The San Francisco call., 1907-03-30
LEON sOEDER EXECUTED
FOR MURDER OF bLAIsE.
Slayer Staggers and Faints
After Reaching the
Floor of Gallows
ASSAILS DETECTIVE
Condemned Man Gives Out
a Letter That He Was
Victim of Perjury
ASSAILS DETECTIVE

Protesting almost with his last con-
scious breath that he was the victim
of perjured testimony, Leon Soeder was
hanged at San Quentin prison yester-
day morning. The drop was sprung
at 1885 O'Clock. Ten and a half min
utes later life had flown from the limp
and swaying form dangling from the
gibbet. The murder of Joseph Blaise
was avenged.
Not even stimulants served to main
tain the bravado which up to the last
few minutes had characterized the con-
duct OF Soeder since his sentence and
Incarceration. Though he held his head
up and forced assickly smile, his steps
faltered as he reached the scaffold.
AS the moose was arranged Soeder
staggered and tainted, his knees sank
under him, the black cap was brushed
over his pallid countenance, andethe
trap sprung. In the space of less than
a minute after he reached the scaffold
the lifeless body of Soeder swung quiet
! ly at the end of the creaking rope.
/ Death was almost Instantaneous, al
though there was an intermittent heart
action for ten minutes. The hasty ar
rangement OF the rope made necessary
by the condemned mans collapse re-
suited in a slight displacement of the
knot and in consequence the head
Soeder willed his body to DR.. Charles
F. Millar. former chief surgeon at the
Emergency Hospital
SLAYER HAS SOUND SLEEP
Up to the time he started up the
short flight of steps leading to the
trap, Soeder retained his nerve ad-
mirably. The death watch, Guards
Frank Clarke and A. G. Kelley. bade
their charge goodnight" shortly be-
/ fore midnight Thursday. In a few
minutes he slept peacefully and so
soundiy that an alarm clock failed to
wake him at o'clock yesterday MORN
ing. After a hearty breakfast the
condemned man received Father Walsh,
to whom he professed religion but two
days previous and who remained to
perform the last rites of the church.
/ Soeder had insisted to the clergyman
| that he had nothing to confess, and a
few minutes before he started on the
death march he asked that the news
paper men and his specially invited
guests be admitted to the death cham
/ Der.
To the press Soeder made rambling
statement, touching the alleged subor-
nation of perjury by Detective Tom
Gibson, but skillfully avoiding the
denying OF his guilt In his shirt
sleeves and with cigar between his
teeth. Soeder pressed against the bars
of the big cage and greeted his guests,
Chief Jailer Z. J. Kerwin and Walter
Macauley. Martin Dalton, Harry Han
son and Jack Holland, deputies at the
San Francisco County Jail. with
CHEEKY How are you. boys? I'm feel
ing pretty good. The top of the morn
ing to you.
To the newspaper men Soeder said:
Well. boys, this is about my last
statement on earth. I'm not a very
good talker. but I'll do the best | can.
and / want you to know that / am the
victim sof perjury. / never made any
confession That was a manufactured
confession. Detective Tom Gibson
manufactured that confession. He put
Cooper in my cell, and the only dia-
gram ever made was to show Cooper
as nearly as 1 could what the diagram
I had seen in court showed. 1 never
made any confession and I have here
afidavits to prove IL. These are my
4 last words on earth, boys"
Soeder gave to the press the follow
ing signed statement. which was ac-
companied by afidavits by John Sien-
sen, the condemned gaspipe murderer;
/ Patrick J. Reardon, Charles II. Wright
and Joseph B. Field, convicts who were
cellmates OF Soeder at the San Fran
cisco County Jail. All the affidavits
denied that Soeder had confessed, and
Siemsen swore that while in Folsom
prison Cooper had told him he was
sorry he had testified that Soeder had
confessed to him:
Death Chamber San Quentin Cal. March 2s,
1907, 3 D. m. Dear Frfends-I will for the last
time positively state that my life was sworn
away by hired assassin known John Cooper
.~~~r--S~~~~-~~--~~>~>~~
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H.