The dispatch-news. [volume] (Lexington, S.C.) 1919-2001, June 21, 1922, Image 2
SLAYERS OF BRAZELL
PAY DEATH PENALTY. 1
The State. ]
S. J. Kirby, Jesse J. Gappii.s and ^
C, O. Fox, convicted murderers of J
"Williain Brazell, young Columbia 5
transfer driver, early yesterday morn- 1
ing went to their death in the elec- i <
^?- - ?1 ? " ^ + a + io rv I t
xric cxiiiir <tt cue siaic ^iuivuuui^,
80 paying with their own lives for the
life they had taken. Kirby was 36
years old, Fox 32 years old and Gappins
23 years old.
Gappins and Fox went to their
/
death with' little if any show of emotion,
both making short statements
just before the current tvas turned
on. Kirby, after having asked to bo
allowed to malv a short statement,
collapsed in the chair and was apparently
unable to voice the words
that he would have said. Calmly
Fox and Gappins watched the peniv
tentiary officials adjust the straps
that held them in the chair and emotionless
they waited while the two
electrodes were placed. Kirby, how- ( <
ever, after having:, at his own request, ]
\ealked unaided from his cell to the t
death chamber made some little re- ?
sistance to his being strapped in the t
chair and attempted to free his pne 1
arm from the leather bands that held
it to the arm of the electric cha^r.
Fox and Gappins in their brief ^
statements added nothing new to <
their stories as before told and both j
hoped, they said,, that their death;!
1$ t
would serve as a warning to others j J
; \ tempted to crime. Fox, as he has I t
done from the very moment of his ?
arrest, admitted again his guilt and f
expressed his sorrow and regret at s
the part he#had played in it. Gap- i
pins, however, maintained to the end c
that the truth had not been told about 1
him and believed, he said that he i
Would not have had to die in the chair | 1
had the truth been told. KirbyI 1
made no statement. j i
Kirby Still Asleep. I s
At 5:10 o'clock yesterday morning !c
ministers were admitted to the death ! i
house to administer the last sacra- j t
- . *" ** t
ment to the three men. Kirby was! i
sleep at the time and had to be |
awakened, but both Fox and Gappins s
i
were awake and dressed for their 3
electrocution. At 5:23 o'clock Cap-;<
f t . ,
tain Roberts of the penitentiary guard s
read the death warrant to Fox and ?
^ ^ h'*
; thisvalu
30?3%'
f HHSv?
f JKraSfl $ia9? twnk
r for a minute
\ as youcanrememberU
\ 1 he truth is that men
i ff always found USCO ai
r standing money's wort
\ matter what its price.
\ - Today at $10.90 XJ
r maintains its establi
r standard of quality.
r And because of the
rr price, it sets a new ind
r tire value.
r
r * * *
r Men who have us
rr USCO have never bee
f inclined to measure its
rr value by the general
ff run of tires.
\ United States Tires /
f are Good Tires
pr Copyright jawi
: wSfy* jMiMWh
Where You " k . f?
Can Buy IIOOk jHro
B. E. Wii
V. S. Tires:
sooner the better," Fox answered
llm. (
As Captain Roberts approached
ECirby's cell three ministers were there
kneeling outside the barred door
^raying with the doomed man. Respectfully
Captain Roberts waited and
vhen the little service was over, walked
up to the cell and there read the
leath warrant to Kirby. "How are)
foil feeling, Kirby?" he asked when j
he reading was done. "Still got j
four nerve?"
'I've still got the grace of God,"
?irby answered him, "And, captain,"
le added, "I came in here by myself
md you won't need to send any one
Tor me when I go out. Which?
vhich leg do you want fixed? I'd
ike to do it myself."
"The right," Captain Roberts told
ilm. "Just roll it up to the knee."
"My papa's gone now and my mother's
already dead,' Kirby said, "and I
ill soon join them. Just call for me
foureelf when you want me."
Ira Harrison, under sentence of
leath for the murder of J. C. Ar- i
lette, slept in his cell throughout j
he three electrocutions. Frank M. '
Jeffords and Edmund Bigham, the J
he other two occupants of the death
louse, were awake, however.
