The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1912-05-24
SON PAYS
|EATH PENALTY
Pastor Gives Life
Electric Chair.
ting Last Night-Eats
But Smokes Cigar
y Sings Hymns.

B6st May 21.-Clarenee Virgil
Tkotnp Richeson, native of Vir-
gfpja, 4 >or of the Emmanuel Baptist
church Cambridge, was electrocu-
lteds dsAt e340 o'clock this morning in
the ei house of the State prison
lat Ghay SSton. The crime for which
RichS paid the penalty this morn
ing SHa zhe murder of his sweetheart,
19-yf4Ef Avis Linnell. Richeson
conf os giving her poison, which
cause death October ID, 1911.
TkS 6rsnt was turned on at
S12;l0$0k and the prisoner was de-
Eclared de&dat 1917.
The f6fmer, clergyman was out
wardH &llm when he entered the
deaf chsnber and he maintained his
kecmposy5e while the straps and cleo
Itrades weFe being adjusted as he sat
in the els<tfic chair.
g idhsbons walked to the chair erect,
eysS straight ahead, until he sat down
then be elclosed his eyes and kept them
shut until the end.
Seated In the chair he was asked
q seties az ,q0estions by the Rev. Her.
bert s. SIehnson, his spiritual ad-
wiser One of his answers was, "God
win $akee care Of my soul and pray
for Al, a xsrgive everybody"
The 4tst of these questions was:
= Are ~ willing to die for Jesus
sake.g HI REPLY, in an even, we'll
m0dule< tone, was simply: "I am
wfllMx t4 die.''
q rent applied was of 1000
Apsress One application was
N e krd Sffsins 81 Song, 49,
: : g % ssId y ishsess
ber after Walking through the prison
yard in 2 peiting rain, they heard
sounding through the walls the strains
of song. It was Richeson and his
spiritual advisers, Mr.. Johnson and
Chaplain Stebbins singing. Distinct
ly audible as they closed were the
words:
"For know, whate'er befall me,
Jesus doeth all things we'll"
Richeson left his cell at 1908. Be
fore starting on the death march he
shook hands with William A. Morse,
his counsel, who at the last moment,
had been admitted as a witness of
the execution, and with the two
chaplains, the Rev. M. ]. Murphy, the
Catholic prison chaplain, being also
Then he said: "I'm ready" and
walked on. He was dressed plainly in
a black cheviot suit and frock coat,
white vest white shirt, turned down
collar and black bow tie, with gold
studs on his shirt front, and with low,
black shoes, brightly shined.
Appeared Calm.
The party then entered the cham
Der. Richeson, accompanied by the
clergymen, followed soon after, the
unfrocked minister appearing as calm
as either of his companions.
Among many letters addressed to
Richeson which were opened by War
den Bridges today was one which was
found to contain cyanide of potas-
sium. 1t was mailed at Station N.
New York city, May 10 lat 8 p. m. 1t
contained no clue to the sender, the
powder being enclosed in small sub
envelope, marked Headache pow
ders." An analysis developed that it
was poison fthe same nature as that
which killed Avis Linnel. Richeson
was entirely innocent of any knowl-
edge of its having been sent, Attor-
ney Morse declared.
The Rev. Herbert w. Stebbins, the
prison chaplain preceded the con-
demned man in the march to the
chair.
"Able to Save Them"
AS Richeson settled himself slowly
In the electric chair and threw back
his head and clsed his eyes, the
minister turned to Hebrews and read:
"For He is able also to save them to
the uttermost that come unto God by
Him seeing that he ever liveth to
make intercession for them"
Four prison guards picked up the
straps dangling like tenacles from the
chair Of death and quickly slipped
them into place through their buck
les. .
Are Sou willing to die for Jesus
sake es;
II am willing to die"
p" AS the word ,"die" came from the
lips OF tbs man in the chair, the
gold-headed cane Of Warden Bridges
was tilted slightly upward, there was