Show EXECUTION OF THOMAS lif IEE iee lee on friday last thomas 11 ferguson who was found guilty of murder at the late session of the third district Di court for this territory terr 1 it ory and sentenced to be hung huno 0 on the of october was taken out of the county jail at 11 am by marshal peter IL dotson assisted by his deputies and col J C little he was placed in a wagon with his coffin and the detachment of militia ordered out by gen daniel IL wells at the request of gov cumming for the preservation of peace under the able command of major lot smith formed a procession on each side of the wagon conveying the prisoner P K dotson U S marshal J F stone deputy marshal robt T burton county sheriff J C little city marshal and the executioner were at the head of the solemn cavalcade the procession passed up second south street to east temple vp up east temple to first south street thence east to fourth east street thence north to the cit city Y wall and from thence to the place of execution on the bench about a quarter of a mile northward of the gate leading to the cemetery I 1 when the procession left the jail there were but few accompanying excepting 0 those whose legitimate 0 duty it was to be present but the numbers gradually increased as it proceeded mr J 11 johnson and another gentle gentie gentleman man by permission conversed with the condemned min man after which he ascended the stairs that led to the scaffold with a firm step thos S williams esq one of his attorneys was granted the privilege el of conversing with him after which the unhappy man delivered the following 0 unusually lengthy and somewhat rambling a speech gentlemen I 1 have a few words to say on this solemn occasion I 1 have committed a depredation here in this territory I 1 was arrested and tried in eight days after I 1 had committed the of fence I 1 was called upon for trial I 1 was brought and stood ready to answer judge sinclair who was judge of this territory then after my piere viere asre the criminal asked the marshal a question relative to the legal term he ought to use and then continued making affidavit th that at my witnesses were not present mr williams attempted to ascend the scaffold but marshal dotson said you cannot come hereto here to prompt hm him mr williams which I 1 requested to have but b it they could not be found they were gone my anly trial was put oft off till 10 the next day I 1 kasnot was wab not sent for the next day but the day after that the judge called upon me to answer for the crime I 1 I 1 had committed my lawyers told him that my witnesses could not be found that they had taken out subpoenas sub penas and handed them to marshal marshai dotson but iwas I 1 was obliged to stand my trial without my witnesses and I 1 am here to atone for the crime which I 1 committed without having 0 an impartial trial I 1 have hava always been treated well her here I 1 lave have hava been in salt lake valley and weber valley for over one year and have always been treated well with few exceptions one of these exceptions was that I 1 stayed with a half breed indian four months and I 1 I 1 attached his property for four hundred dollars before judge sinclair the attachment was quashed the judge said that they could not attach an indians property while I 1 was in jail an indian named roads coads yo oge was sent to jail he was tried and sent to the he penitentiary for one year now if I 1 cannot collect my debts from an indian who goes trading with white people who gets credit at the stores ke kept t b by in white ete ite people and I 1 cannot get my mone money when I 1 am without money I 1 dont see how they can try an indian f for or stealing and send him im to the penitentiary I 1 was a stran stranger er had no friends and what was I 1 to do I 1 I 1 went to men that I 1 was acquainted quain ft ted with and told them I 1 wanted to board with them and the first job I 1 got I 1 went to work there is a petition sent to gov cumming governor of this territory to have my sentence commuted to the penitentiary and I 1 was satisfied and am obliged to be ile he sent an answer back and said re he sympathized with me and thought my lawyers had done all they could but he thought be he ought not to com 1 mute my sentence he thought he was under obligation to the people of utah etah utah not to commute my sentence at this point of his speech the marshal put the rope loosely round his neck I 1 have no friends here in this country or at least I 1 have no connections here they all live a long way from here I 1 was bom born in the state of new york was raised there till I 1 was 21 years of a are age e I 1 started then to the western country an and traveled for several years and finally found my way to this city and this is the first crime I 1 have committed I 1 never committed any depredation re before and I 1 thought I 1 did it in self defense and I 1 think if I 1 had had a fair trial 1 I would have been walking about foot loose like you but I 1 am here and willing to die I 1 am going to a spirit world little did I 1 ever think that hat I 1 would have been hanged for crime well weil I 1 was tried by the statutes of utah territory which give ive lve a man the privilege of being kein shot be headed or hanged but was it given to me no it was not all judge sinclair wanted was to sentence some one to be hanged then he was willing to leave the territory and he had too much whisky in his head to know the day he sentenced me to be executed on and would not have known if it had not been for tor the people of utah laughing at him it would have been on