MURDERER SAVED BY A POEM

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 108, 27 October 1911, Page 6

MURDERER SAVED BY A POEM

REMARKABLE SCENE IN A CONVICT PRISON. New York, September G. After reading an "anguish" poem, entitled "They've Hanged Bill Jones," published in the Atlanta Constitution, Governor West, of the State of Oregon, was so affected that he reprieved J. P. Webb, who was to have been hanged at noon to-day for murdering a man and stuffing his body in a trunk. The Governor refused the requests of Webb's friends and the tearful pleadings of the murderer's eighteen-year-old daughter, but he could not withstand the versei written by Frank L. Stockton, a member of the staff of the Constitution.

Following are two of the four verses of the poem: They've bung Bill Jones to the sycamore tree, An' his wife an' bis mother is aweepin'; An' his children come from the housie to see, In the cold wind awaitin' an aereepfa*'. They've hung l Bill Jones for a crime, of his, An.' his wife and his mother is adyin'. And his children's took where the , orphants is, An' the cold wind acrcepin' and asigWn'.

Governor West informed the chief warder of the Oregon State Prison a Ifew hours before the time set for the execution that Webb's sentence would be commuted to penal servitude for life, and stated the reason for his action. The chief warder decided to continue the melodramatic action to the end. [Five minutes before noon all the convicts were marched into the main din-ing-hall of the prison, and Webb was ordered to stand at the head on the long central tabic, The chief warder then read the Governor's instructions. The prisoners broke into cheers for Webb and the Governor. When order was restored the chief warder handed Webb a box. "Open it," Ve commanded. Webb opened the box, and inside was the rope with which he was to have been hanged cut into small pieces. Webb's daughter, who was present at this extraordinary scene, gave each convict a piece of rope as a souvenir as he filed past.

After five minutes she fainted, and her place was taken by the prison chaplain, who continued the distribution of "favors." Mrs. Webb watched the scene from a gal levy. Webb, who occasionally writes poetry, says he intends to dfe> scribe his reprieve in verse.