South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-06-13
CRIMINALS WILL
BE GIVEN DEATH
PENALTY BY GAS
Nevada Substitutes New Form
For the Execution of
Condemned Men.


Condemned Men.
RENO. New, June 11.-Thudding
crash of bullets or sickening drop
from a scaffold will no longer bring
legal death in Nevada. Instead
drugged into unconsciousness. Grim
inals will be placed in an alright
chamber. where death Will come in \
stealthy approach of tasteless,
odorless gas.
Prior TO January of this year d
man condemned 10 death had choice /
OF one of two ways to die. He could
select the bullet or the hangman's
moose. Choice was removed by the +
last legislature, meeting in Carson
I City early this year. when it passed 4
a bill decreeing death penalties /
should be eXacted through the use +
of a deadly gas.
A new tier of cells is rapidly near /,
I ing completion at the state peniten-
\ tiary in Carson City. In that tier
\ Of cells are three which TO outward I
/ appearance correspond exactly with I
/ the other cells in the prison houser /
/ Written over the entrance of each |
| cell, unseen except by eyes that must |
/ soon face death, is a legend of an
guish, for the three cells are death
/ cells.
Death cells in literal truth, for the
/ cell in which the condemned prison
/ or passes the last days on earth is
/ the cell where death will steal on
/ him or her sometime during the
/ fatal week which has been set apart
as the week of death
Invisible Gas Pipes.
Close by the death cells lies the
\ executiOner's room. There are no
Y switches to swing into contact here,
nor buttons TO push which will re-
lease drop beneath the prisoners
feet. Instead great tanks of death
dealing gas stand waiting the day of
/ carrying out sentence pronounced as
penalty for crime. Pipes lead from
this room to each of the death cells.
Their outlets cannot be seen by the
eyes of the condemned. yet through
the openings leading into the cells
death will rush when the signal has
been given.
Provisions in passing sentences
will be the same as provisions under
the old inhictiOn of death penalty
except for phrasing shot until
dead" or hanged by the neck until
dead" for which will be substituted,
placed in a room filled with lethal
gas. there to remain until dead
In all three cells arrangements
have been made so ventilation may
be cut off. and in each door is a
heavy glass window. Witnesses will
use the window through which 10
view the unfortunate passing from
life to death.
Opiate in Last Supper.
In passing sentence death is desig-
mated to take place within a week.
Under Nevada's new law, when the
final week arrives any meal may be
the condemned mans last meal on
earth. for in the food on the fatal
day will be a strong opiate. As he
finishes eating drowsiness will close
his eyes in sleep. the window TO his
cell Will be closed alright, the
c lose-fitting door will swing on him
for the last time. witnesses will take
their places, and as the deadly gas is
forced into the death cell the con-
demned man will go to his Maker
without ever having known that final
payment is being made.
During the debate on the bill sew
eral legislators pointed out the fact
that mental torture would not be
ended with use OF lethal gas instead
Of rife or moose. All the horrors of
waiting must be borne under the
lethaI gas law which were exper-
fenced by condemned men who had
made their choice Of being shot or
hanged. The question was raised
relative 20 how an opiate would be
administered in cases where the
condemned start a hunger strike
with refusal 10 eat any food during
the week decreed as time for execu-
b ton. Another question asked wes
whether the average man would
not rather die with his faculties
alert, meeting death as a man rather
than as a dumb brute?"
Hanging OF Casey.
No answers were given these
questions. When they will be an
swered in actual experience Of a
J man or woman waiting death can
not be told, for none IS waiting
death at the present time.
Nevada has not exacted death
penalty since 1918. With the priv
ilege of electing the form OF death.
either shooting or hanging. a man
known only as Casey was hanged IN
that year. No one has ever learned
Casey's real identity. He was known
only as Casey when arrested for
murder: he went through his trial
alone and friendless as Casey; he
was hanged by the neck until dead
as Casey.
There was but one outstanding
feature OF his case. Casey had only
one leg the missing member being
replaced with a wooden leg He
was asked a few days before being
hanged whether he would die with
or without his wooden leg. He said:
Without IT." on the morning OF
the final day he decided he wanted
his wooden leg 10 so with him. This
necessitated last minute refiguring
Of weights and length OF drop. but
his desire was granted. and Casey
went 20 his death without parting