The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-07-27
Colvin Coleman is Hang
 ed'in County Jail.
SAYS HE DID NOT KILL FINLEY
In Ante-Mortem Statement Accused
 eIwe White Men.
Execution Takes Place in Early Morn inG to Avoid The Morbid Crowd That Might Have Gathered
 Later.

Colvin Coleman. convicted murderer or J. A. Finley. stood on the edge of the trap through which he was to be sent into eternity yesterday. and pro- tested ms innocence in perfectly con- trolled voice.
 At the door of death he declared that one of the most brutal murders that Montgomerys criminal history records was committed by white bartender. Billy" otherwise unknown, fin the saloon of W. R. Fisher and that he and Fisher were witnesses to the awful deed.
 He declared in almost the same breath that the room in which the the next night that the blood stains on the floor might be concealed
 Two minutes afterward. the body of the trap in the Montgomery County jail and in eighteen minutes he was declared dead by attending surgeons.
 city coart of of of ths ths murderer of J. A. Finley was to say the least sensational. It was generally believed about the jail that Coleman respite and that to this end. he made his statement duplicating the two Persons cognizant of the facts in the case. put no reliance in this ante nor tenn statement. It was generally be- leived to be. the last straw Coleman could cling to in the hope of saving his life or postponing the execution of the courts sentence.
 w R. Fisher, one of the men inn plicated was present at the execution and immediately invited any investi- gation of his alleged connection with the crime. He declared he could prove a perfect alibi and the copdemned cause him embarrassment for aiding the police in capturing Coleman.
 In The Early Morning.
 previous that the hanging was to take place about noon yesterday. Sheriff s. S. Belser, however. wished to avoid present and it was decided to carry o'clock
 Coleman spent his last night in the soundly and had to be aroused by the turnkey to greet the ministers and or der his breakfast.
 Coleman ordered a hearty repast of and pot of coffee There was little left of the meal when he had his fill. For half @ hour then. he was clos the Columbus Street Negro Baptist The half hour was spent in prayer. but there was little evidence of Cole man going into the religious frenzy. so freauent with condemned criminals He had dressed himself in the clothes provided for the occasion by. Sheriff black necktie and black shoes. He was clean shaven and seemed at least twenty pounds heavier than when he At 6:3o o'clock Sheriff Belser. accom- panied by Deputies Claude McRae. Will Hall and George Lamar. entered the death chamber and the Sheriff read the death warrant
 A new pair of hand cuffs was placed about his wrists and with the negro
 I~-l fho tl
 Cool and Collected.
 The gallows had been temporarily jail building, section formerly occu- pied by white prisoners. No man would have suspected that the healthy this room yesterday morning. was con- demned to die, had it not been for the handcuffs and the two deputies on
 Coleman needed no support. He was the most collected man in the room. Without the assistance of the flank. and calmly viewed the rope as skilled mechanic would look upon perfect piece of machinery.
 groans of the condemned, or the shouts of religious fervor. were absent. God s sunshine had just attained it's early morning brilliance and poured through the grating of the cell an incongruous- ly bright light:
 The tranquility Of the scene made II all the more awful.
 Before the religious exercises began. the father of Coleman, preacher, mounted the gallows and kissed his first born. who was about to be jerk ed into eternity. He spoke with him briefly and. to the spectators. inaudib ly The boy answered in similar tones.
 The father and son shook hands and the older descended, retired from the cell but stood near by. He was within easy hearing distance of the terrible crash of the falling steel trap that meant that his offspring had died the death of a felon.
 Pastor Stokes then began the relig fous exercises He read parts of the twenty third psalm and then offered up a fervent prayer for the condemn