Imperial Valley press., 1926-03-18
EXECUTION
OCCURS IN
DIM DAWN
West Pointer Shot Girl
Five Times After She
Refused to Marry Him
WEIRD DEATH SCENE
Trap Sprung in Desolate
Barn at Ft. Mckinley,
in Philippine Islands.
By WILLIAM r. kUHNS

lnlted ffeSs Starr Correspondent
MANILA. March 1S.-Lieutcnant
! John S. Thompson, West Point
! graduate of 1923, and Beau Brum-
mel of the army colony, was hanged
at 5:24 Il. III. today in an abandoned
barn like structure back of the
ouartermaster supply house at Fort
Mckinley.
The old building, in the half light
of dawn. provided Il weird setting
for the, final act of a tragedy that
began few minutes after midnight
April 26, 1925, when Thompson fired
five bullets into the breast of 16
year old Audrey Burleigh, step
daughter of Captain Hamilton e
Gaines and favorite of the army set.
Thompson, son of the Rev. Milton
Thompson, of Astoria, \. Y, was in
, love with Audrey. He said he shot
her because she would not marry
him.
The condemned man chose the
date and hour of his execution and
told friends several days before his
death that he was tired of life and
ready to be hanged. His appetite
remained normal through to his last
meal and although the prisoner was
guarded by secrecy he was known
to have had daily talks with the
chaplain.
Dies By Candle Light
BY order of the commanding gem
cral. all preparations for the eXecu
tion were kept from the public. The
pale light of several army lanterns.
y stiffness disturbed only by the
movements Of the cXccutioncrs and
Il few muffled orders were the only
signs that the execution was about
to take place. Then the trap spring
clicked and Thompson. bound hand
and foot dropped through the aper
turc to death. Thompson went to
the gallows in uniform bni without
insignia. He had been stripped of
his rank.
The courtmartial first convened
to try Thompson in August and then
aliomned to September |. Thomp-
sen changed his plea from insanity
to manSlaughtcr and on September
. he was sentenced to hang. Pres
idcnt Coolidge approved the sen
toncc February 10.
Miss Burleigh died ON the night
of u great personal triumph at an
amateur entertainment at the army
and navy club. Half an hour be-
fore her death she was standing in
the center of group of friends
,1-bn I'm a tol ho,. cAlp
dance. Just then Thompson step
ped up and asked the girl to ac-
company him for Il few minutes
conversation.
Would Not Marry Him
After several attempts to break
away from her friends, Miss Bur
leigh succeeded and joined Thomp-
son, who was in an automobile out
side. While the chauffeur drove
aimlessly about the city, Thompson,
according to bis own story, pleaded
with Miss Burleigh to marry him.
She said she was not ready to marry
A sense of impending danger
may have warned her. ANYWAY,
she ordered the chauffeur to disrc-
gard Thompson s commands and to
return to the club. AS the ear
passed the OLE Spanish fortress, tho
chauffeur heard an explosion. Four
slml1tar explosions folloWe q.
Thompson was bending oyer the dy-
| ing girl with revolver in his
hand. The killer ordered the chauf,
feur to drive to Fort Mckinley, an,i
! during the journey he sat hvsterical
IN the back seat elasping Miss Bur
leigh S body. The car drove up
before a guard house and Thompson
gave himself up.