The Washington times., 1908-03-23
ITALIAN HANGED
FOR KILLING GIRL,
DEATH IS SLOW
Paolucci Swings for Half
an Hour Before End
Comes.

Dangling from the hangman's rope
thirty-One minutes. Joseph PaoIuccI this
morning expiated the Staying of his six
-year-old sweetheart.
StoicalIy and resolutely the Italian
mounted the galows with a firm step.
kissed crucihx. and with "Oh. nv
God, 1 am heartily sorry" on his lips.
was precipiJated 10 his death shortly
after 10 o'clock. Il was not until IO.g7
o'clock when physicians pronounced life
extinct
An examination made immediately
after the body was lowered To The
ground. disclosed that death resulted
from strangulation, the droD OF eight
feet icing insufficient 10 break the fran
mans neck.
Execution Quickly Over.
Faoiuccrs execution was the quickest
on record at the District jail, and was
conducted with such dispatch that it
proved far less gruesome than was ex-
pected by Warden Harris and the
guards. Contrary TO the general ex-
pectatiou. PaOIucci was not weighed
down with metal or anything else
%rom the time Paolucci, bound hand
and foot. walked from the death cell
until the trap door was jerked from
under his feet, only eighteen seconds
intervened.
The doomed man paid no heed to the
guards, and seemed uninterested and
unaffected when the somber black can
was adjusted. He was given the long
est drop ever allowed by Warden Har-
ris, hut his weight CT ninety-four
pounds proved too scant TO kill MIN in
stantly.
Paolucci was accompanied 10 the gal
lows by the Rev. NJ. YaselU Nicholas
his spiritual adviser. who spent the
night in prayer with him. On the scat
fold PaOluCci kept his eyes rIvetted on
his comforter and began the Roman
Catholic Act Of Contrition," which the
law never permitted to be finished
Last Act of Alteration.
As the Italian walked out on the glib
bet he was preceded by Deputy Warden
W. g. Urner. who halted the prisoner
In the center Of the platform. PaoIuccI.
whose ankles and knees were bound
with leather thongs, and whose arms
We're strapped behind his back. looked
piteously at Father Nicholas. gazed
down at the trapdoor, and leaned for
ward 10 kiss the cruciix. As he began
his final prayer for forgiveness. Ro-
tunda Officer W. T. Vickers quickly
drew the black cap over PaoluccFs head.
Deputy UTner drew a handkercbief from
his pocket. and the door shot from un-
der PaolUccis feet with a loaded nuf-
fed thud.
For fifteen minutes BAoIucci's body
WTithed and repeated efforts were made
by the dying man TO raise his trenbllng
feet, which dangled but eighteen inches
from the tiled floor OF the hall of death.
While PaOlucci shook in the agony of
death the jail physicians and legal Wit
nesses gathered around his emaciated
form, feeling his pulse now and then.
and testing the heart action with a
stethoscope.
After more than a half an hour the
Italians bosom was stilled and his body
lowered to a litter. Physicians discov-
cred no fracture of his neck
Representatives of the Society Victoria
Emanuela took charge of the body and
had IL removed to Lees undertaking es-
tablishment. TomorroR afternoon fu-
neral services Will be held in St
Aloyslus or St Peters Church, accord
ing 10 the last wish of tie doomed Ital-
ian. His spiritual comforter will offci-
ate at the services. and interment viii
be made in 81. Mary's Cemetery.
Glad lie Didn't Kill Himself.
Father Nicholas said Paoluccf rejoiced
that he had not died by his own hand,
as he had intended. The bullet which
Paolucci fired into his right side after
killing Elizabeth Dodge was never ex-
tracteG and he suffered from it until
he forfeited his life to society.
I'm glad did not kin myself" said
PaOlucci to Father Nicholas this morn
ing. Suicides cannot so to heaven.
/ am a murderer, but I am sorry for
every wrong act have committed and
know that / have been forgiven I
am not afraid TO die. for Christ has
set us an example as to how to die.
and / want TO follow in his footsteps. "
The priest declared Paolucct consid-
cred his approaching end as a matter to