The following article is from Old West Magazine: Summer, 1974, Publisher: Western Publications Inc., USA., by Chris Weatherby.
On March 23, 1889, an inquest was held in Eagle Pass, conducted by Justice of the Peace G. B. Dunn. The bodies had been exhumed for the inquest and despite the advanced state of decomposition, witnesses from San Saba were fairly sure they were the bodies of the Williamsons. Final identification was made by Dr. Brown, the dentist. He observed that one of the corpses had buck teeth, as Ben Williamson had had, and the doctor was also able to make a definite identification on a dental plate he had made for Lavonia Holmes. Dr. Brown stated that since the other two corpses fit the description of Mrs. Williamson and Beulah, there was no doubt in his mind as to their identity. Other witnesses nodded in agreement.
The grand jury took quick action, and on May 23, 1889 returned an indictment against Duncan and Landers for the multiple murder. A warrant was issued for their arrest. Dick Duncan, who was still being held in jail in San Saba, was transferred to Eagle Pass to await trial. Landers, alias Jones, was never found. Some people suspected that he had been killed by Duncan to eliminate the only witness to the slaying.
On June 1, 1889, the trial got underway, with Judge Winchester Kelso presiding. District Attorney Walter Gillis was the prosecutor, and the court had appointed Leigh Burleson, a well-known lawyer from San Saba, to defend Duncan.
The evidence against the accused, although circumstantial in nature, was overwhelming. The number of reliable witnesses presented by the State, combined with the vast amount of evidence was extremely convincing. The defense attempted to show that Dick Duncan was somewhere else when the murders were committed. His father and brother swore under oath that Dick was in Mexico when the crime was committed, but they were not believed.
The trial went on for over a month, with three days given over to the final arguments of the lawyers. When the jury was given the case for deliberation, a verdict was reached in a very short time—murder in the first degree and punishment of death by hanging.
Officials feared that the convicted killer might be subjected to “mob justice” if he remained in the Maverick County jail, so Duncan was moved to Bexar County to await execution. Pleas and requests for a new trial were denied. Duncan was sentenced to be hanged on Friday, September 4, 1891, at any time after 11 a.m. and before sunset.
On September 3, Governor James S. Hogg was petitioned for clemency, and a two-weeks stay was ordered. Governor Hogg carefully studied the case, then sent a telegram to the sheriff of Eagle Pass informing him that Dick Duncan’s sentence had not been commuted and that the law should take its course.
Duncan was then sentenced to die on September 18, 1891 on gallows in Maverick County jail, and a twenty-four-hour guard was ordered. In those days each county carried out the orders of its own court. Some did not like the idea of public execution, and had gallows erected inside the jail or shielded the gallows from public view by such means as a canvas screen. The officials of Maverick County had the gallows constructed inside the jail.
The day before the execution, a deputy was sent to Brackettville to secure a hanging rope as there was none of sufficient size and length in Eagle Pass. Ironically, the rope was obtained from the same merchant who had sold the rope used to secure the murder victims to the rocks that weighted their bodies.
On that morning of the execution, Dick Duncan awoke early. He bathed and dressed in a new, black suit and black boots. He ate his breakfast and listened, seemingly without emotion, as the sheriff read the death warrant. A Catholic priest joined Duncan in his cell and remained with him until time for the execution. Duncan had joined the Catholic Church during his stay in jail. His religion appeared to have been a comfort to him, for it was said later that he was the calmest man at the hanging.
At 11:07, Sheriff Cooke went to Duncan’s cell and accompanied him to the gallows. When asked if he would like to make a final statement, Duncan replied, “You are hanging an innocent man. Years after I am dead, you will find the murderers.” A crowd had gathered outside the jail. Such legal affairs attracted many people, even if they could not see the execution. Some twenty men had been invited to witness the hanging and only those with a printed invitation were allowed admission to the jail. The disappointment of those outside was compensated somewhat when a deputy cut the hanging rope into three-inch lengths and gave them to the spectators. Duncan’s body was placed on display in the courthouse for the curious to view, then it was claimed by his father and brother. Very early the next morning, Old Man Duncan and Tap Duncan loaded the coffin on their wagon and started the long trip home.
The lonely grave of Dick Duncan lies in a long-abandon cemetery (Barnett or Davidson Cemetery) a few miles west of San Saba. Although the tombstone has broken from its base, the inscription is still clear: “R. H. Duncan, born in Leon Co., Texas, Dec. 6, 1862; Murdered at Eagle Pass September 18, 1891. His last words “I know that God has forgiven me, and I feel that I will be pardoned of my sins and washed whiter than snow.”
There are few visitors to Dick Duncan’s grave. Not many people remember his story or where he is buried. Although it had been over eighty years since his execution, his final prediction of the real murderers’ being found someday had never materialized.