The Palatka news and advertiser., 1915-06-04
A PRIVATE HANGING
With A PUBLIC VIEW
Of the Plunge-Swaying
Body will be Inside En-
closure.

The Palatka Woman's Club has
passed a resolution condemning the
public hanging of the negro, Clyde
Slower, murderer of the Gardner
brothers, one week from today. These
ladies do not think the view Of this
execution will be especially conducive
to the moral uplift of our young peo-
pie, many of whom will attend
through curiosity. The ladies are
probably right; they usually are.
Even the city council, through
resolution introduced on Tuesday
night by Alderman Davis, foremost
in every good word and work, and
who says he is getting weary in we'll
doing, has declared itself opposed to
this public exhibition of murderer's
exit from weary and wicked world.
The council resolution which was
passed unanimously, called for com.
mittee of three and the president of
council to appear before the county
commissioners and ask that body to
appropriate a sum of money sufficient
to build screen around the condemn
ed murderer as he mounts the gal
lows. The resolution also called for
a request to be made to the sheriff to
have all the religious ceremony of ex-
treme JUNCTION, ETC., performed inside
the Jail, and before the condemned
man mounts the scaffold.
The resolution was well meant, but
it was lacking in that diplomacy so
useful in getting through any nova
tion from established custom. The
execution of criminals is left entirely
to the sheriff of the county. He is
told when and where and how to do
it. The law says it shall be inside
the Jail enclosure. This will be done
strictly according to law-you can
trust Sheriff Kennerly for that. The
county commissioners have authority
to appropriate money for screen, but
the council would have done better had
it recognized Sheriff Kennerly as the
proper man to make the request. He
is a reasonable fellow, this Sheriff
Kennerly, and perhaps it's not too late
now. He know our manner of execu.
tion is not conducive to that modern
aestheticism which is becoming sc
prevalent in his bailiwick. He ex,
poets to be a candidate for office
again, and will be anxious to please
, for that reason, if for no other. Bu
= Kennerly always wants to please; i
comes natural to him. That is why
v we say the council should have usec
| more diplomacy; sent their resolution
), to the one man who has say in tht
: matter.
Sheriff Kennerly told The News
= that he intended to have the religious
$ ceremony, the ante-mortem funeral
5 as it were, in the Jail proper. He sale
e that he recognized that the promis
| cous view of hanging was not mic,
$ for children nor conducive to theil
t better natures. But he said that tn,
, man would only be seen for a few mo
ments from the top of the scaffold ant
while the rope was being adjusted
around his neck. He would drop in
to an enclosure where the body coult
not be seen from the outside. H,
: did not say that he would not build ;
: high screen around the whole proceed
ing, but he said he ought not to b.
V expected to go to that expense, anC
the county had no money.
: A bill was introduced in the legis
lature calling for the private execu
: tion of criminals by electrocution. 1
was wise proposition and shoulc
have passed. The time has come il
. Florida when these semi-public hang
ngs should be cut out of our sys
tenn of social science. They are bru
talizing.
But, what can you do? Thee i!
absolutely nothing you c"n do n w
but see the sheriff and ask him if h
will not, provided you furnish tn
lumber, have a screen erected thH
will shut out the view from tn,
street. AS we said before, Sher'f
! Kennerly is a reasonable man, and h
, loves to pleHse; Fe is our high sher
: if, but he is never autocratic, no.
: stuck on himself. Don't blHme h n
, for doing what the law says he mus
, do, and doing it according to law
q rather give him your sympathy TO,
, being obliged to perform an occasion
= IL