T?? Dnnnbn
xui'i/^ raja a cikulj
At 6:10. o'clock the electric chair j
vas given its final test and at 6:12
>'clock Kirby walked into the room.
'May I speak a word?" he asked as
le reached the chain "Wait until you
jit down," he wa3 told and he was I
/
hen seated down in the chair and the |
idjusting of the straps begun. A
t I
tightened, half demonical grin overipread
Kirby's face as the prison of-1
'icials proceeded with their solemn
iuty. "Is it too tight?" they asked
lim and Kirby's only reply was an
narticulate grunt. The strap across
ids chest was loosed a little and Kirby
>egan to squirm about in the chair
n an effort to free himself. He
tucceoded in practically slipping his
>ne arm from the holding straps and
t was onljr after some little delay
hat he was finally securely fastened
n the chair.
Col. A. K. Sanders moved up be-'
iide the chair. If there's anything
rou want to say," he told Kirby, "you
;an say it now." Kirby made nc
lign that he had heard and the two
ilectrodes and the leather blindfold
yere then adjusted and at 6:17 o'clock
;he current was turned on and the
1500 volts sent into his body. One
ninute later the current was turned
FSCO ever ton
e before
$10.90
k at a Since last fall when U
JO at established the $10.
l i price range they have re
^ ognized it as a value
^ beyond any possible
SCO# comparison,
have A still greater /
1 out' money's worth /
-u thaneven /
A no USCO itself /
Jiad reached / ^
fsco ?efore / S
shed /
\ new / /
Ie^
Punned dia
United States @ F
Fi/tv-1krt? Tke CHdrtt and Lart
FaeUyruB Rnblmr Orvaniyctmn in rJ
ttman & Son
rimer
thers
Lliams Hardware Company
j o'clock Kirby was pronounced dead.
| The death chamber was then
I cleared of witnesses, Kurby's body
litfed from the chair and carried into
the little room adjoining the ier.th
chamber.
Gappins Makes Statement.
At 6:31 o'clock Gappins wilked
into the chamber and took seat
in the chair. He was rale and his
' eyes were swollen with tears, but out
I wardly he was as calm as usual. The
j straps were adjusted and Gappins
made his short statement. "I want
every young man," he said, " to let
this be a warning to aii 01 th-on?
young and old. If the truii. had
been told about me I'd not be here,
but if I have to die I feel I caii go.
Jesus knows my soul and He knows
that the truth has not been told, I
want to advise every young mar. not
to believe anything that/s lold them.
I see several faces that I know here
and some of you may not believe me,
but I'm telling the tiutiv. XJ I'd
have known what I was going into I
| would not have gone. I've not had
I justice."
j He turned and looked about the
room. "Sergeant," he said, ''toll my
mother goodby for me. Goodbye, sergeant.
Goodby everybody." The eleeI
- i ' !
j trodes were attached ar.a Oapp;ns be-;
I gan the chantiug of a prayer which i
was cut short when the current was
turned on at 6:37 o'clock. At 6:38 j
o'clock the switch was pulled out and j
at 6:39 o'clock Gappins was pronounced
dead.
Again the witnesses w^re. changed
and at 6:48 o'clock Fox calmly \valk-(
ed into the room and unaided took'
his seat in the electric chair. "Good
morning, gentlemen," he said with a
wave of his hand.
'I've nothing to say," he.said, "except
that I hope that this will save
some other poor sinner. I am sor
'
ry and ashamed of what! did. I
got into bad company. C?f course,
I don't think I'm good compare* - I've
nothing to say against the other two
and I hope that God will iftess them
both. I've nothing against Hrazell
and his family. He was a^jgood boy,
I thfirxk, and I hope to meet hirr- and
all of them in Heaven by God's grace."
He sat silent and motionless as the
electrodes were adjusted and did not
move in the short . .inte^al that
elapsed before the switch wiw thrown
in at 6:51 o'clock.-. A rnjj&ut* later
the current was cut off %id when
upon examination it was ^>-und that
Fox was not dead, the current was
switched m again a: T-. ' * -rfc.
