Reaction To The Sentences
There was an outcry over the death penalty being too harsh for the nine men. In 1887, the Sydney Town Hall was said to have been packed to protest against the hangings. A deputation of 150 citizens attended the governor in support of the hanging. Five eventually had their sentences reduced to life imprisonment by the Governor. However, for the first three years they had to be served in fetters. The remaining four were hanged in January 1887. One of the men was seventeen. Two thousand people were said to have turned out to witness the hangings. Bondi resident Robert Howard botched the hangings when he miscalculated the drop necessary for the youths. One died instantly but the remaining three struggled for several minutes. One of the three struggled for six minutes and bit his tongue in half in the process.
Read more about this topic: Mount Rennie Rape Case
Famous quotes containing the words reaction to, reaction and/or sentences:
“In a land which is fully settled, most men must accept their local environment or try to change it by political means; only the exceptionally gifted or adventurous can leave to seek his fortune elsewhere. In America, on the other hand, to move on and make a fresh start somewhere else is still the normal reaction to dissatisfaction and failure.”
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