HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe New Era, 1883-01-19, Page 3ayL9, 1
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MURDERER'S DOO
Thchael O'Rourke Pays the
Penalty of His Crimes.
INTERVIEWING THE PRISONER
fieblarkab le . Nerve' 'Di:splayed by
theDoomed-Man.,
14digt.,„ GALIAriVSt.
JOeilfeesiorao1„tlieiCia1iarat.riacata.oet;
, atria o. , • ...
(From Friday's Daily Tnensa ,
The last scene of the' Nelson • tragedy
, 'was, enaotted'Foiday-niornitig,When Michael
intirderer,afoned With his 1if
on the'.etaltffold. for :the'. daeadfpl orime
whiehahee doinmitted heftily a .yeiti ago-
-
-A representative of tha 'Trans went out
"Ili Milton'', Thursday afternoonaa There.
-was a veri.dittlel,eacitement. tevina
though- .the jappooaehnig, .,eXeiiutiori was
,aamost the tepid ofconversation at the-
Liotelea .1 '- ' '
" INTERVIEW WITH • •
,Tha reporter was ena,pled ici Bemire it brief
„anterviewawitlatlieecoulepaned.rean.yeatet-
-4Y, evernng He was recewe by the
-eotirteousjaileraMra VanAllan, and shown
by him up one of the winding iron stair -
Oases ' which lead to the upper corridors of
-the prison, and ushered into a small, but
neat and pleasant ociaridor. the • centre
of.the' apartment was,a, large wood-stoae, in
Whigh a ,fierce • fire -we- blazing, and the
Fplace was almest optiOessivela Warm. ,., Only.
, ,five cellexipened„, hat° the corridor, ni
,ente. of theme -the fealithlroin the door-aaiat.
7011,ourkeieating.-Ins,Suppera Oa '-teaabieacl`
•. and ,preserves. He Was iiitting..00.- it:16w-
- .abocil quite closeto thegrating of his cell,
leaning over his: victuals, which he was
dispatching with evident relish. He looked
• ten year's older than headid wheelie cepa
mitted the mueder.Realerse, :fear ,:,ana
solitude had thinned his cheek and marked
deep lines in his face and sprinkled his
'hair with silver. Though net . tench, over
•.:40, he rooked man between 40 and 50
yeareold. • T.he reporter had. 41i -early been
' informed by the jailer ' that then:awed. no
• use in asking O'Rourke any questions,
became he had made up- his. mind not to
answer, ' having already , told -Father
O'Reilly; er Oakville, all hedesired to tell,
• and the reporter expeeted to meet' with a.
very cool • reception. - But the ...criminal,
. though unoommunicative; washy ne, Means
' Uoivi1. -When the reporter.stepped to,the
grating and addressed ahY. painea he
looked hp, put -detail the can Or lea Which
he was in the act. of carrying to his lips,
sad ,said with. his • mouth full; "Good
• _evening,. sir,"• ,
-• . He was dressed iathe, prison- garb, and
lad .draa rough flannel ehirt: Though...hie
fettle ,bereaaaek,of .dogged despair, and laie
eyes had a wild, hunted look' in them/like
. the.eyes of a. wild:animal trying t� escape
trom its pursuers, his roanher was, opol
aud Oemposed; and the tohe Of his voice was
quite brisk,4-everi cheerful. , • „ •• .. a
"Geed -settina
down his tin of .tea and looking up ,inquira
• ngly at the reporter.
-Alter introducing himself,„ ,the reporter
• stated theaOhleat :Of hie, aasitaand
tiaida" Istheie•anything Whieh ypnwish to
, •Makepublio- eitherattlapiat., yehrtielaloi ,the
murder?" • .
No—nothing," replied O'Rourke, dog
• geolly„liftinglis can of tetiato' his lips and
• taking..a long pull at tt.. '
•.-"I anal ,toad that yoh ha,ye Fiala to Father'
•',O'Reilly all You wish -to be made' publioa"
"Yes, I've tea htm everYthizig, and I've'
hing more to Say." .• •• .
re you quite reeigeed to your 'rate
, .
• • ,then Mike?"
aa,Ela?" hetetiaaleokiagup suddealtain a
Wilderedapit 0, [laity:" aa .
Tiie queetien4iie,pipeated, an'&0Heurke
a larisltatueitiestalike
• "Oh, do you Mean Would I rather die
"'to-morroW than go to 'penitentiary, for
•dire ? , ,
!' "Ys; .we'll•put it that Way.a
".Well,•yee, I would," he said, in -a bower -
tone and quite slowly: • • .
a'a "You aie quite prepared for death then,
-Ltre you, e
• There 'Fast; tit Pause or .13e*al,feeoads,
then ,!thel,, petirdeaer ealca, veateadyely,
"les, ,r hoPe sca" aar ' • .
".,Can't you think of anything triere :that
youwould like the,publeatiaknota asked
' the reporter; after IO'Rourke had 'answered
threirytielliciffirtVithililencea -
can'tthink efamthitig more than
,'I'tre told Father O'Reilly. 1 don't Want to
.,opeak way ,Moae," ahd O'Rourke renewed
': kis attacks on the bread and presisoyee an&
,1:teaaavithiaedctibled entiagy. .•,,•:•[,,a,a
saintlier heeresr.,
• After the ,Tinne representative left
O'Rourke .1ttetevenieg, the, cendenined man
appeared to be anitioinite. say aymietliffig.
At length, calling the. turnkey,: Cum-
- mor, to the gratieg•of his dell,' he ' said, I
want tosity something. o you that I- payer
• 4.8#4,1?efor,e,,,,,..
11.9*Alf: Now aiuJer ,rah
deed, I want- you to khciw the truth: You
and Mr. VanAllini atliejailer] go. to Mrs.