- / 'I
/ :
/ At*
/ ' - A
SCO / i
.90 / A
o / i
/ 3o*3% ij
USCO !j
102? I
Ml '
. Hi
11 ^ I
^^^WarTax |j|j
^ charged
ii:
. ? ii til
tes Tires p!
lubber Company pi
rut Two hundred and
v World thirty-five BrancJut
11 hi
H J
' A\
ajfc?^
~T
Butesburg, S. C.
Chapin, S. C.
. .New Brookland, S. C.
Swansea, S. C.
_J
Hour Kept Secret.
The early hour and the secrecy
maintained by all concerned of the
exact time set for the electrocution?
limited the crowd at the penitentiary
to few persons other than the 75 or
more witnesses and the prison offi
cials. Gappins' father was at the
penitentiary but did not enter the
death house until after everything
was over and done. None of the
other men's relatives nor any of the
relatives of young Braze!! was present
The bodies, at the request of relatives
of the three men, were carried
from the penitentiary shortly after
the electrocutions. Fox's body was
taken by train yesterday to his former
home near Charlotte, N. C.,
wheer the funeral will be held. The
funeral of Kirby will be held at his
former residence, 925 Ninth street
Olympia, at 3 o'clock this afternoon,
the funeral services to be conducted
by the Rev. J. W. Hammond, and
Gappins' funeral will be held at his
parents' home, 715 Seventh street.
Olympia, at 5 o'clock this afternoon.
Both bodies will be interred in Olympia
cemetery.
Eight physicians made the necessary
examinations of the three men:
Drs. R. T. Jennings, F. M. Harvin,
M. C. Stannard, P. E. Payne
and D. N. Matthews of Columbia
^ A T_J 11 rv f
W . ju?. jenmngs a.nu --v. n. a. wm-n .
Augusta, Ga., W. A. Oxner of Brook- j
land and G. F. Roberts of Lexing-|
ton. |
At 7:01 o'clock the prison bell was
rung and the prisoners in the regular
penitentiary cell house were brought
out into the prison yard. The opening
of the doors had been delayed
45 minutes.
The curtain had been rung down on
the final scene of this sordid drama
of murder, of justice and of death;
the law after ten months had claimed
the lives of three men who had dared
*
to take the life of young Brazell onj
the road to Augusta, August 7, 1921J
: . . /? *
A. X Matthias
/;? e ,7 ' ('
wishes to call the public's, attention
that he is making up a carload of No.
3 standard packer's cans, 2 1-16 opening
with solder hemmed caps packed
100 to cartoon at $36 per thousand,
f. o. b. Lexington, S. C. Purchaser
to pay cash and haul same from the
car. Will sell in quantities from 100
up. Now In order for the public tc
-obtain this price I have got to make !
SO C3.iL, writ'- or cviiiK iv v?.,
once for what you war.t in cans a:they
are going: to be higher, because
there is a tremendous crop of. fruit
and vegetables all over the South and
the demand is going to be great. It
will be two weeks after I get the car
made up before I can get the cans
here. So give me your orders at
once for your needs.
A J MATHIAS,
Lexington, S. C.
SHOES!
THE KIND THAT WEARS
EASY AND LONGEST.
We are always prepared to serve
our Lexington friends from a large
stock of dependable Shoes for every
kind of wear, in all leathers and sizes.
Thn "TTamilv Shoe Store of Colum-I
bia."
E. P. & F. A. DAVIS
Farmers' Medium and Heavy Work
Shoes a Specialty.
PROFESSIONAL CARDS
MOVED
from 1615 Main St., to 1423
Main St.
DR. CLARK,
Chiropodist.
,1 FRANK KNEECE
Real Estate and Insurance
BATESBURG. S. C.
eTj~wingaW
ATTORNEY AT LAW
No. 12 Clark Law Building
Law Range Telephone Its i
COLUMBIA, S ,C.
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