The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-06-28
DOCK B|GHAM PAYS !. PENALTY OF CRIME
 ON THE SCAFFOLD
Murderer of Officer Hanged in the Tuscaloosa County Jail Yesterday at
 High Noon

Tuscaloosa June 27. - Especially Dock Bigham was hanged in the Tus- caloesa county jail at 12 o'clock today for the murder of Sheriff W. P. Watts, August Is, 1918.
 Dock Bigham was a product of the remote regions of Tuscaloosa county. in the northern part, which for years was noted for the prevalence of moon shining and general lawlessness. He was 4s years of age and had been in trouble a large part of his life
 When quite q young man he was ar rested. charged with assassinatfng from ambush his uncle, E. Cooper. the alle- gation being that he was paid $50 to do the Job. Close relatives of Cooper assert that Dock did the job. Bigham. when asked about it replied, Thirteen of us have been in jail for that killing and none of us have ever been con victed."
 His next debut into community prom thence was when he was accused about Is years ago of burning 12 or 15 houses in the E. B. Tierce neighborhood. Dock smiled enigmatically and declined to own up that he did the burning, but said he knew who did do 1t, and de- clined to give further information.
 ESCAPED FROM PEN
 Some seven or eight years ago he was indicted, tried and convicted in Tusca- loosa county for the murder of Sonny Pruitt, a negro, and was sentenced 10 z years in the penitentiary. Dock. de- spite his ilhterAcy, had good deal of native wit and was as mild hammered man as ever shot from ambush and as genial person as ever put torch to house He ingratiaked himself with the penitentiary officials and was made a uuSty, which confidence he promptly abused by taking leg bail and returning to his haunts in the wilds of Tuscaloosa county, resuming the preferred occupa- ton of making moonshine whisky.
 Sheriff Palmer and deputies located him in the vicinity of Fosters Ferry about five years ago. where Dock and his 15-year-old boy were living in the canebrakes of the Warrior. In the fight that ensued his boy was killed and Dock received five or six buckshot in the hip. He was returned to the penitentiary, and concluded he was q greatly persecuted man. At first opportunity he escaped again and returned to his boyAood scenes in tho wild part of the county and was engaged, so 1t developed at the trial in guarding a wildcat still, being paid E per day. He was Qfoted as repeatedly saying that he would not be taken alive. nor could any officer approach the still tACoRI OFCK HIS Q04o
 KILLED SHERIFF
 August Is. 1913. Sheriff P. M Watts of Tuscaloosa county went out with several deputies to raid the still There was a United States deputy marshal in the party. Bigham rose up from behind cover and emptied a load of buckshot into the sheriff. killing him instantly. The sheriff never knew what killed him. as he was looking in another direction. The deputy mar shal fired, wounding Bigham in the arm and shooting away the cap of his left knee Bigham in the excitement escaped. and was captured by means of August Is. three days later. He had attempted to perform an operation on his knee with his pock- etknife. He was unarmed save with a switch, with which he was beating off the paying dogs.
 He was exhausted and did not aA- tempt further rssistance.
 While he was in the penitentiary serving sentence for the killing of Sonny Pruitt his wife divorced him and married again. He has 14-year- sisters, and his old mother now in her eighties, Is hale and hearty and has visited him In the jail
 Bigham professed repentance and under the manifestations of a local minister. Several women cir culated petitions around Tuscaloosa, asking executive clemency for BighAm, and it is said that the petitions sub mitted altogether contained about thousand nameA mainly. however, from the neighborhood in which he was raised. He has been very kindly treated since his sentence was af- firmed and some young ladies volun- teered to % to the jail and play some music for him, which offer was de- clined.
 Sheriff Hughes endeavored in every