Howellst clergyraan'ap& telkhire!to, pee her
and get her to tell the truth: Her daughter.
swore to what was true, but she swore to a
"But," said .the turnkey, "did you
.not make a full, cenfeesion. or Your orinie to
the, deteetivi; vehen you •weyear-
tekited4,' qi! ,T wetbj
"1 '$.ditin't .ciiresth fie
• ),pl;krifessed-to roe. He make& inc questfons
in such a way that I answered theta just as
ite avatited•me :to. ' 13,0. yoh dei what Ihave
• siked you, feri want yeti to geit4it the real
frith. Youpg.Cartwriglit eivore :false • too;"
, ,
. iliS ANTECEDENTS.' ,
• aSince .hie imprisonment O'Rourke re-
- -av r 1x ettere foam,
:tvitoalitaii tingeten;lxithe thatadthem
fieglectend' they -bate' rarhaineit'Un,
• ,earkivered. He, anticla his „Wafe Wee./a, hecl
.wanari and lieWantecl.nethttig mere* .do
t eight Yaars„sge. His parerits-were
Witk her: 13emarriedher, itappears
. ,
• oppe3ed to the mateh,on... the_ -ground that
„she_ Vett PaPaaatkitant
the .pepple. was eventually • overcome
and he young einiple went to, live on Old
,Mr, O'Remriteat ia-rm near. Etneetpwai
. Ont. '; Tneyahad netOetieri
thansix, 'Oaths, 4ovier,ibefora4heY
, were iotharteeted eti a -Charge Of perjury.
They, rad 'endeavored 'to ,bring home
:charge of rape' a.gainet two fartneroi, , and
had o•erahot their mark. -ConVieted of
perin6-rheY were eentenced to two. years
.aaaa tet aae,laingstota Ponitentiaraa b After
serviigbis term out' O'Rourke came west
'with:hie:father auditiother and his wife
allayedala Kingston. He never w her.
„
The felinwing additional feats.' of hie life'
were r, telt ea.FatherO'Reilryby-
OROurke hinuielf ; He Was. born in County
Wexford., Ireland. in 1850, had came to
Caanadain 1802. The family lived first in
Kingston, and then rein'oteed tetErneetovena
a few miles further west. O'Rotakers
father bought 200 adree ac bush land, which
he sold in a year, and With, the . pita:1,66de
purchased 31 ares, and it was On 'thie
-eautliefaim-that the future' murderer was
reared.. He, with hie father ,,.and • two
brothers, Used to take, contOacte-foi macs
adainizing new roads, beeid,ea doieg the
regular wok of the farm'. Six aears, ago
_old alaara„ChRourke-aeold • hisalarni ,and,
Opming. wet, settled on a on
the !! Brook Road, 'betweee Hamilton
ated • Chielph. Maohael'a Siete* and two broth-
eas: l!aitake aphiried. and' Settled in the
eaaternpaat 'Oa the PrOvinoe and he alone
accompanied hie father- and iniothet to the
tiew.fatina , It „ Ocinisisted ef-fifty wires and
was rentectfeei Only a year.. : At the eapira-
tioriapf thattitneold Mr. O'Rourke bought a
small house With an aere Of ;land .4061.0 it
ontlie Brook Road, pear the ,aaoati he had
,jiiet amaateda' As Mielattel'ettesiatatieeatvas
not needed to work thie little aateh orland •
heliredhiauielf out:to ,the aerie:woe, �i the
• neighbOrheod, dentributing: Ovaaidea the.
atipalart Oa hie tigea pitteriteja Atiansta
1881, his mother died bite suddenly, and
inathe following I month -the: 'Oda Man .fel..
leaved lie Wirea," having .,heenetancik'down
likaafit -of apoplexy. -The -remainder :of
O'Reurke'e history has.' •alreadyleetia,pube
aa, .., •
D.uring ,O.',Reurhesinaprisonnientpatkick
Mahar capie once to pee him:, !Pat. was,
oather,bipie thanhelf, epee tiveO, antrwitit
ino1xed to be: very friendly with the
deter of hie father and „sister. . •Efe, leaned.
•ii.ga-itititthe grating of the , Cell .and 'said. in
.an insinuating aoioe; boS,.
how are you? " O'Roiarkeadidnet reply,
hut shrunkback fearing that Mahar'had
&Mee ,to shoot -bine. . But he wee tatickly
reassured, and the two mett entered into a
friendly and cionfidential ocinversation:
Pat. reealted his hand through the bare and
shicla''' Well, ola fellow, •sorry'fpeyOu,
hepe;Yeli'll keep 'tip' your pirith" The
prisonerdid not :kilo* what Mike of
1lliallar"ea.fraeodlineata: and told,:theaatler
When he left.tliat Pet.: was the litistatart
whom he eapeoted to come and see him in
a-frie,ndly Way.; '•
rata meabanen's /AST NIGHT.
•'Rcherke's :Nat night • onearth" wee
reseed. with Reva•Father 0'.Reilloa61,a0iik-
vine; who hes' been most assiduous in his
attentions to the condemned Man. He
slept feraabout. four hours— so eomidly that
he had to be '-itWahetied. , The rest oa, the
night he passed inconvereatioia with Father
O'Reillyandin prayer. . His oonaition of
,mind may .bejudged from . a !lei:Mirk he
made to the Deputy -Sheriff just before he,
lay down for the night: The,Official aaiat.
to him, ".I hope you will sleet, .well, -.to-
' night, , Mike." " Well,. if I- don't; sir,"
a,nsavered - Mike, 'with a . Smile,. , "I'll
'Eileen well • to -morrow • night." -He
was. awakened at daylight this moring,,
and receiVed-the last sacrament"from the
heads -ad Father ,' O'Reilly. He ate., -a
• .hearty breakfast without speaking a word:
A few, .minutes before .8 o'clock :the :hang=,
man was brought. into. the • corridor in
, • . . ,
which . O'Rourke • was waiting.- ' .,The • face
of the hangman was covered with a'heavy
hlitea - mask ap .that it Was '.iMPOSSible to
-seebie features. He began the pinioning
Of O'Rourke in almeinesialike, alert fashion,
,and . the -.prisoner submitted without a
murmur. : His' arms were -tied at the
• elbows and fastened aloe° to his sides, and
the rope was also Passed round hie wrists.
