The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1873-04-22
GhegnteLtlasneer:
The washington jail EScapado.

The Washington Jail ESCaPade.
From yesterdays Pittsburgh DISpAtch)
1t has frequently been asserted that
Washington county has given the pubic
more tirst.class sensational items than any
other strictly rural county in the StA'e.
Not long since it was the scene oil one OF
the most atrOCiOus COld.blOOdcd anu ue-
hberate murders that has ever heen
ChrOnicled, and low We arc inIofmeu
that while the Sheriff took y thirty min
utes' walk after supper on Saturday even.
iDV, the prison doors were unlocked aud
the convicted murderer, with all the rest
OF the prisoners except two, who refused
10 leave. made their escape
For the purposes OF economy Washing
ton county employs no Jail warden
Sheriff Ramsey has Charge OF the place
and lie states that al six o'clock he locked
all the prisoners in their cells, except
Samuel Kelly, the step son OF Daniel Gill.
bert, the alleged countcrieiter OF Parker's
Lmding, and United States prisoner
who is held in default Of 81 900 bail.
These he had allowed 10 go out in the
ward for exercise, and 1t was when he &c.
turned to lock them up that he found the
jail open and the rest Of the prisoners
gone.
MYSTERIOUS AZ A GHOST STORY.
Sheriff Ramsey further states that after
he had locked the prisoners In alter sup
per, be had put the keys In the sale in the
Office where they were usually kept.
When he returned he found the door Of
the sHfc still locked and the keys just
where he had loft them. There Is, there.
fore, but two ways Of accounting for the
Jail delivery, some outside accomplish
must have obtained key by which he
opened the safe, took out the jail keys
and after releasing the prisoners, put them
back into tho safe and locked it again. In
order 10 do this he would have been
Obliged 10 get into tho Office by means OF
small window, and tits very unre ason.
able to suppose that after he had gone toI
that trouble once, he would run the risk
Of being caught by climbing through the
window again. 1t Is more reasonable To-
suppose that Briceland, with his mechan.
lCAl knowledge, and inventive genius OBJ
tained casts Of the Jail keys, and through
some outside accomplish had duplicates
made. The Sheriff states that only three
keys were necessary to an escape, as one
key unlocked all the cells. These keys
must have been in the hands OF an outside
party, US 1t was impossible TO unlock the
doors from within, even II the prisoners
had the keys
THE PRISONERS THAT WOULD NOT 60.
The prisoners who remained had no
particular inlucemUnt to leave. One was
An old man and cripple, and held in de.
fault of 81 900 bail on some charge pre-
lcrred against him in the United States
District lCOurt. The other, as VIC have
stated, was the boy Kelly, who Is simply
detained as q witness against his step.
father, Gilbert. The latter Is now con-
tiued in thejail of this county, and 1t was
in order to prevent any communication
between him and his sLcp.son that the
lad was sent to Washington county Jail,
The Sheriff offered three hundred dol
lars tor BriCeland's capture on his own
account, and it is believed that the Coun.
ty Commissioners will offer an additional
sum. Scouts were also sent out in all di-
rcCtons during Saturday night and yes.
terday; but no traces Of any Of the fugi. |
tives could be found. The chances of
capturing BriCeland IRE thought to be ex.
iremely small, as 1t is believed that his
friends had well matured plan for his
escape, and he is probably basking in lib
erty and the light oil some uncle Toms"
cabin fires in the mountains Of West Vir-
ginia by this time.
DRICELAND AT THE DOTrOM OF IT.
Since the above was in type, and at q
late hour last night we learned by
special adviceS from Washington that the
scouts who had been out all day yester-
day returned without having obtained
any traces OF BricCland. One OF the es-
capped prisoners who was confined for
vagrancy, had returned Of his own accord
and given himself up The superstition
expressed above, thai the escape was CT
.cctCd by means Of keys which Briceland
caused 10 bc made, is now generally be-
lieved by the Sheriff and citizens Of
Washington 10 be correct. From what
has been told by tho prisoner who re-
turned last night, it is believed that lead
was used in making casts OF the keys.
The most remarkable thing about the
whole affair is that tho fugtiVes were not
discovered as they passed through the
tOWhR The iail stands almost in the CEN