sunday A nice judge to send to any country I 1 am willing to answer for the crime I 1 have committed I 1 I 1 have got a good heart in me and I 1 always had I 1 am not afraid to speak but I 1 cannot collect my thoughts as I 1 wish I 1 could I 1 expect soon to be launched into the spirit world and I 1 hope I 1 shall be happy and be in a better country than this and be better than I 1 have been in this As far as being in jail is concerned I 1 have been in twenty eight or thirty days and have been treated very well they have all treated me well I 1 have never asked for anything nor sent for anything but they have furnished it to me and I 1 give ilein them credit for it I 1 never tried to break jail and afi had I 1 suppose I 1 could not I 1 would have liked a fair trial I 1 am satisfied still I 1 would have felt better satisfied if gov GOT cumming had commuted my sentence to the penitentiary that I 1 might have been better prepared to die the first time I 1 was in a calabrase cala caia bouse boase was in great salt lake city I 1 dont think I 1 have llave been a very good mans man but I 1 have never done any crime before and this might not have be been en if I 1 had not been drunk ever since I 1 was sixteen eil eli or eighteen years of ag age ge I 1 have taken more or less drink but in salt lake ci city t Y more than ever I 1 iid ild lid did in my life I 1 do regret that me or any other man mark should be executed here in utah territory I 1 regret it very much I 1 would not go to see a zan lan man executed though it is a curiosity and perhaps I 1 am the first white man ever executed here according to the sentence of the law there have been men killed in utah by whom I 1 do not know and there is a man in jail that has been five or six months mouths there and cannot get his trial they could not get the witnesses for the prosecution but because a man could not get his witnesses for the defense they put him right on trial here the condemned man paused and then said it makes me feel bad gentlemen I 1 would sooner die a natural death but I 1 am not afraid to die some men here ferguson was unable to continue his remarks for about a minute his gush of feelings overcame him and stifled his utterance during the interim the culprits wrists were tied together his hands behind him with a white pocket handkerchief ile he then proceed ed gentlemen I 1 have not got anything against any man in salt lake city or utah tah territory that I 1 know of I 1 die with a good heart towards all men every man that has done me any wrong I 1 am willing to forgive I 1 dont know whether I 1 have done any man any wrong or 0 not if I 1 have I 1 am sorry for it I 1 a am m but a young man 27 years old od on the day of last march I 1 have lived without getting into trouble for over 27 years and probably would not have been in this position now had bad it not been for whisky 1 I 1 like to live am just as aswell well weli as any man but at I 1 he same time lan lam no not afraid to die i I 1 hope that the next judge that is sent here will be a temperate judge a judge that will be capable of attending to hla hia business I 1 hope he will be a judge that will do his business straight I 1 have written a very short sketch of my life which you will probably see printed in I 1 n the paper perhaps next weeks paper I 1 have got religious friends friends that are respectable I 1 was once respected but now I 1 am not when a man is sentenced to di ethere is not any man who has got any respect for him I 1 have made some friends in this territory and some that I 1 like as well as any that ever I 1 have seen I 1 have never left any place but I 1 could go back to it again every town every county eve every ry city and every country lama shoemaker sh by trade and have worked at it for the last seven years and have been traveling most of the time but after I 1 got here when I 1 had no friends I 1 worked close on to a year and then I 1 could not get my money it made me feel bad it made me drink to drown sorrow I 1 drank more than in all my life before and at the time I 1 committed this depredation I 1 was drunk and crazy drunk and did not know what I 1 was doing I 1 did things that I 1 would not have done for millions of money I 1 knew nothing of it till about three days after when one of my friends came and told me about it the ube condemned man then requested to have same one pray when mr henry jacobs ascended the scaffold kneeled with him and offered a brief prayer the culprits last words were gentlemen I 1 bid you all farewell 51 A cap was drawn over his face and at twenty two minutes to one im pm the rope which held the fatal drop was cut and ferguson was launched into eternity A grave was dug duo 0 near the scaffold and his remains were there interred the best of order was maintained during the whole proceeding I 1 THRASHING at ephraimson Ephraim San pete county as reported there were eight thrashing machines in full operation on the of october and two more were expected shortly that would seem to indicate that there had been no inconsiderable amount of grain raised there this season which if it is properly preserved will benefit those who have produced it in a time to come correction mr TV D hendricks hendricka informs us that the neck yoke soke which broke at the time of the accident on the 2001 uit of which mention was made last week was a firm substantial yoke and not a frail concern as ag reported to us at the time and from the testimony of others we are satisfied that no blame whatever can be attached to mr nir hendricks in relation to the unhappy occurrence |