-While athe .1 executioner ' was at work.
.0,'Rourkesintled .ana_. eaitleaarou'_veadone...
this vaprh before•I'l.• - a., 1.. a ., . , • • ,, .-
,THH, TRIAL. '
Thetrial of the Murderpt tpok place last
March at the Hatton •Assizes, held in Mil:
ton, before Mr. Justice Cameron. • The:
-prisonerwas de,fended by Mr. .N. .Murphy,
.0 Toronto, and Mr. George Tiza,rd, of Oak-
ville.- At the ' advide -ef "hitie '061.113sel he
pleedednot•guiltya -Mr. Oster, Q..C., con-
• ducted the, prosecution' On behalf Of the
'Crown. The, trial lasted two days, and the
inevitable result was that -the prisoper was'
found ;guilty. He ' was senteneed to be
- banged at Milton 00ethe':,9th.,,cf„..Jane laet-
'clon..ike,,reeeived1114110e041.90.',Oh 're'.
.therkidale.Calpineee, a. i!a, „,..a. a ...:)a
' I ea inediathly after the' toial Mt.' Murphy. .
moved for a writ of error and. demanded a
new trial on the ground of irreghlitrity in
the selection 0 t, heaju, r. ors. • They had bean
• chese,h in accoadapee,. with the Provipoial
laws, which were ultrri.vir'ed.' They shpula,
he contended, have been chosen under the
'Dominion statutes.; In - order that this
teohnioal point might beatriply investigated,
I'an& ,discutieed, a aeprie,ye , was 'granted
„O'Roiirke to, the 5th ,oathe ,Present -month.
,al'he point raised- by xi: Murphy was not:
sustained, a new trial was refused, and the
.Goverhment, refusing any further reprieve,
edecidedleallottathe.lawetiatitkeitsacolirsee,
Te -morrow morning, ' ' therefore, ' Michael
-• O'Rourke will pay the penalty of his orianea,
• • The murderer is ti than not more than
,25 Years Of age; of *dale height:Zan& Well,
bui1C. His hairiel*a.c1;' and atthe time of
' the ititirder'alie..,fweorti a moinitildhe,Whicli
was -also red. Thatigh there is nothing'
• particularly vicipusin his appearance e he,
isa chilla thaiptelligent looking men, .alldie
very -ighoranta, being -, enable to teed or
write. He came from the peieliborliood•of
' Ganancque With his father and mother
ahotit six years ago, and rented. areal:6.
,betweep ..Fretaton. and ,Ho.aelland,,'' '' Both '
ilia.; parent,a,dted '..i.11' the puinther Of 1881,
• within a feve weeks Of ' each other. _After
their death he sold what household goods'
remained -an& disappeared suddenly. In
, .siia weeks he came back in a oagged and
• veretchea. Coadition,. and was, hired by the
Nub.* who treated hire•well. •' O'Rourke
it is sma, h wire living near Kin eeten,
. whetleft hid and refused to liVeavitlitiina
' on ithootint oChigaungoacianable tenipea and
acitnea 4130kt:ion. - r: ,., , .,, .
• • • The inxecutloth •.
•
' The pinioning being .completed, Father
• O'atedly ptit acrucifit, ' into -one of
••,O'Rourke's hands 'an a it rogary in the other,
• . a d the menunful mammal started for the,
gallows., The , .Sheriff led the way, tho.
pkisemer followed, •with ' Father. O'Reilly
' -Walkipg at hts etde ;, the executioner „came.
eit, 'bearing...la', hisehandthe White l'•'ciap,-
' With vilikai lneover the eyes Ontedeinated-
,marieliadbeiat twetitya- or. thirty officials;
' ;reatir„tersishrgeonsaand privileged persons
. brought up the rear -Three er fohr inches, of
snow had fallen -during the night, and.. the'
-jail rad wde -covered with a white mantle.'
The „par_ wee, keen, and as .O'Reurlse
emerged from- -the Pilsen he shrunk and
shivered With the .cold. Recovering him -
elf, he he etraighteued up as Much itt :his
• beria.o wOuld allow- asthottgli'heepipg'thinta
' eela ter tnal effort; and *aadhed, onaaith
i it firth, Sethi. '..HO VieWScrthO•gallOiVi3 atattlly
and ItS0911ded the etepeviithout a 'treater.
From his demeanor, one would judge that
he was the meat eatrapoeed ;men', in he
group Which .• stoodon the pint -
form.' Beforeh' 1 ft • the • • `1,
his'fiee was waxy pale, but the keen moan-
ing sit had brought a flush into his cheeks.
is La06 wore a loole or stolid tudifferenee.
1:1(3 appeared to be eager' to hurry the
event, and had, lardly arrived' at theplat-
form of -the -scaffold before -he aavexcedand
Voltintarily.knelt on the trap. •The hang
man 'then canoe up and adjusted tile noose
oh O'Rourkele neck, 'fastening the knot
between his ohin and left ear: Thyabeing
-doh& the Sheriff uncovered leis.hesal and,
-in a voice trembling with' einotielp;
Bliahael O'Rourke, have -you anything to
say...heave .the sentence leceatied out?' j
O'Rourke glanced up, hrid said, his, low,
somewhat timid voice, "No, sir ; den't.
feel • inclined • to say anything." Rev.
Father O'Reilly then said:. a. .,e..31a.
O'Rourke does not intend Ito Make, any
declaration or statement whatever ; atich
he coiesiders Would be Of very little paeapst
now. His life, is about to betaken
he cannot sate, hut he ,hopes,throagla the
mercy of God- to save his immortal.. soul.
