The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1875-08-10
FAREWELL TO TIE PENlrESrlARY-EscAPR

FAREWELL TO THE PENlTESTlARY-EsCA
OF FIVE LoNG-TERM CoSvICTS YESTERDAY
Morning. About Q O'Clock yesterday morn
ing Willis Dozer, William Hall ALIAS Laws,
Taliatcrro Yerby, Erasmus Moore, and
james Stokes (coored convicts) made good
their escape tI6m the penitentiary. Tney
were confined in cell on the third tier, look
ing out upon the east, and previous to the
accomplishment of their design bad no doubt
been preparing for several weeks. During
their hours of labor in the cooper-shop, and
with the assistance of other prisoners, they
gradually accumulated the means of etfectipg
their liberty, and on Sunday nlgnt
had on hand about forty feet OF
rome, made of blankets rolled up and
sewed together, set OF graphing
irons attached to q line three or Four feet long
and a little hand-saw made by hling teetl.
into a shoemaker 's.knite. PROBABLY most os
the flushing work was done Saturday n'gni,
Sunday (the five occupants Of the cell having
declined to attend church,, and on SUNNY
night. They cut through two OF tne ger
pendicular bars of their crlEWlndoW JUST De'
low the lower cross.bar, and then easily re-
moved the former by working them ost or
the sockets in the granite WindoW-sllii ine
cutting must have been commenced Naeh OF
more ago, as it was evident that aftop WORK
ing at it for while it was their custom 10
paste black shoemakers' overt the gaps
to conceal them from the view OF the officers
in making their rouaAs. The hADs having
been cut and removed Uhey wspe an inch
suuare), and an an aperture thus made large
enough to admit OF the passage aG a man, thu
blanket rope was secured to ane OF the ra-
naiulng bars of the windowsana the prison.
ers. one by ono, descended. into the y.ssd
which lies between the e1stasn wall OF the
enclosure and the eastern TaA of the heyse
shoe ped building. Where they handed
the ground WIS soft tronl Iecent rains. They
could therefore move about noi>siessly
thouuh the sentinel, if ae. had been Walking
his heat on the wall ard looking ous sharply.
could vfc9 we'll have seen thems especially
"a there were gas-ElAps along the whole
length Of abe wall.
Alter reaching The yard the conrie'!
moved down it forty or tilty yards. Som'
of tneir number climbed over wall whlcl
is about twenty feet high into the work,nol
vars. There they got possession OF the lad
der OF ladders used III the engine.room. an
| wiz them mounted the outer wall. Ibe
crossed the septry's beat, which is on ID
top 0. the wall, aud With their ropes let them
J selves dowa into The open lot east oil the pr
son. The point az which they hnded
near where Albert Fortunes feet -nrs
touched when be and his companion, aite
using the same ladders. secured treedot
much ia the s9me manner. 1t was Se1ecle
because from the peculiar conformation
the ground There the distance from the l"
of the wall to the ground is less than chs
where. -7 "r" ......* 1888
The escape was not discovered until II
guard wen. around to put out the ga
lights, when the rope dangling from the &C Sc
window revealed it all. How Tar on u
i fugilivs.s were at that hour, Of course no OF
I could tell. They did not change their strlpe
clothes before going, nor immediately ups
citing outside Of the walls, tnougn IL sew