Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1864-02-19
How our Oaio.r. Escaped from th. Libby Prison.


7.- --.s WASHINGTON, Feb. I6.
Captain William Walker, of the 5Iat Indi-
ana, Originally from Peru, Indiana,) who es-
capped from Libby Prison through the tunnel,
arrived to-day, and was on the floor of the
House He came nearly due north from
Richmond till he reached our lines. He says
they began digging the tunnel on New Year 8
Eve, and only finished it the night before
making their escape. The work was carefully
concealed, even from the bulk of their broth
er officers, for the reason that rebel spies are
believed to be among them, clothed in our
uniform and protesting to be prisoners from
some Of our regiments. The working party
were all sworn to the most solemn secrecy
They began back of the stone in room on
the ground floor, where pile Of ashes enabled
them to conceal their work. From this they
dug into the chimney, and so down into the
cellar. The cellar was filed with old rubbish,
and also contains pile of straw. They be-
gan their tunnel from this cellar, dingging
through the whole night, relieving one anoth-
er by turns, and riling the dirt taken from the
tunnel in a corner Of the cellar, from which
they had removed the rubbish. Every night
before closing their work they would stamp
this dirt down, to make it occupy as small
space as possible, and then covered it over
With straw. They would then carefully black
their boots and remove every particle of dirt
from their clothes, and after morning roll call
spend the day in sleeping, for the double pur-
pose of gaining rest and avoiding converse
tion with others.
Colonel Ross of Ohio, acted as chief engi-
neer in managing the directions of the tunnel.
They continued this way night after night,
till the evening before making their escape,
some negroes whe were in the prison waiting
on prisoners, discovered what they were doing
but loyalty kept the secret
They dug in this way under an adjacent
street, and finally came to the surface in va
cant lot, fifty yards distant At the point
where they were under the street, they were
only four feet below the surface, and nothing
but the teDacity of the soil prevented the tun-
mel from crumbling. Towards the close they
became alarm about the pile of dirt excavat-
ed, and in order to make it occupy as small
space as possible, they only made the tunnel
large enough for q medium size man to craw
through on bis belly. When they came to at.
fast, and it was with the utmost difficulty that
some of them managed to work their way
through.
It was owing to this delay that, cumpara-
lively, so small number escaped. AS it
was, as many got out as possibly could till
daylight came to check their operations
Many, however, started without any provision
and being compelled to stop at houses for
food, were discovered. To this, and to their
long continued privation, the recapture of so
many is attributed.
Colonel Streight is expected here tonight
and Captain Walker leaves for hia home in
Indiana. s'
Escaped prisoners confirm previous state.
ments as TO the scarcity of provisions in Rich
mond. They say that during the time the
rebels distributed the contents of the boxes
| from the North, their very guards would bee
provisions Of them, and that Of late halfnaked
boys from the streets of Richmond used tc
gather about the windows TO scramble for the
crumbs from their corn bread, which they
threw out to them.