Virginia gazette. [volume] (Williamsburg, Va.) 1893-192?, 1909-12-23
LIFE WRECKED BY
W0MAN'S OATH
GEORGE HALL. NORTH CARROLL
MAN. HELD TEN YEARS. IN
TEXAS JAIL On FALSE
CHARGE.
PERJURY is CONFESSED
Woman On Death Bed Admits She
SwOrc Falsely i'm Charging Hall
With Murder. IL PardOned.
RICHMOND. VA -

RICHM OND. VA. - Special. -
Broken in spirit and wrecked in
health. after ten years Incarceration
in the Texas State prison. George NJ
Hall. convicted OF the murder OF "a
friend on the false testimony OF that
friends widow. reached Richmond
this morning on his way 20 Greens
bOrO, n. c.. having been pardOucd and
released from his long captivity i'm
Texas on NONem Der 2gth. MIR Hall Is
a native OF North Carolina and is but
thirty-seNcn years of age. He carries
Win aim the appearance OF "a man
past htty. so utterly broken and ruin
ed is his life. The story which ne
tells ls one or great sorrow. fraught
with every element OF human inter-
est Its background is tragedy. false
mood and murder. and the whole mar
rative is shroudcd heavily i'm gloom.
on for ,he Lone star State.
Hail Processes himself 20 he the son
Of respectable parents. who lived az
the OLD homestead. Brown Summit"
which Us in Clifford county. near
Greensboro. n. c.. at the time when
he. "A youth seventeen years old. kissed
his mother goodbye and turned his
face towards Texas. Since that time
his father Inns passed into the valley
OF the shadow. and his brothers and
sisters have become scattered. But
deep in the heart Of the lonely trav-
eler burns the hope that his old moIl-
er still lives, for which reason ne is
hostening With All speed 20 thc place
81 his nativity. believing that She. an
least, has NOT forgotten him. Do tho
past three weeks Hall has made his
way from the RuEk prison iu Texas
through Little Rock. ST. Louis Cin-
cinnat and washington. When h0 fert
the State prison in Texas ne possessed
Sc He presented 81 Co a convict
friend and faced tho big world with
what va left Thus financed. he has
made his way 90 Richmond. Tie hopes
u H N....H
Groensboro, his gray haired mother
and home.
starts Life in Texas.
Upon reaching the big state or
Texas HAN pint up at the town of
ut. Pleasant Here he procured ready
employmeut. hiring himself ont as au
apprentice 90 rarriage maker. who
utilized him Bro the paint shop to his
establishment. Hall made friends
readily. He had become fairly pros-
porous. TIE found the TNe.s "hi--
hearted people" lie married and had
daughter born in his homo. -Four
daughter Is now M Cd Catholic cduca-
uonul institution Dob TcNHs. Her moth
~ was member of he Roman Catn-
oiic Church. NAN h.msen is NOT O.
shortly after his 0rst sorrow. tho
loss OF his wife, "a shadow feu over the
pam OF the North CarolIuiau. Amou-
his friends was railroad engineer
10 his peculiar employment. WAS frc-
Cleuty from home. and Cutertn Innl
some apprehension Tor mis- family Cur-
ing his absence. AT his REQUEST HAIL
changed his boarGlng-house and
moved with his little daughter 90 the
Gibbs house. Here aU went along
quietly for some months. THE next
all.aon To the little circle was that
OF young fellow named Gcorge
James. James was drug clerk and
dressed nicely James had NOT been
Al the Gibbs home Tor many weeks
when it became apparent tnat Airs.
Gibbs was cnamorcd of tho STRANGER.
Her iniatuauon was $50 noticeable tnat
Hall FELT some uncusiucss and kept
himselt confined mostly to his room.
Killed in His Home.
IL was three months subsequent 90
the advent OF James az the Gibbs
house that one morning. Hail being
az the time closctcd i'm his room on
the upper door. writing a letter 20 his
mother, the stiffness was broken by
the report OF a revolver Hall rush
ed 60 the landing below.
Here he found the man James
standing near the door 20 the Gibbs
bed room. with AIRS Gibbs Ia the CEN
ter OF the floor and the body or VIII
liam Gibbs. his friend. stretched near
the hearth. bullet ia his head. dead.
in his own home.
Aiy Cod exclaimed Hall. what
has happenedf'
He did it himself" replied the wo-
man.
The man. George James. kept still
Hall walked 10 the side of the room
and leaned against the wall. collect
ING his thoughts. In the meantime
Mrs. Gibbs stepped 20 the telephone.
called up the police. and waited.
Two OFFICERS responded.
upon lnQulring into the cause OF the
homlcide Mrs. Gibbs raised her finger.
pointed IL directly i'm the face OF Hall
ana SAID There stands your man"
ran conlesScs tnat an this time ne
became stupiued. James remained si-
tent Ran was placed under arrest
and removed 20 the police station.
In describing the nature OF the
wound inflicted Hall says that the bull
let entered just behind the right ear,
penetrated through the left tenple
and that Gibbs was dead when ne
(Hal) reached his bed room. A six
shooter lay on the floor not far from
the body. Hall was soon removed
from the station 10 jail and the Jail
soubly guarded. This was TO prevent
q lynching.
said Hall today. and my friends had
soon all turned my enemies"
The court trial followed, where
strong enort was put forth for hang
ING. The accused had no witnesses
ana the jury returned a nfe-sentence.
AFTER being out twenty-three hours.
In last November the man broken
In health and heart learned that ne
had been pardOned and would be re-
leased. He was told that Mrs. Will
liam Gibbs was dead. That the wo-
man, upon her death bed had sum-
moned priest and the sheriff OF Mt
fieasant and had confessed TO them
Ihat HAN was guiluess OF the muir
get or her husband, which crime she
paced upon George lanes hir-ralf