
Penalty With Her Life.

The crime for which Mrs. Mary Mabel
Rogers was sentenced to be executed was
the murder of her husband, Marcus Rog-
, ers at Bennington, Aug. IL, 19o2: At the
time the crime was corinitted Mrs; Rog
ers was only 10 years old. She had been
separated from her husband Tor some
time and was DESTROYS of marrying Il
young man named Maurice Knapp On
the day of the murder Marcus Rogers
went to Bennington to visit his wife, ana
that night she arranged to meet him in
the woods near the Walloonsac river
While caressing him she induced him to
allow her to bind his hands, and Will
he was powerlesS she chlOrOformed him.
In this she was aided by Leon Perham, a
half witted boy who was the son. of the
woman with whom she boarded. Another
woman, Estelle Bates, was present.
After chIoroforming Rogers. Perham
and Mrs. Rogers rolled the body into the
river. where it was found the next day
In order to divert suspicion the woman
wrote Il rote to which she signed her hus-
bands name, giving the impression that
he had committed suicide.
Immediately after the murder Mrs. ROS-
ers endeavored to collect her husband
life insurance, amounting to $500. and also
made arrangements to purchase furniture
for the house where she expected to live
when she married Knapp
A few days after the murder Mrs. Rog-
ers, Perham and the Bates woman were
arrested. Perham made n complete con-
fession and both he and Mrs. Rogers were
Perham was sentenced to Imprisonment
for life, while the sentence in Mrs. Rog-
erS' case was death on the gallows.
Under the Vermont law, the power of
pardon and communion of sentence rests
with the Legislature, and the law also
provides that when a person is sentenced
to death 4 session of the Legislature must
be held between the time of sentence ami
the date set for the execution. At the last
session of the Legisla ture various at
tempts were made to commute Mrs. Rog-
rnnfa h,,t oil foil n1
attempt was made to pass a law abOl
ishing capital punishment in Vermont,
but that also failed. An attempt to Sc
cure a pardon for the woman shared the
same fate. "A bill was then introduced
providing for the appointment of state
commission to examine into the womans
sanity. This bill passed the House unan-
imOusly, but was defeated in the state
Senate. Although the vote on the bill in
the Senate was never made public it is
known that the ratio opposed To its pas
sage was about to /.
The date set for the execution was Feb.
), 1905. On Feb. 2. after Mrs. Rogers had
received the last rites of the Roman
Catholic church. Governor Charles J. Bell
granted her Il reprleve until June 2. in
order that the claim of her attorneys to
newly discovered evidence might be aired
before the Vermont supreme court in an
attempt to secure for the woman new
trial. The day previous to the day the
reprieve was granted the sheriff IF Wind
sor county. Henry H. Peck, to whom fell
the task of executing Mrs: Rogers. went
to Montpelier accompanied by his depu-
ties, and petitioned Governor Bell to
grant reprieve.
May II last, the full bench of the Yer
mont supreme court heard the evidence
on which the petition for a new trial was
based, and little more than a week later
denied the petition.
On June l, a second reprieve by Govern
or Bell removed the doomed woman from
under the shadow of the scaffold. This
reprieve was granted in order that the
United States supreme court might pass
upon the cOnstitutionality and legality of
the proceedings governing Mrs. Rogers
sentence.
The United States supreme court was
then petitioned for writ of error in or
der that the case might go before the
highest tribunal. but this was denied Or
June 10. habeaS corpus proceedings were
instituted. Further legal activity on the
part of the condemned woman's attor-
neys resulted in the case being carried
before the supreme court of the United
states On an appeal from the rulings of
the Vermont court. On Nov. q last. tn"
stay the sentence of the Vermont court
With the decision of the highest court
IN the land Mrs. Rogers last hope for
life vanished. as Gov. Bell had announced
that he would not interfere with the SEN
teEce of the court.
Mrs. Rogers was the daughter Of Mrs
Josie Callahan of HoOsic Falls. n. Y.
Certain disclosures regarding scand;. Is
IN the Vermont state prison at Windsor.
where Mrs. Rogers has been confined.
have, it is claimed affected public senti-
rlent. According to testimony before the
prison investigating committee of the
Legislature. one of the conv;cts at Wind
sor had access to Mrs. Rogers cell some
time after the first rerrieve was granted
by Governor Bell. 1t was alleged that
this was part of conspiracy on the part
of certain prison officials to bring about
such a condition as would further post
pone the execution.
Mrs. Rogers is the first person SEN
fenced to death within the past 70 wears
who was refused clemency. The last
murderer executed in the state was SvJ-
vester Bell, who was hanged in 1892 for