His mind is too' mach engaged with this
all-important affair to allow of him turning
his thoughts (eyen- for monient) froua' his
Creator and Jiidge,- before- Whoin be shall
appear in &few aionaents., He forgives all his
enemies ; lie hopes that all whom homay
have ever Offended will forgive ,him.- He -
wishes -to return' thanks,. to all who,
sympathized with him' in -his troubles, and
1.reque8ts of you," through Your eherity, to
pray that God may have mercy on hissoul."
• Mating the reve,rend gentleman's brief
epeeoli O'Rourke kept his. eyes fiied on
aerial:icy, the setae • •• stolid, indifferent
e4rei3sion in his face: The Onlyathing_,
by which one could know ,thatle felt any
emotion was an' Occasional twitching of.
the inusotea -at the Cokiferia Of hie mouth.
When Father O'Reilly finished hie tenaarke
he knelt downlieside the doomed Men and ,
repeated • the aLord's Priaei and an Ave,
O'Rourke following him • in :alow voice, at'
the same 'time , keeping 'his epee .. filed in-
tently on thepriest's feats... 'As t.hesecorid ,
prayer waaabeiugafitaished ,'the executioner;
appietached "aflal, aproceeded • • Uncere;
niOniciusly to' draw ;.". the white ',cap
over CaRnurke's ' heed; ' was -
not 1100011lpliShed without COnSideittbla
difficulty, -and theliangniati reined at neoes-
saOa to seize O'Rourke by ' the. beard and
force his head- back in oider, t6"-a116*.the
cap to- over' easily. The 'exedutioner,
then took -lis at the .1eVer. There.
was a •painful..painata-the.
silence beirig •; broken only by ,,ttieloW„
IfefinildiiiiaaVoied ; Was'
:. nervously , repeatipg, over and -,over • the
words of the LordePray,er,•eTlitaltingdona
come, Thy will lia done on earthaa it isiu
heaven." - This horrible imaaense lasted ten
or fif teen seconds, . when Waal. tuad
broken by the .execatimier pulliegthe lever -
The' tiap 'flew downwards, CaTorirke.
disappeared suddenly ;there was; a dull,:
'heavy thud, abd the rope tightened and
,swayed to mid fro with, n dead man
-at • the end of , it. Twice the body
heated.' hfter, it ,fell and., once-. the
legs were didavn up convulsively,: but ;after
that all was 6411 until the body had hung
for three or 'four minutes,. whea the
quiveringa which is caused by the, pen-
treation of. the muscles, set in- and cota-
tamed for a -minute-. Or two. It Was well'
thatthe precaution of digging -the. hole
was taken, fox the, rope (Which was ordin-
ary Pnola taaPe) at retched so much.
• that -,O'Rouree's feet almost touched the
bottiamaif, the bele and 'after the body had
hung' far several minutes -the •feet rested
on the' around. After, hangiegior
'minutes the. hanginaiaa oat the. body
•down, -and it ,fell in a heap, into
the hole. _ The ,. jail surgeon , felt. the
neck • (the hangman having first " out
off the. hnot),. and pronounced 'it ,broken.
Death Mina have been instautaneamea• The
cap- being removed, the deed man'a face,
MISS found to be almost unchanged; theexa
preepion.of the features being quite peace-
ful., • The. sockets cif the eyes, however,
.2,were very' ranch swollen, and discoloraticme
appeared under the eyes. .
. .
add -that, 'it ' Was -With' 'difficultythat: he
hlmsell'beep:pea, from the wrath • Of he
enraged ., brother, the , ,Meatitime
Bake* Mahar lied,proohred a lantern,from
aiaeje irgrhi biter 'eaiall aat:tra 04hre t ;nTest'h ehries.
gaze, ' the: floor were -the inanimate
bodies of hie father' and sister lying in -the
bleed which e'llad poured from gbattly
woundstividently inflicted by •some•sharp,
'edged weapon., •:',The single, gash in the
heck of the woman 'showed that she had
been killed- one , blow, but the.
old man had apparently attempted to
,protect himself frptia his, :eatioderer, forahis
lands were ciehched and lie areas:uplifted-
he if to 7 ward .off the blows „Which were -
crashing down on hie peer old bead. • A
search wee at once made for the murderer;
but he was hot "eitptuoed till .the following'
Morning, *hen' Chief' Stewart and De-
leotivea Gates and Mellenaie, of this city,
discovered" him in tbe house of Jerry
• Howells, where a surgeon - was dreBOine the
'wound on his head whial had beea inflicted
by young Mahar. O'Rourke was taken into
custody' by- the ,offigers, • Chief Stewart left
him an charge of Gates, while he ahd•Me-
Kenzie repaired to the scene of ,the tourdei.
