The following affidavits represent substantially the oral statements made by these convicts when alone with a sub-committee. The other testimony, following, was also given before the same sub-committee. This sub-committee was appointed for the special purpose to take statements of the convicts and the hospital steward, Baird, who was confined to his bed from the effects of a severe wound, and also the statements of George Catlin: I, JOHN A. MOSORLEY, do swear, that I am a convict in the Illinois State Penitentiary; I assisted in the bathing of the convict, Henry Williams, in December, 1873. I have seen other convicts bathed; I do not think that the bathing of Williams had anything to do with his death; he was not kept in the water longer than usual, and was not abused by Captain Hall or Mr. Sleeper; I knew Williams in the Madison county jail, from which county we were both sent; he was considered a very hard case there; he got hurt while in that jail; he was laid up about a month, and the doctor said he was injured about the breast. While in jail, he could talk very good English if he wanted to; I do not know how long Williams lived after taken out of the bath-tub; he was alive and breathing when taken out. What I here state, I would certify to were I not a convict. All convicts here understand that they are expected to obey the published rules of the prison, and that if they fail to conform to them, they will be punished. JOHN A. McSORLEY. Sworn to and subscribed before me, this 26th day of December, A. D. 1873. HENRY R. YEAKLE, Notary Public. I, ALBERT KENNEDY, was present at the time Henry Williams was bathed. I assisted to bathe him; held his head same as usual on such occasions; have assisted to bathe a great many; am positive that Williams was not bathed near as severe as others; he was not strangled; was breathing when let out of the water the last time; he was not struck or abused in any way. Nothing unusual occured at that time; was surprised to hear that Williams was dead; do not think that he died from the effects of the bath; he was not under water, at any time, longer than four or five seconds. ALBERT KENNEDY. Sworn to before me, this 22d day of December, A. D. 1873. HENRY R. YEAKLE, Notary Public. I, WILLIAM J. DEEMING, do solemnly swear that I am now and have been for the last three years employed as keeper in what is known as the solitary (punishment) department of the Illinois State Penitentiary, and that during the term of his office ex-Commissioner John Reid was in the habit of frequently going to the solitary, and inquiring how the punishments were getting along. Mr. Reid suggested the punishment of "ducking" (as he termed it,) of convicts, long before the bathing sys tem was adopted. Has said to me, in the solitary, that he was going to attach a hose to the hydrant and open on the convicts with full force. He said that a blanket could be hung in front of the cell door so that the noise made by the convict undergoing the punishment could not be heard outside the building. I have heard Mr. Reid say, in speaking of the case of McCarty, that "he ought to be ducked;" "that it would fetch him to time," and he (Reid) has asked me time and again, “Why the deputy warden did not give these refractory cases a good ducking." I have heard him also assert that "a good blacksnake would do them good." I have never heard Mr. Reid urge any lenient measures towards convicts; have never heard him accuse either Deputy Maybew or Deputy Hall of being too harsh; the contrary is a fact. There have been on the average, during the last six months, less cases of punishments than during any time since I have held my present position. I have known, during the administration of ex-Commissioner Reid, and ex-Warden Edwards, for them to order the confinement of refractory convicts in the "solitary" from four to ten days, and in some cases even longer. The men were ordered chained up to the wall during the day. I have heard Major Edwards (former Warden) ask of Captain Hall: (( Why in the devil don't Mayhew use the sand-bag more," and have heard him (Edwards) say to Captain Hall, "Give them h―l if they don't behave themselves." The sand-bag, as it is termed, was made during Edwards' administration, and, I was credibly informed, by his (Mr. Edwards') order. It is in the form of an army knapsack. Its weight is about fifty pounds. WM. J. DEEMING. Sworn to and subscribed before me this 22d day of December, A. D. 1873. HENRY R. YEAKLE, Notary Public. Statement made by THOMAS D. BAIRD, January 14th, 1874: I am hospital steward of Illinois State Penitentiary; I was subpenaed to the coroner's inquest to testify in regard to the death of Henry Williams; was present but was not called upon to testify. I saw Williams on the morning of the 11th of December, 1873. He complained that he could not use his hands at work. Dr. Mason, the prison physician, examined him, and I judge from what the doctor said that in his judgment there was nothing the matter with Williams, and remarked that he would give him a bath of cold water. No written order was given, and is not usually given unless called for. Between 7 and 8 o'clock, a. m., on the 12th day of December, 1873, I was called to the bath room, and went there immediately and found Williams lying on the table dead. After trying to recuscitate him Dr. Mason came in and I told him the man was dead. I then went back to the hospital and remained there until after sick roll call. After the roll call, went to the Warden's house and had a talk with the commissioners in regard to the case. As soon as Dr. Mason returned to the hospital and said he had to make a post mortem examination, he directed me to get the instruments ready and go with him to the bath room and assist him in the examination. We went to the bath room together. He said he wanted to examine the brain, and directed me to get a saw. When I had returned with the saw he had the scalp removed. He tried the saw and found it dull. I told him I would get another saw from the amputating case. When I returned with the saw Dr. Mason had removed the skin from over the chest and had cut through the cartilage of the ribs on the right side. He then commenced to cut through the ribs of the left side. I remained there until the heart was removed and the examination was completed. I saw him take out the heart. I held the ribs open so that he could remove the heart, and while I was in that situation he removed the heart. I should have said that I held the ribs open while he cut the pericardium and the aorta; I then let go of the ribs and stepped around to the other side of the body, and as I was in the act of stepping around the doctor took out the heart; after the chest was opened I saw blood in the cavity of the chest; I cannot state that there was blood between the pericardium and the heart; the reason why I cannot state is that at that particular time I was not looking at the heart; my impression was that there was coagulated blood in the cavity of the chest before the heart was removed; I cannot state that there was coagulated blood in the cavity of the chest before the pericardium was cut; I saw the rupture in the heart; I cannot state whether it was a rupture or an incision; the opening was not as ragged as I should expect a rupture to be, and not as smooth as I should expect an incision to be; the upper and lower thirds had the appearance of being cut, while the middle had the appearance of being ruptured; I cannot account for the roughness of the middle third, except on the theory of a rupture; my impression was that the heart was larger than is usual in healthy human hearts; I have seen human hearts before in a natural condition; where this opening was in this heart the walls were unusually thin; I was not present at the subsequent post mortem examination; I have studied medicine about five years, and attended a course of lectures at Louisville, Ky.; I am 23 years old. Statement made by GEORGE CATLIN : I am assistant stewart in the penitentiary; have been here since November last; was present at the post mortem examination of the convict Henry Williams; Dr. Mason, hospital steward Baird, and myself, were the only persons present; as soon as the cavity of the chest was opened I saw blood in the cavity; I did not examine the opening in the heart; I saw the opening or rupture in the heart as soon as the doctor took the heart out; I did not examine the opening in the heart, and can't state its appearance. |