Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-07-30
JOHN JUNKIN PAYS PENALTY ON THE GALLONS
AT FORT MADISON PENI7ENT|ARY TODAY FOR The
BRUTAL MURDER OF CLARA R0SEN FEBRUARY. 5 1909
Continued From Page ~
Perhaps the Father will have some
thing to tell later"

perhaps the Fatner VIII nave so1ue
thing to tell later"
Then Sheriff Clark placed the death
cap on his head and stepped back.
"All ready" he said, and tried to cut
the rope to the trap with hatchet.
The first blow failed. The second only
cut the rope partially in two and the
weight of the negros body broke II
and shot down. Then commenced the
horrible death struggle and death did
not come for twenty-four minutes after
the springing Of the trap.
Junkin's Death Struggle.
The body was placed in basket and
carried away.
It is evident that Junkin had re-
markable vitality He dropped through
the trap like plummet and Tor sec
ond or two there was no culver OF ms
body. It was thought that the fall nao
broken his neck but such proved not
to be the case, and as he commenced
to writhe and squirm and draw up MS
knees, his body swung back and 1ortn
like a pendulum. There was a con-
vulsive twitching of the fingers ana
frantic effort to pull the hands from
the manacles. His feet hung within
about foot of the ground and II ap-
peared as if he was making ues-
perate struggle to stretch MS legs inc
distance, while the powerful muscles
nf his arms were displayed IKE
whipcords.
The crowd watched the death agony
of .Junkin without emotion Inere
was no horror depicted on the faces OF
the spectators Instead there was
more of lively curiosity to see no"
long he would survive. Finally the
movements of the body became
weaker and took on limpness and Or.
Box who was holding the mans
wrist declared him dead.
Junkin went to sleep at $3.50 O'CLOCK
last night and woke up at 1880 O'CLOCK
and asked the hour. He again lelt
nsleep and did not wake up until S:3o
o'clock this morning. Junkin had the
ordinary prison rations this morning
Tor breakfast and did not talk 10 MS
ruard. other than to pass the Tune OF
DAY. At 10 o'clock his spiritual ADVISER
Father Zaiser, was admitted TO MS
cell and the public statement was tnen
secured.
Rosen Foreives Murderer.
Surrounded by Fathers Foley anu
Huffman, Fred Rosen. the fatner "
the murdered girl heard the last STATE,
ment of his daughters destroyer anu
when asked by Father Foley II ne
would not forgive Junkin Tor MS
crime, the aged man, responding 10
the persuaive tones Of the priest re-
marked that he forgave the murderer.
Was Atrocious Crime.
The crime for which John Junk1n
answered with his life was the most
brutal murder ever perpetrated IN
Ottumwa. Miss Clara Rosen, his vic
tim, left the home of her parents, Mr.
and Mrs. Fred Rosen, .1011 Locust
street, to go to that of her sister, Mrs.
G. o. Nelson, on Dare street When
lust beyond the corner Of Cara and
Dare streets, the young woman was
attacked by the negro, who after strlk-
ing her with large stone, carried
her struggling form to an abandoned
cellar some few feet away and there
continued the heinous brutality. When
life was extinct, he robbed the body
pf numerous small .trinkets and d1a-
mond ring, the latter article Leading
directly to his arrest and final con-
viction, Two days after the commits
sion of the murder, February Z, 1903,
Junkin was arrested by Officer Joe
Beeman as a suspect. On February
he was released, the police being I'M
able to connect him with the crime.
A diamond stone, the same size as
that stolen from the Rosen girl, was
sold by Junkin to Pawnbroker ]. Red
man on February 16. The following
day the negro was re-arrested by o.
ficer Keenan,. He underwent severe
sweating by the Ottumwa police de-
partment for four days, and on the
fifth, the excitement attendant upon
the reported assaulting OF MRS.
Charles Johnston, prompted the po-
lice to remove the negro to Abba.
This was done, and five days later, on
February 27, throu-h the combined
work of the Ottumwa police depart
ment, Sheriff Griffin, Detective Way
and others, confession was secured
from Junkin which established his
guilt.
Mobs Would Hang Negro.
So intense was the feeling here
against the negro, that crowd of cit
izens went to Abba following the re-
port of Junkin's confession and de-
manded that Sheriff Griffin turn over
the prisoner. In the meantime, how
ever, Junkin had been removed to the
Des Moines Jail, the officers having
anticipated such move by the friends
Of the murdered girl. An indictment
was returned against the negro by the
Wapello county grand jury on March
s. Three days later Sheriff w. w.
jackson and others, anxious to feel
put the people in Otumwa and to de-
termine whether the mob spirit had
entirely vanished, took Junkin from
the nes Moines Jail TO OskaloOsa and