On their nature & short .time after, they
-found-Detective:Gates pretectinglallohilie
from a.hand of infuriated farther's,Who were
,S0' determined to avenge th'e death of .the
Mailers that they, had .prootirede rope with
• which to stripg up .• the ,murderer,- and it
-tam With great difficulty: ' that theofficer
oeuld keep thein baek. -Th.e aariaal of the
Chief and McKenzie made anYliatheaeffort
apapaath taapaar t Of,. the -mnb, useless, '; and
shortly afterw-iirdeTfieliiitiOnifinitthafided'
over to the .countya contitablee,lwante had
procured,a warrant for hite•arreet..,-It Was,
very fortunate foraPatrick Mahar that he
did hot kill O'Rourke the,,rencontre at
the doer, and hleo that ,the merd.erer did
. not stick to his briainal, •story but subie-
quently •madea full ConfessiOna_ofithe
'orirne otherwise the :'dirounietaritial
evideneeiagainst him Wouldhive been so
strong that he might hot have, beenable to
escape, andliiallifenaight have:leen
saori-
flaed on the soaffiald to atotieforOaR;ourke's
crime. alaheal.-had olitadeed. the. ohtlgel
;With which he, knooked •O'Rotiikeedown •
:f rpm -a .boy named Arthur Westrall, whom
• he had met on: the road shortiar after leav-
,ipg h,onie.The lad ,was "tee heavy
for" hire to', parry, and -offered, it. to Mahar;
who took it and left it at the Iiiihae Of
neighbor iiutil he-ivaa returning ' hoine at
night; whenlie Called and :get -it tigain,and•
brought -it hone. - It'w as the only weitpeei he,:
had when O'Rourke rettacked'•iline, with',
the axe.- It he had ,killed the slayer of his
father and sister he. could net have eel:hued'
,euspicion.Of having cohnnitted. a triple
Murder, ;and it is doubtfial whethei his
truthful story' could,have saved him from
. the, gallows.. .Againalf O'Rourke had per-
sisted in his original atoryait is likely ,that
Mahar Would belie been punished.fok the
crime of the real, 'murderer, for theatora
seethed inuali more probable than the
aatueA ,oacurrenee.... Fortunately, however,
, the wretched orinairial, impelled by the
influence eithea of remeree &fear, made
full, c'onfession' of hi gui1ti P1 Chief
• Stdveart- shortly-, after hie arrest, and the
suspicion: which had float, .fallen
Pearichalahar was instantly leinoved.
• THE INQUEST.
Shortly after the execution the coroner,
Dr. Freemanaetnpannelled a jury and held
an inquest. The following jurymen were
summoned: Dr.,Sutherland, Jos. Brothers,
W. H. Linde&y, J. P.Rober, W. H. MoNab,
'Sada Gartner, Sol.Hannafit, James Lind-
say, John Duncan, Henry Watson, Jos
Mertin; B. Jones, Peter- Maclean, John
Hunter; John Johnson, Samuel Coxe.
_After_vieveing_the_borly.....and_hearing_the2
'formal evidence Of the jail officials, the
jury brought In the following verdict:
•
To the Coroner, Dr. Freeman :
, .
Your jurors submit' that froth theevidence
adduced at your inquest time the body that .we
have viewed is the body, of Michael', O'Rourke,
and that his death resulted from dislocation of
the spinal column at the hands of ,.justice, and
that hisioxecution was legally performed at the
jail yard, in the town of Milton,. at 8 a. in. on
January 5th, 1883.
'EdWard.,Mahar watt ha 'old overSO
years of age, whoa liaed in easnialr house in
the Township of 'Nelson, ,ElaAton, County,
about twe .miles :beyond ,Watardowni and
about tath :htindred yards rettioVed, froth'
the main road. With him lived his eon
mer about abOut, 35 yee.rtaor �.ge and thetatter
somewhat older..;,A tenaperaryinhiate 6f
'WeliiiiilaiWifildieliaiikAtetarkeTWEO{ lad.
beereengagedabiaPitifelaMither
some tiriae
'during the. stunmei of 4881, to do °hot:lone
and had boarded with She family upto the :
.moOriipg' ofatheadaYaar= the. murder„aithen
he left,theaahhar'a einploy, on the ground
that 'he:Wiebea- to ,•p:1),ke 1:better ',care of his
healthaaWhenhe 106 the •hothae onFOlday
Morning • patriek. Mahar' paid hiiieatiraire.
tbanwaahisdu&andaaidtc, "You've
nothing against us, even 11 Ypuare
! havdyou, MUM.? . No, haven't,' Pat,"
replied' -O'Rourke) r :hate nothing to.
aohaplain of: You've heed me 'number 'one."
Thus he' parted with the family which' had
' berbered'hine fdr -hala ;&aeiti. That 'Vera
1pight,, •,abeeita11 0'elOck,, Pairiek Paeher,
returned home fropi a-yisit.', to .a, neighbor.
While'yetat". a considerable distance from,
the boasts liseawa light shining one 'of the
vvindows,,but as he oanieneox the doer it
suddenly. Went out. 1Wheti he went to
enter the house he found the door riaitened.
He khOcked and caged to has aistet,but she
did not rePrf."7-Ffe palled agani.70'Reurke'd.
voice replied_fickm ;the ' other side Of the
door, e yOU're time enough; Pat; Fmready
for you I."' The woicle, were no iicioner
spoken then the ',door flew. open and
O'Rourke ' auehed.out with an axe ip hie
.hatad. He liftedthewettpon' and aimed. a
blevi at Mabar, but :fortunately , • the ;eine
was too hastily ,taken, and ,though. the,axe,
-tut:00;4 pieceof ,Ifithite's hat it glataCed off
hie head withont doing any fhithei' injury'
than hallicting tialight brhiee.. Mahar had
a Stoht liakoay stick in haild, and lie
brought tt dowo. with all the force he could '
threw idto thebloai fuil '�n the head of
his Would be rourdereri !felling hire to -the
ground., He then Wrenotted ',the, axe from
.O'Routke's grasp. ".,TlitiUgh stunned by, the
bow fiain,Mahttr'e stielt O'Reurke. Mee to
j feet and Made' Off through ,the aim* to
theihouse: of a neighbor, 'heated Jerry
:libWelle, over &Mile • away,: and told alrj:
HOWells" a.' Wild 'stoia' to the effect, that
'Patrick 'Mahar, had: suddenly, eeprie hemp,
and found' hie faster Bridget on his
(O'ReUrke's). knee, and; had 'nitadetedalier
With an 'aate, afterwards lulling 'hi Fi father,
bUrtheil off her salad. Some time -after
their Marriage a- ioU1ty occurred
between hina and a person, named Clarke
On t,heir way to, attend the trialatNapanee
his- was , was terribiy 'frightened by
O'Rourke swearing thathe wouldtake her
life unlese ,alte Swore --,-,to- the ,.effeeft that
Hart had abneed her, Mid even drawn e.
revolver, upon', her. Throng)] fair,
his, wife, did ti.s 'she. wad ;,told,
but 'subsequently, confessed .to perjury,
and on her own admissions walk tient lo the
Penitentiary for Several. :yeare. O'Rourke'
• was also sent to the same papal institution.,
adoch syinpathy was felt' tor hi3r,beeithaa
hitherto libelled borne a -reputation Of the
,highest character. ,,Wheir',,O'Reurke went
to prison he swore he would be revenged
upon her; and since then -she has been
afraid that he Would caary-ut his threats.
