John Henry Savage executed - a meth fueled murder.

John Henry Savage executed - a meth fueled murder.

John Henry Savage executed  - a meth fueled murder.

In this case the “meth” is methylated spirits, a highly toxic form of methyl alcohol, which badly effects the central nervous system.  However, in the 1920’s it was cheap and readily available.

Richard Tillett and his common law wife, 42 year old Jemima Grierson, lived at 25 Bridge Street, Leith in Scotland.  Their squalid home was a place where meth drinkers sometimes came.  One of these was 50 year old ship’s stoker John Henry Savage.

Richard was a railway worker and left for work at 9.50 p.m. on Monday the 12th of March 1923.  Later that night Savage knocked on the door of No. 25 and was admitted by Michael Reilly, a youth who ran errands for Jemima.  Jemima did not want him there and asked him to leave, which he refused to do.  She went to her neighbour, Mrs. McLoed, for assistance, who tried to persuade him to go. 

 Being in her night clothes, Mrs. McLoed decided to go home and get dressed.  She returned around 1.30 am., to find Savage had locked her out and she was unable to force the door. She heard a horrific scream from Jemima.  

The front door then opened and Savage appeared.  Mrs. McLoed, who knew him, said “What have you done now, Savage?  He brandished the razor at her and threatened with the same to her if she did not get out of his way, before running off.  Mrs. McLoed then went into Jemima’s house and found her lying on the floor is a pool of blood.  Jemima was able to say “He has done for me now, McLoed” before loosing consciousness and bleeding out. Savage was arrested at 6.15 a.m. on the Tuesday morning in Great Junction Street.

The trial took place in Edinburgh on the 21st of May 1923, before Mr. Justice Alness.  It was stated at the trial that Jemima had suffered seven separate wounds to her neck and face and bled to death.  Some of the wounds were superficial and indicated that she had put of a brave fight with her assailant. The only possible defence was one of insanity, which was rebutted by the prison psychiatrist and rejected by the jury.  The motive for the murder was that Savage thought that Mrs. Grierson was preventing him from finding a woman who he wanted as a girlfriend and that she would not tell him where the woman lived.

Savage was hanged at Edinburgh’s Calton prison at 8.00 a.m. on Monday the 11th of June 1923, by John Ellis and William Willis.  Prior to his execution he thanked Major Munro, the governor of Calton, for his kindness towards him.  A crowd of some 800 people had congregated outside the prison to see the notices of execution posted.  According to newspaper reports Calton did not have either an execution shed or a modern execution suite at this time and the gallows was erected over a stairwell. 

 At the inquest Dr. Harvey, the prison doctor stated that death had been instantaneous.