The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1858-04-15
Jail DeliVery-A lack Shepherd
ExPIoit--MurdererS and COun.
terfeIters Loose.

JaiI DeIIVery-A Jack shepherd
Exploit --Murderers and COum.
terfeiteFs Loose. @
A most remarkable and daring effort to
escspe from prison was executed on Sunday
morning, when nine prisoners escaped from
the county Jail, Including some Of the most
dangerous scounerels that ever invested any
community. J. B. Shears, the sotinterfeiter,
was the protector and leader OF tho opera.
tion. With him escaped Henry Brooklock.
er, indicted for the murder Of McFall; Mi.
chael GallaDhsr, the murderer of Costello;
/ J. Wood, J. Mercy, George Wagner,
James Vanness, j. A. Taylor, who were
confined for counterfeiting, we believe, and
Lee Overman, negro. had been arrested on
Saturday night for burglary committed at
ShelbyVille.- -.
The manner In which their escape was
effected was singular. As we'll as we can
learn. il vas about as follows: Shears OBJ.
tanned key with which he could unlock his
cell. This key he had to use outside while.
he was inside Of the grated iron door. The
way he did It was ingenious. He got pop.
lar stick about three feet long, and about
the middle OF it made mortice, in which
the handle Of the hey would fit, and through
the mortice, and Of course through the ring
or bulge Of the key, he drove peg, so as 10
keep the key from falling out. This stick
he put through the grating, and slipped up
and down till he got the key into the hole.
Then he pulled II as far as il needed to 20.
Now the pUsE!e was to turn the key
This he accomplished as ingeniuusly as he
did the other prosess. He fastened a string
to the upper end Of the stick, drew It through
the grating, and pulled it down as far as tile
hole in the grating would allow, and then he
passed 1t through another hole lower down,
and again pulled, and so on till he got the
key turned round and the door unllcked.-
He then went to all the other cells, unlock.
them, and set all the prisoners loose,
Before doing this he had planned the way
to get out ofjlil. He. and The prisoners in
the cell with him, had man Iged, probably by
using the timber Of their chunks" TO pry m
the stone covering OF the cell far enourh 10
allow the body OF a man to pass. This ia
the most extraordinary part Of the whole feat.
as it would appear impossible to move the
huge block by any mea: 8, much less by such
contrivances as could be manufactured in
Jail cell. 1t was moved, however, and prop.
red up. The way into the g ,rret Of the
] il was now open. From the garret
small chimney afforded the only means ofI
exit to the Jail ropf. BY some means Shears
forced himself far enough up this chimney to
be nbe to pick out SINE OF the bricks alb we
The roof, and finally to make hole through
which man could crawl
The road out was open now, and II is
probable that at this time the other cells
we're unlocked. While this was going on
the prisoners were singing as they frequent.
ly do, voti'erously, prob bly, to drown The
noise of their operations. When all was
ready, about three o'clock, they crawled out
upon the roof, and thence let themselves
down into the yard by a rope made of their
bed clothes. By means Of plank they
scaled the wall Of the yard and we're safe.
The prisoners have probably concealed
in the woods, and will travel BY
night, and in "out of the way" roads
There were p, obabIy coniederates in waiting
for them, as there we're marks Of carriage.
wheels near the j,il.-Indiandpolis Journal.