On her release froth prison she remained
in Kingston With 'friends, , and has pooven
amiable and very Industrious, - and
endeavored by every means to atone for the
past. Her constant fear Was that her hue -
band would turn up -and harm her„,
and in consequence se had not been
inclined to leave the house at pight.
Some years ,:ago 'she. thought she , aw
her- husband and another paaaa enter the
biijbding iii which, ah e lived. ' The stranger
entered into 'oonvereation with. her, and
, ,
while: thug eagaged Elie saw- a' face at .the
'window' ,ivhicla she • declared was Mioliael
O'Rourke's. • She fied, and heard .no mote
of him` mita the murdei:wao a,nnouneed.
She believed that he was her hilsb'and, and
on receipt ,ofl a, :photograph, ascertained
that her supposition was Well founded.
*Slaeaaaraitetaialiaraseaerilatimesarecently;
urging him tocliecome, repentant and seek
mercy at the hande pf G-od. Just 'about
the time the beardof the murder she was
prePariag, to iehaoyea to the StatesJong
euough t� secure a' divorce This imiitati
IB , now- pot necessary. ' ,She went towork
,tcaday; but 'appeared to' be very neOvoriaa
; • nines.
This-makee the thirdexecution in Halton
County: • The bait, was,on the 305h of Nov-
ember,. 1858,1 when :Thomas Conner was
hainied for the Murder Of two women, and
the other took .place.;,QIIthe .12th.of June,.
• 1a62,When. Edward Meehan suffered the
extreme pensaty ofthelitve :for killing his
inother'While he Was Under the infinericeof.
liquor. , • 1 . • ; -•
No execution in this'. country- WAS ever,
denied Chit se eystimeatically and satiafac-
, .
Thehangman • knew: his busi-
ness•-theroughly,-.,-.' ' It . is • eald'fliat
• he :claimed :to :have officiated
hangman at fifteen executions. Chief
Stewart says' he knows -the man well. . He
was formerly h• 'convict, and lives- in
Toronto: . He received $40 for the 'day's
The body Was buried immediately after
theinqheitta The grave was 'clugalongside--
the .scaffold, close to the •nootheaetein
corner of the ,
- O'Rourke "wits hanged P1 his- prison
drees. It is said that . he wished to- be
banged in ,citizep'e., dress, and Father
O'Reilly eileied to pay -for putt of clothes ,
if the prisoner would be:allowed to wear it; ,
but it was tho . late when the -offer was
• ,
•
made: '
ixeuzse.
The result or the inquest which was held
immediately -after the naurder ,Whe . the
'followingVerdict: "That MiehadityHourke,
Ca -the: .20 th,claY Of Jaritiary. It302,' did fele-,-
hiousdy,- ,1and '• :With inalide afore-
thought: kill, and murder abne, Bridget
,Mlibarotgainetthe ,peeeei-of Our ;Sovereign,
Lady the- Queene her- crown 'and dignity:"
, • 'O'llournele First
• „
Soon after.the ;tragedy, O'Rourke
the following confession . • ,,
• -I know that I. apa, not obliged to make'
any , statement, , and I have been v,ea.thed.
that- any thipa I-say.will , be used against Me.
I desire to tell. the .whole faCts ,"Of the Case,
which,I do not deny.' I have ,been, board-
ing at Mahar'i house; and lived with him
about a.month Yesterday.- I -left his ser-
- vice in the Morning. r returned tO the
house as nearly as I -can recollect ' about. 10
o'clock last night.' The front door' was open.
when I got there and the lanip 'burning.
The daughter was standing 'outside the,
door: ,When'she saw me she sereanaed.
- do .not know Why She screamed. -r said;
nothing; -to her.: , Sheran intoythalionee
.sereerning, . "The old . Man atet Me at the,
_door with% olith inhis hind. He asked What
• I wanted-, and struck at me With the club,
biat inissea me. took up in axe lying
ih a 'Oorner neer- the doer and 'struck . the.
• Old mai 15 knockedliini' down. • I could
net 'say =whether it' wee' the edge or back -
of the .axe. ' Juet as 1 'struck theoldman
I; saw: the ''danghter. with an aie in her
.hand. She clinched 'me, an& we strug-
gled for some Minutes. She held - my
:tubas: , She '..kept eitylig to me,•
hurt .the 'eldainitti" 1 freed- MY., aims
from her. and stkuck, her with the- axe.
She -fell- doWea.saying,.". 'killed.'I This
all. Occurred in the front room. • She
,afterwards. got -up and :wanted into:her
bed -room.: She was bleeding profusely.
.5 heard her. foal down as' eoon as ithe get
intsailissarooae,„__Kalhattattioned_to.leavtathe,
house and ppenedthe,door to go out, .Jhst
at the threshold I met Pati.- He struck
me over the head, ,I ciannotsaY, With Whip..
.II,e- gave ine, ,1, th4111;'; three blows which'
' lineeked I do1:'neirSroeriebei.
striking at Pak -though 1 maylieve had the
axe 'in mytand. I knew before I opened
the 'door that the ..bla mao :and daughter
Were dead-.: deny • moA positively that
.outraged' the daughter ': either before , ,or
after the blows were struck. I went tothe
house with the full intention of striking the
' old man abut- I did -not intend ' to kill .him
I also i nten clod , to Strike, the d aughter, and
would have dorei, So; . even if elm hadmet:
clinched -me: '1 • went purposely tp the
house te 'awls:hit them. ,I do tiot remember
when I chine' to „my- Reuses: after the
'blowe• fres Pat, remeMber.
