Amarillo daily news. [volume] (Amarillo, Tex.) 19??-current, 1913-05-30
MAN TIGER To
DIE ON GALLONS
JAKE OIPENHEiMER DOOMED
TO ExPIATE CRIMES WITH.
~ MKT FORTNIGHT.

L 'hNII Hhh' DPp'NN'ilh'if Nh'
I criminal Of tbe century" VIII be- eX.
ecuted a. Folsom prison within the
Inest two weeks unless the governor
iuteryenes and COMMITTEES the sen.
! tence Oppenhelmer. whose feroc-
|lty and murderous tendencies haxe
/ gained for him the name Of Man
Tiger and have made nm the terror
Iof guards and prisoner alike IL con-
siiered one Of the most remarkable
terminals ever known n this part Of
the country lie has a long record
OF crime and Is known TO have com
mittod a. least four murders
Oppeuheimer began his career or
Icrimc in this city many years ago.
when he Was employed az q mcssen-
ger boy for telegraph company
one day be- was discharged by the
superintendent and promptly reyen
god himself by shooting The superin-
toudcnt Three year later be- was
sentenced 10 20 years imprisonment
for robbiug drug store a man
NAMED Ross testified against him
I Opgcnheimer vas Sent 10 Folsom
and later. when Ross VAS also sent
to that institution for come other
crime. Oppenhelmer awaited him a.
fhe prison gate and stabbed him 10
death
Some time after that Oppcnheim-
cr murdered a guard named MELON
ald az the prison. A q punishment
he was placed In solitary coniine-
meui but obtaining file aud cut
linz bis way out he made muir
dorous assault on fellow Couyiu
named John Wilfon with q butcher
! knife 10 1901 the state legislature
I OF California had passed a law In
|pDs,ns death punishment upon any
prisoner who should make an assault
upon q prison Official or fellow
prisoner Under thi law Open
hcimcr was tried In October. 1907.
Tor his attack upon Wilson. Who ha
q Ca from the effects of the stab
wounds Oppenheimcr was found
guilty an was seutor,,d 10 death
The execution was =, foe June q.
1905. hut Opponheimer through hie
counsel appealed nd ousht MS
case through soycrli courts ana fin
lalis the Suprcm 'oart ut the lpd-
ed States Every court deyided
against him and the 4. S. supreme
Court upheld the validity Of the
California law Oppcnhelmer made
another attempt TO save his life by
obtaining a writ OF habeas corpus
and bringing his ease before the
United states District Court upon
| the plea that the statute under
which Oppcuheimer had been sen
tcwed 90 death ie retroactive and
conirayerts section 10 of the Consti-
tuition of the United Safes which
forhids the pa SAKE OF eN post facto
criminal laws This case also was
dismissed and with that all rcsour-
ccs of law were exhausted
While awaiting the decision OF
The courts iu his efforts TO save
himself from the galIows. Open
hcimor was kept In strict coniinc-
ment nt the Folsom prison There
I be- continued his criminal ca-
reer with unequalod cunning and te-
rocity Ia company with two other
prisoners. w. Finley aud Francis
GO QuiIida Oppenheimor made an
attempt 90 break ont Of the prison az
lmidniqht on January 6. 1910. by
saving the bars of their cell They
would have succeeded had not Night
Captain Quigmire detected them
sneaking along a corridor tie called
several OF the guards and subdued
the prisoners
Quiiida. a halfbreed Naqui ludi-
an. had attacked some OF the prison
guard several years before and had
also been sentenced 10 death under
the law of 1901 lie also appealed
% the courts and his case was pend
ing no the time when Oppenheimer
began his fight for his life There
va considerable ~ feeling between
the two prisoners rom the very be-
ginning and the mutual hatred in
| creased IN the course OF time The
climax came In september OF 1911.
when one morning Quiiaia challens.
cd Oppenheimer 10 a combat for ffc.
while the prisoners were permitted
To- exercise IN the corridor OF the
prison Oppenheimer who had Sc.
crctly repaired himself for such an
emergency flung himsel' upon the
Indian and stabbed him 20 death
with shap piece Of steel which he
had picked up in the prison surd
several months before ard which he
had secrcted in his mattress ever
since
Although there was never lack
OF bad men" IN The prison. Open
heimer was always consliere the
most dangerous of the prisoners he
VAS greatly feared not only hy has
fellow prisoners but also by the
prison guards and official and fer
several years q, vas CONSIDERED nee
esssary 20 have aim watcrel and
guarded by two guards armed with
loaded rifles Oppenhelmt was
the most sullen and refractor, pris-
0ner IN the penitentiary aud On