New Britain herald., 1923-01-09
WOMAN ANDLOVER
 DIE ON SCAFFOLD
,e0n,inusa from First Page,


 tcoR,iAued from First Pasel 10 the scenes of the hangings as the law would permit,
 Her Last Interview
 After last minute efforts to reprieye the prisoners had failed, Airs, Thamps son in her last interview with her par ents, brother and sister, said,
 'l am prepared, l have nelhing on my soul" She added that BishoP stepney. who visited her earlier in the night had ased whether she had any thing to confess. and that she had re- nliedl
 'Nothing, I am innocent" nywaters was allowed to spend an hour and half with his mother who was overcome with grief,
 King Turns Deaf Far
 An organization calling itself the league of Christian intereession" ans nauneed late in the night that il had made last unsuccessful petition to the king to reprieve the condemned.
 Notwithstanding the agitation against capital punishment which the cases have excited. none Of the Lon don newspapers, except the socialist Herald. raises its voice today in pros test Ramsay Macdonald. chairman of the labor party in a communication to the Herald angrily declares the eSeeu- tions to be an outrage to every sensi- bility which marks civilized beings from savages,'
 Sensational Case
 The executions Of Bywaters and Mrs. Thompson brought to an end one Of l England's most sensational murder cases since the crippen affair and in- cldentally provided the first instance of capital punishment of woman In England for IS years,
 Percy Thompson. a shipping clerk. was stabbed to death near his home in Ilford. a London suburb. early in tho morning of October {. last. while re- turning from theater with his wife. When found. the body was propped against a wall. and his beautiful young wife was neeling nearby in hysteri- cal condition.
 Bywatnrs Arrested Upon the strength of her story to the police Bywaters, 20 year old steamship steward, was arrested two days later and accused jointly with Mrs Thompson of murder. An im- mediate sensation was caused when the police submitted at the first hear ing an alleged confession in which Bywaters appeared as declaring that his love for Mrs Thompson had prompted the act.
 Later a series of remarkable letters was produced in which Mrs. Thomp- son, addressing Bywaters in the most endearing terms. urged him to study the effect of various poisons on the human system and told of bungling several attempts on her husbands life by introducing various substances into his food. One letter told of using pow dered glass from three electric bulbs but with mo effect"
 Inteerst in the case was intense. and when the trial opened on Decem- Der z in Old Bailey. the courtroom was crowded with curious spectators, some of whom had stood in line from one o'clock in the morning to gain ad- mission.
 Was old Friend
 It was shown during the trial that Bywaters had been a close friend or the Thompsons for some time. By waters himself declared on the stand that he had seen Thompson strike his wife and he pleaded that in attacking the husband he did not intend to kill nt.e @{l 1i was forced to slay in self defense. The evidence showed that Bywaters and Mrs. Thompson had been together the afternoon before the attack.
 Jury Acts Quickly
 The jury, which included one wom- an, returned verdict of guilty against both defendants on December II, after brief deliberation, and sentences Of death were immediately pronounced. Mrs. Thompson collapsed in the pris- oners dock moaning T am not guilty, am not guilty" but Bywaters did not finch although also proclaiming his innocence.
 The lord chief justice on December 21 dismissed the appeals of the con- demned couple, and appeals for clemency were carried to the home office, the last resort, but without avail.
 Woman Mostly Blamed
 Petitions in favor of Bywaters were signed by more than million persons but comparatlvely few came out for Mrs. Thompson. Public sympathy for the man was based largely on the be- lief that he was the unwilling tool of the woman who was eight years his senior.
 The last hope for the pair was shat tered yesterday when Home Secretary Bridgman declared in answer to many queries that he could not depart from his decision and that the executions must be carried out.
 Persons living near Pentonville prison say that never before have they seen such crowds gather for an execu- ton. When the authorities of both jails posted at the gates the brief off, ficial announcement that the death sentences had been carried out the spectators rushed forward in such numbers that the police found it diff ficult to maintain order and were ODl1Stu IO " clear the street.
 Takes Secret to Gallows
 The last message between the lovers was entrusted last evening to the bishop of Stepney who carried to Mrs. Thompson from young Bywaters some word which she took to the scaffold as a secret.
 Shortly after her talk with the bishop in which she protested her in- nocence, Mrs Thompson collapsed.