,rising an& going, through. the woods
•
and- hearing . Pat's voice • 'crying." out
"murder I". 'I made' for the house "where
I•Wlie found Ibis morning for shelter.. .I
told theattleet although the -old, man and
daughter were murdered, that. it 'oceurred
through PatMehar seeing hie eister. sitting
-op-my-kneeaarlateldtheinahestrucleat
hilt missed andkilled the father. • I ,aleO
told them I 'left Pet .struggling with hie
sister and father with the 'axe,' but that
'Pat had struelc ate before I left.. All this
story told these•people at the house ia faith.
There is nota word of truth ' in it. I did
not like to scare the woman. ln presenee
of these witnessea I have made this. state
'Mint of my oavn free . without being
Saked or Urged to doso, and-. knowing • the
consequence thereof, and 'I declare it to lap,
absolutely true. • , •
Dated, 21st of January, 1882. 0110mt
,1882.- ...
• . . His X, Mark
,, , m
. •
The Murderer's, urelit-raow. igle,WIdoW
-, Received the News ,o1 the Eicetition.
At She. post inort;st -eximinatipia which
was held, rridax on „ the body of
O'Rourke, the- brain was 'taken out. - It
weighed -45 ounces, , 3',' adiaclimsa-not
abnorma. , It will be sent to a specialist
.
either -in Toronto or Montreal: • -
A Eh:igen:1n despatch, sole': Mrs.
'O'Rourke, the intaderet'a wile,- P11» King
sten, and his death has lifted a greet
Mound to Well.
At a dinner party the little son of th
boat and "imam was allowed tO home down
to desert. Having had what his mother ,
considered a enfficiency of f ruit, he was
told he must not, have -any Mpre,'N'fben, te
the surprise of every' One oftheignests, he -
exclaimed: "11 you deritt give: me Bone
more I'll tell!" A fresh euPplywrins at
once given hire, and as soon as it, was
finished he repeated his threat; where-
upon he was Buddenly and swiftly removed
from the room, but he had just time to
convulse the company by exclaiming:
"My PAW trousers are made out of ma's
old bed-ropm curtains l" --Boston Herald.
rioTiatla.
Each bottle of Briggs' Electric Oil Will •
hereafter be acoonapanied by a corkscrew,
as it is important that the cork should he
preserved and the bottle well corked wheel
not in, use to retain the strength , of the
medicine. It cures Rhehmittism, Neural-
gia, Liver and Kidney Complaints of the
Urinary Organs ; oures complaints arising
ifrom. Colds, such as Sore Throat, Bronchi-
tis,Diplatheria,Cough, Asthma and Difficult
Breathing.
" Husbahd and wife," says somesago
'person, "should no more struggle to get the
east word than they should struggle for the
• possession of a lighted bomb." They don't.
The wife gets it without a struggle. -
,„,, ,
ZTATISTICS or LUNATIC ASYLUMS show tI2a, •
juine-tenths of their patients are brought 5. --
their
'their condition by abuses of the generative
organs.- A great Brain and Nerve fool,
known as Mack's Magnetic Medicine, is
sold by our ,druggists, and cornea highly
mot:emended as an unfailing cure in all
these diseases , See the advertisement in
another coliimn:
•elTR Al./441:e BEHEIElL i..0
11°
:OtealsOr Ete-----11/ Slept 'TV. 1th ,rieruente,
'7.'2' I-TO:Wed about 1214e, Mody. ,.
Professor Bell, the.Smithf3entan. anetitha
tion'aitgent, ahipped. his last ,eolleetionior
snakes to the Nerth two weeks. ago; anti
already littallia Musentia-21ull ft lie
eurpriaing,, hew: ,.theye,i. become• ,
domestieated under , his treatment.,•:Dur-,
ing the••redent !mid Shap seine of'thieniihat.
he turns. loose in:his roomitt night'clibabed
- up the bed pOste..andcoiled themselves ,UPin
his blankets. • lileielt•thenn hunting,fereoey
• spots aleuta lie- :lege; ,and -knew': that he
ought to. get -UP and provide
solne loose etraw; but. 0 aleepy',man, /in a,
warm 'bed ma a cold night-isnot„ovet
ana.the professor snored, on .musically,.
as is his • OliBt0733., The 'reptiles crowded
one even another, quarrelled; fotight a•little
hissed, but the, professor did- not budge—
only neW and then he would wake- slightly
and .ory softly, "Whist, boys! be :easy,
,abeoydsaillOwly :glided. in. .a 'gentle
,At last a big.,” coachwhip.'i • snake found
flan...opening near the,.edge et' the • blankete
swaying Up and dOwn'of the bedclothes as
the 'big_claybank seipent moved about, get-
ting, hinaself Oomforta.ble,, :when saddenly
he slapped ,'about two-thirds of „his frigid
leugth against the warra legs of the dozing'
rottaitore. , • • ,
'he:proprietor made- a violent'reulark
Hesitt up ha bed,gathered a handfol of
saakea in. each hand, depositing there Care-
fully on the floor ;, -then, throwing badk the
'bedclothes, administered' a , kick,that 'Sent
the." coachwhip "flying through. the dark
tothe further end of the reoin, -encounter
ing the -bap in its aerial flight and knock-
ing from its bracket on the wall the fregile-
ekull ef an ancient Floridaemound-bhilder.
F,geeze and be hanged," exclaimed: the
1:rate poefeasor, ," 111 share ray bed ! With,
you, •but you shan't drive me' out." He.
'drew thebleaaketeOver him. few inoe
nients later Revered haire. of little red eyes'
• moved .up thejbed posts on either , side,, and
Been ...snalt6-heoder and "stiaketi, in one
couch; were lest in peaceful • •
• The altar decorations of SS. •. PatrirICE‘
Catholic. Church. at New Haven took -fire
from a• -candle -on Sunday, morning.'
Fifteen hundred people were panic-stricken.
The' aisles were soon packed steihat it was
,impossible to move one way, or the other.
The pastor finally q hieted the dengregation.
The tire was soon extinguished. and nobody
was eeriothily hurt. '
HE, GREAT CU,RE FOR
And all e.oiigiLaints of•a Riiedrnaile nature
RHEURIATINE is nota soveiuigit ietnedy for ."all
the ills that'flesk is her to,". but for NEDRALGIA,,
SCIATICA,. RHEUMATISM,- and. Complaints of
Rbeiariatic name. , . '
:ITIS A -sung ,CURE.-
ST.-CATHARINES, llay 4th; 1881 '
, .
.T.IN.,,Sumnfintratqn,,Esq.: 1.
,rieaa,sutke4 have been for the "Past suffering
trom„.s,etattea.!, „.1...was :recommended by
heialthor ttitiy.yotti;eure;''''Bheninatine.". I did.
;Se, aTrid'ain:glaTto say' it dompleiely.,.oured nae,
,and,ketin• noW:thorotighlyrecommenii. it
from theaame aomplAint.
,G'iving-Yon the,libertY.,tO beethis as you may
thlnkAt, :y•
Ntho'
G''
'Luth
about nine miles z.oici
SOLD. BY ALL DRUGGISTS.
The ithetunatine Manufacturing Co.
•
ST. CATHARINES, ONT.
j
Wluer & '• Co., Wholesale Agents,
Hamilton.
$5• " per day at honie. Sarnpleii worth
10 SZI) 85 free. Address Emu:4° tt 64• Go.
Portland Alaine. '
•
ET- E.1) ILI IN 121,
A Highlander in the War.
A correspondent sends Us the following:
Many thrilling incidents have been related
connected with the ,battle of Tel-el-Kebir,
but one.1,.heo.r4 the other data which has
not yet appeared in type, he tether aniusieg
in ite • blending of tragedy and farce.
" TOtialcl" and " Tem./add," of the Black
Watch, made an agreement that whichever-
-
of theta Was .firbt disabled his comrade
:should carry hina to the. rear. Shortly
'after the grand charge lid conainenced,
T011;4911' cried to his Mate that he was
'wounded in the' lega whereupon " "
sejzed his companion and carried him off,
to a place or safety. On the Way,, hos.
ever, amidet the din of the conflict,- and
the bearer; -a bursting shell
blew away the head of the wounded
Tougalcl.", -Soon afterWaids a paseiug
, officer pried out, " What is that you, are
ea.rryingi'?, " Tonald" replied that he was
carrying a wounded friend to the rear:
'Lay hirn' down and look at hina,", said
She officer. .As advised, a Tomdcl" care-
fully •laid down his burden, and; .after
looking at the body -for senle time in blank
amazameht, exclaimed: "The.tananed
.sepundrel; he told me it Was ill the leg, he
was wounded "—and he seenaperedback to
the poet Of alhty. ' '
" I say, kick, what E3ot o otetees, are
those you are planting?' fl. Raw ones tole
sure—your honor wouldh't be thinking
-wouldplantloiled-ottes." ' • ,
An Iowa man was Ilned.161.0 for squeezing
a woman's thUmb.• "At that . rate,"
observes the ' Wilmington, News, noboy
butt millionaire coulcl afford to put ail
arm around her waist." ,
Wa nheacterus juts:. to
oe himsh ; that tarntlag gt the as tj to ihe
• more than a choice to hina that -is willing.
The best governmench*
'
whi
•rendet not thatt rs man the haPpleet, but that Which
•rendere the greatest nuniber happy.
'
Woe Old and. Young., Male and Female.
Positively .cures Nervousness in ALL its .'stages
Weak Memory, Loasof'srain Power.Sexual Pros. "
'fro:Sion Night Sweats SPermatorrhcoo Lancer-
,rhma, Barrenness,. Seminal. Weakness and -
•General Lode' of Pewer. 15 reeteree SiirPrisiffg--- --
Tone . and -Vigor. to the. Exhausted Generative
organs: it'iVith each order for Twur,vg packages
acceinpanied with Me dollars, we will send our.
Writtfin,Guaraidee to refund' themoony if the
treatment dOpe not. effect a Cure. ft as..the3
'Cheapest Riad ReAt Medicine- in the. market. ...
• Pamphlet -sent free by mail to.any.addrees. Sold ,
by ,druggists at' 50c. per box, or 6 boxes for
.52 .30, mailed free -Of postage, on 'receipt of
Magnetic !if edirine Co.
, "%Windsor, hit Clartaela.
Sold by all druggistie everywhere. -
ton. Terms and '.$5
$66 Ictjlelicnfire:°°rAciilvr?sse IL HALLETT & Oa.
,.BEEORE:*7' AND, AFTER;
Electrk Appliatiett ar,e:Sest ori -30 Days' Trial.'
TO .MEN ONLYINOUNN OR r01.0,
0 aro suffering from Nunvorrs tunta,rrr,
Losr VITALITY, LAorC or Nuavn Veinal atm
„litoon, WAsIINOWSAirunssES and all those diseases
-otal'intsol(At.lbermen kesidiing frotn'AnRsEtt and
°mita °Arens. spooy.fellot and cempiete resto-
ration of EIRALTR,VioOn and isionmennueuntranta.
The grandest discovery of the Nineteenth Century.
Se.ndateneetorillustro,tecIPaniphletfreo. Addreda
, , ,
'VOLTAIC BELT ell. MARSHALL;
$72
A WClEEK;.:91 a day, hblne easily meat°
oqtly plat 'free. Address TRUE & CO.
, Augusta, Blaine ,,. . •
Sawin.._ Made Easy.
.r irbolufri truling
tyti,
to_tbohir I wit
.111
IAPVORif N,Sw 040. 11411401